University of Nebraska Kearney - Blue and Gold Yearbook (Kearney, NE)

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Out of concern for the Ameri- can farmer 69,000 tickets for the Farm Aid IJI concert, held in Lincoln this fall, went on sale more than a month in ad- vance. Advance ticket sales apparently were to cover the estimated cost of actu- ally putting on the show. The show was aired as a telethon. The cash value of a ticket to Farm Aid III was diminished a few days before the date of the concert by the release of 2,000 more tickets for sale by Farm Aid International. This extinguished all profit-scalping hopes and made the con- cert a true charity event. Those who had tickets to sell could be found selling for prices as low as $5. Prices were rumored, however, to be more expensive out of state for those who had not ordered tickets when they first went on sale. Even though the concert was not a sell-out, concert crowds en- countered tight quarters as an estimated 10,000 fans herded onto the tarp-covered Husker stadium. urp wo men from Denver were J- the first in line. ” “Sunday World-Herald The 70,000 spectators attending Farm Aid began lining up before 8 a.m. This was unexpected as officials had an- nounced earlier that 8 a.m. was to be the designated hour to begin the lines. Due possibly to this announcement most of the number stayed away until later in the day which made standing in the morning line somewhat more tolerable. According to the Sunday Omaha World-Herald, two men from Denver were the first in line. They airived at 2 a.m. and sat outside the stadium drink- ing beer until the rest of the mob started to arrive. Later, due to the congestion outside the stadium, fans were allowed to enter 45 minutes earlier than the scheduled 10 a.m. opening. This delighted and sub- dued the crowd which was comprised mainly of tired and probably irritable people who had either undergone a big night on the town in Lincoln or had driv- en nearly all night to reach the concert. Upon entering the stadium, fans headed directly for the most treasured spots, directly in front of the revolving stage. Early fans were rewarded by the it150,000 soft drinks, 45,000 J-hot dogs sold. ” -Sunday Journal Star chance to catch souvenir hats tossed by concert helpers. Those not so early could pay 810 for a hat later, T-shirts went for close to $20, depending upon the quality, design, or type desired. Another option, one might purchase a shirt from a man peddling them out of his backpack for $15. Other peddled items included soft drinks, Runzas, Kentucky Fried Chick- en, Little King sandwiches and various others. Lincoln’s Sunday Journal Star reported on the amount of food con- sumed at the concert; “150,000 soft drinks and 45,000 hotdogs.” If Fann Aid fans planned not to pay vender prices, they were allowed to take in sandwiches, a small quart-size ther- mos, a one-foot by one-foot cooler and most any other food they could carry ex- cept alcohol. Most attending were searched at the door (women’s purses exluded in most cases). These searches created numerous stories of interest to the collection of con- cert gossip. One man attempted, according to media reports after the concert, to con- ceal a fifth of whiskey as a submarine sandwhich. Other methods mentioned at the concert were plastic bags of liquor floating in water coolers. One of the most original at the scene was vodka in a con- tact lense solution bottle. The cans of soda not making it past the search gate (cans and glass bottles were banned for the day) were apparently donated to a lo- cal food bank. The charity event attracted a vari- ety of entertainers. Many of the entertainers adapted their songs to the Farm Aid cause. Arlo Guthrie, son of the famous Woody Guth- rie, adapted his hit, “Alice’s Restaurant” to create a sing-a-long with the audience. Other names which also drew partic- ipation from the crowd - Exile, Rita Coo- lidge, Bill Carter, Joe Walsh, John Kay and Steppenwolf, Lou Reed and John Prine. This order brought the show’s schedule up to the gospel finale with Wil- lie Nelson and his band. This finale marked the sign off of the Nashville net- work covering the first half of the con- cert. The second half, probably seen by more viewers, was filled with the Fabu- lous Thunderbirds, Neil Young, Kris Kristofferson, The Grateful Dead (via satellite from Madison Square Garden), John Cougar Mellencamp and a sched- uled “Ensemble Finale” with all the performers of Farm Aid III, Missed from the concert was Merle Haggard, who although listed on the pro- gram, was unable to appear because of illness. Earlier cancellations were an- nounced previous to the concert date by Bruce Hornsby and the Range, Bon Jovi and Michael Martin Murphy who was scheduled to give a concert in the Kear- ney area. Despite these absences and the Unique ways to conceal al- cohol: — hairspray bottles — film cases — fake binoculars — two-liter soda pop bottles (my personal favorite) — dug-out submarine sandwich buns — ice compartments of coolers — boda bags hopes and rumors that Bruce Spring- steen and or U-2 might appear just to surprise the faithful Farm Aid audience, the sound quality and concert manage- ment of the event was reported as the best in the series of concerts to benefit the farm cause. The all-star finish, “This Land is Your Land” led by the familiar voice of Arlo Guthrie. The telecast for the concert ended with this song but the concert wasn’t over yet. An untelevised final 15 minutes was 27

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I “IS YOUR LAND”

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presented as a surprise bonus by Joe Walsh, who had technical difficulties PARTYIN’ WITH THE CITY FOLK The impression was left that the entertainers really did care. This was not just publicity. This was real life, put on by and for real people. with the revolving stage earlier in the concert. This was just the token a crowd — tired but not quite ready to finish their experience at Farm Aid — had hoped for. The impression was left that the entertainers really did care. This was not just for publicity. This was real life, put on by and for real people. Angie Steffen BE36 After we checked to see if we had the necessary supplies — junk food, blankets, cool- er, camera and carefully concealed alcohol, we prepared to leave for Farm Aid III! As we entered the gates of Memorial Stadium, at noon, after a thorough checking from the guards, we could feel the excitement of the day’s fes- tivities in the air. We trudged miles and miles, sitting in every available seat, un- til we found a seat with a semi-decent view up in the nosebleed section! We then prepared ourselves for quite a show! First came Willie Nelson who, yes, once again is on the road. He put on a good performance then brought out his “Indian friends” who danced for the crowd in traditional Indian gear. Everyone was so hyped for the day to begin they couldn’t help but dance and sing along. Through the day we heard un- knowns like Boa Constrictor Betty, I A woman and child soak up rays and good vibrations. mean Rattlesnake Annie, and other vari- ous acts. One of the more popular groups was the Unforgiven. The days festivities went on and in between the good acts, we’re talking far in between, what seemed like over a hun- dred million people got a little restless. So to get the tension of the day’s events TTT e trudged for miles and VV miles, sitting in every available seat, until we found a seat with a semi-decent view up in the nosebleed section! We then prepared ourselves for quite a show! out of their system people resorted to the everlasting “Cornhusker” wave. To break the monotony, many drun- kards (by this time that included 3 4 of the crowd) amused themselves by toss- ing toilet paper, plastic Farm Aid III col- lecter’s edition-cups, and various other articles they had with them, for instance: bologna, chips, popcorn, bras, underwear and friends. By this time we were asked kindly by the billboard to stop because “people were getting hurt.” By late afternoon things were really starting to pick up when Steppenwolf sang “Born to Be Wild,” which really got the crowd on their feet. One thing that always boggles one’s mind is, “How come there is never a line at the men’s room but the women’s line circles the stadium at least three times?” Well, I and a bunch of women recruits decided to see for ourselves by storming the men’s bathroom. The men were not happy about this, by the time our idea caught on, there were more women in the bathroom than men. By this time, we decided to see what was happening up front. To get up front, you had to be able to worm your way through scads of people trying not to touch anyone because of the millions of communicable diseases. You also had to have the skill of stepping over people, 28