Down comes the Grande

[Brian Cady]

>From the Detroit Free-Press
http://tinyurl.com/goc78

FIVE THINGS: About the Grande Ballroom
August 15, 2006
BY DAN AUSTIN

A church has bought the Grande Ballroom on Grand River
near Joy in Detroit. The rundown but historic rock
venue will likely be torn down.

JAMS KICKED

The Grande Ballroom (pronounced GRAND-ee) might have
opened in 1928, but many metro Detroiters remember it
best as a counterculture haven of psychedelic light
shows, drugs and rock and roll from 1967 until it
closed in 1972.

The MC5 served as the San Francisco-style club's
unofficial house band and recorded its landmark album
"Kick Out the Jams" there in 1968. The Who first
performed its rock opera "Tommy" there.

ALL THE STARS

The Grande was a major tour stop. A sampling of the
artists who played there:

The Stooges; Cream; Chuck Berry; Janis Joplin; Led
Zeppelin; Frank Zappa; the Yardbirds; the Doors; the
Velvet Underground; Love; the Byrds; Pink Floyd; Van
Morrison; Sly and the Family Stone; Howlin' Wolf; the
Turtles; the Grateful Dead; John Lee Hooker; Jeff
Beck, and Creedence Clearwater Revival.

BEATLE KILLER

WKNR DJ Russ Gibb was essentially the Grande's
promoter, and, in October 1969, he helped kill Paul
McCartney. Well, the rumor that "Paul is dead" is one
of rock's greatest myths.

Although the source of the McCartney rumor was never
pinpointed, it caught fire when Gibb got an on-air
call about it.

Gibb became a video and computer teacher at Dearborn
High. He has a site where he sounds off on issues:
www.russgibbatrandom.com.

TAMER TIMES

Before guitar riffs tore through its crowds, the
sounds of big band acts waltzed along the Grande's
walls. It also did time as a roller rink.

BLEAK FUTURE

The odds of saving the Grande are slim. There are huge
holes in the roof. The elements have rotted its
ballroom floors. Brick walls have collapsed or had
sledgehammers taken to them.

But such vandalism also uncovered an interesting
footnote: Its bricks have the initials "J.A.M." on
them. "Kick Out the Jams," indeed. To see what the
inside of the Grande looks like now, go to
http://detroityes.com/nhood/03grande_full.htm.



-Brian in Atlanta
The Who This Month!
http://www.thewhothismonth.com

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