The US Fest...

[Nitro Express]

They did settle into it about mid set. This is my favorite part. I was there. Memorial Day weekend in 1983. School let out and we drove to the US Festival. I think it was one of the best festivals in US history. The whole thing was great. I had been out in the sun all day and got sunburned and by the time VH hit the stage it had cooled down and I was getting the chills. I was pretty miserable actually. Actually I see and hear a lot watching the video footage that was impossible to experience being out there in that huge crowd. In many ways you get a better show watching the video.

[VAiN]

First of all - I think it's awesome you were there. Same for any other of you who lived it. Just fucking awesome.

This is a great show, and IMO, was the shift from hungry VH to successful VH.. it's interesting

[motherchicken]

Nitro was right on about watching the video as opposed to being there. I too was beat down, hungry, thirsty, sun burned and my back was killing me. On top of that the crowd would move back and forth near the stage and if you fell down you'd probably get stepped on a few times. Some drunken fuckers would be puking, your view blocked by some chick on some dudes shoulders. Some dickhead playing the bad ass just because you accidently bumped into him then backing down completely if you stand up to him. Some times he doesn't and you end up with torn clothes, a fat lip or maybe a bloody nose. The other guy the same. You walk away like nothing ever happened.
But it's all worth it because you were there.

[Hardrock69]

At least you can say you were there. It is not often one gets to be at some kind of legendary event.

[envy_me]

Part II of Dave's interview....

Yeah, thats what I was talking about.

[envy_me]

Go to a Van Halen show and you'll get same signals...DLR is a communication master...from another planet

Same signals?

[ashstralia]

You had to edit that?

[envy_me]

You had to edit that?

Yeah... I don't want any misunderstandings.

[motherchicken]

At least you can say you were there. It is not often one gets to be at some kind of legendary event.

The Us Fest was at least half assed thought out. There were huge showers to run around in to cool off. Everyone could see the stage. I went to Cal Jam II in Ontario in 78. Just a sea of people. I doubt half the people could even see the stage. Going to the bathroom and finding your way back to where you were sitting was an adventure in itself. Every time you stood up you lost some of your area. If it wasn't for all the jugs of kool aid with who knows what in them getting passed around people would have been passing out from dehydration. Instead some of them were flipping out from whatever was in those jugs with the kool aid. My best friend ended up with some kind of brain damage from that shit. He was never the same after that. It wasn't worth it in the long run.

[So this is love]

wtf do you want to know envy me...you bore me to death....you are so dumb!

[Nitro Express]

I was there. It was my second time seeing them. I only attended the sunday show at the Us. Quiet Riot, Motley Crue, Ozzy, Priest, Triumph, Scorpians and then came the waiting. I was only 23 but the heat of the day, the constant crowd stampedes and the lack of sleep the night before was taking it's toll. At one point I considered leaving from the front of the stage just to get out of the crush of the crowd up there. But I decided just to hang there and get shoved from one side to the other then back again. Hours passed, still we waited. Then they had some stupid ass space ship hanging from a helicopter filler where the aliens appeared on the screens talking some shit about coming millions of miles to see the show. The crowd started chanting bullshit bullshit bullshit. Then more waiting. Then some staged supposed backstage action came on the screens. Might have been interesting had the wait not been so long. Finally Van Halen hits the stage. Seemed like a good show at the time. But then again my brain was already cooked from the days festivities. The performance of the band is only part of the equation at festival shows.

Exactly. I had the chills. Miserable thinking I hope I live through this night. When I saw the spaceship I wish I had an anti-aircraft gun to shoot the fucker down. Of course it was that nerd Woz behind that shit but hey, without that guy there would be no festival and he did spend the money to make sure it was done right. The nerd Woz doesn't get the credit he deserves.

[Nitro Express]

Nitro was right on about watching the video as opposed to being there. I too was beat down, hungry, thirsty, sun burned and my back was killing me. On top of that the crowd would move back and forth near the stage and if you fell down you'd probably get stepped on a few times. Some drunken fuckers would be puking, your view blocked by some chick on some dudes shoulders. Some dickhead playing the bad ass just because you accidently bumped into him then backing down completely if you stand up to him. Some times he doesn't and you end up with torn clothes, a fat lip or maybe a bloody nose. The other guy the same. You walk away like nothing ever happened.
But it's all worth it because you were there.

I no longer could take it. I moved out of the crush and viewed from the more sparsely populated side lines. I had been fighting the shoving all day long. It's not bad if you are sandwiched in with a bunch of cute girls (dream on) but with smelly ass stoners about to puke. Not so good. The US Festival is where I really learned if you are out in the sun all day, you need a wide brimmed hat, you need to keep hydrated with water, and booze with no water in the sun is a bad idea. I wish they had camel back packs in those days. But then I would have just filled it with booze then. LOL!

[Nitro Express]

The Us Fest was at least half assed thought out. There were huge showers to run around in to cool off. Everyone could see the stage. I went to Cal Jam II in Ontario in 78. Just a sea of people. I doubt half the people could even see the stage. Going to the bathroom and finding your way back to where you were sitting was an adventure in itself. Every time you stood up you lost some of your area. If it wasn't for all the jugs of kool aid with who knows what in them getting passed around people would have been passing out from dehydration. Instead some of them were flipping out from whatever was in those jugs with the kool aid. My best friend ended up with some kind of brain damage from that shit. He was never the same after that. It wasn't worth it in the long run.

They had the water cannons too. Blasting the audience with water but you had to be close to the stage. I know one guy that went to Woodstock and he said it was totally overhyped. He said the thing is, it didn't degenerate into a riot that people thought was going to happen and then of course, someone filmed it and the nostalgia comes from the film more than the event itself. It's the same with the US Festival. I had no idea people would even be talking about the thing in 2012.

[Hardrock69]

In the Priest DVD, you can see the water cannons (ha...cannons, not really) spraying water over everyone. Great event to see, but yes, the conditions were extreme....

[Zing!]

Never went to anything as extreme as the US Fest, but my penchant for succumbing to heat exhaustion and anxiety around large crowds stems from the concert going days of my youth.