My First Concert: Berlin and Roxy Music in Fresno, California 1983

Seeing your first "real" concert is a special occasion that most people remember. I'm no exception to that, I remember my first concert, how much fun I had and how it launched my love for music into another stratosphere. Making my first concert even more special was the fact that I won two tickets via a radio contest and I had just turned 13 years old. My first concert was in April, 1983 in Fresno, California. It provided me with a chance to see a new wave band called Roxy Music and their opener, Berlin.

When I won the tickets, my mom was not inclined to let me go, even though I intended to take my 15 year old cousin with me, my partner in crime! I did a lot of begging and mom compromised by buying an extra ticket for an older and wiser cousin to take us to the concert and keep and eye on us from a safe distance. I was ok with it because that older cousin was a cool guy and I knew he wouldn't embarrass us at the concert.

I showed up the night of the concert full of enthusiasm and excitement. I was really hyped up about seeing Roxy Music and I had not given much thought to this new band, Berlin. The concert was supposed to take place outside, but due to bad weather it got moved indoors. That turned out to be a good thing, because we were able to squish through the crowd and stand right up in front of the stage as Berlin came out to play. Even though it was my first real concert, I knew enough to know I wanted to be right up front for the action.

Berlin came out and immediately started rocking the roof with the use of heavy drums, keyboards, guitar and the fabulous voice of lead singer Terri Nunn. They were promoting their new album called Pleasure Victim, which had only seven songs. Still, when they played Masquerade and The Metro I knew that I would love the band and buy their cassette tape. I admit that when they played Sex (I'm A...), I was a little shocked. It was not only a sexy song, but it was pretty obvious that the lead singer and the guitarist, John Crawford were an item. They put on a racy performance to go along with the song. My mom would not have approved.

When Roxy Music finally hit the stage, I was officially feeling like a teenager. I was dancing and singing along and my older cousin was at least 10 rows behind us, so I didn't feel like I was being baby sat. Bryan Ferry was the lead singer of Roxy Music and he had a true British swagger about him. The group was promoting what would turn out to be their last album, Avalon. I'm glad I was able to see them perform before they disbanded, but the truth is, I liked Berlin better that night.

My luck continued later that summer when I won not once, but twice, two sets of tickets to see the August, Fresno show of Journey, Eddie Money and Bryan Adams. Mom gave the go ahead for that one too because I took my cousin and sold the other two tickets to two older cousins who agreed to take us to the outdoor concert. I used the money from those two tickets to buy a Journey t-shirt plus food and sodas. It was and still is one of the best concerts I've ever been to in my life. 1983 was a great year for me and it truly gave a push to my love of music, especially live music.

Related articles by Sherri Thornhill:

AC Contributor's Tell Us About Their Favorite Concerts

How to Make a Great Mixed Tape/CD or Playlist for Anyone

Top 10 Pop/Punk/New Wave Bands of the 80s

10 Things 80s Songs Convinced Us to Do

Source: The author's memory