The Smashing Pumpkins were hugely important to me as I was coming of age. MTV put “Cherub Rock” the first single from their newest album at the time, Siamese Dream, on heavy rotation. That got me to buy the album, and soon after I purchased their debut album, Gish. I loved them both. They contained some of the first music that I took really seriously. I listened to them over and over. I studied the different parts of the songs. I can remember taking my two stereo speakers, placing them around my head, and then listening to the music while lying on my floor with the lights out – the music swirling around my ears.
When I learned the Pumpkins were coming to Tulsa, I was so excited. I’d never been to a rock concert before. It is possible my parents took me to something when I was younger. My mother went to a lot of concerts in the 1960s, including pop bands like Herman’s Hermits and even The Doors. She used to catch Neil Diamond every time he came to town, but adulthood, responsibilities, and three kids kept her away from music for the most part while I was growing up. I don’t think my dad was ever much for live music.
I think the only concerts I’d really been to were gospel groups. I remember seeing a group called Acapella in the very venue I’d be seeing The Smashing Pumpkins. That was part of the Soul Winning Workshop the Churches of Christ put on every year. We didn’t believe in instrumental music with our worship songs, so a cappella music was where it was at.
Anyway, the Pumpkins were playing at the Expo Square in Tulsa, which is one of those pavilion-type arenas with a big open area in the middle and stands circling around it. The type of place you could hold a soccer match or a hockey event, but being Oklahoma, I think it was often used for rodeos and cow competitions. For my concert, the stage was set up on one side with the rest of the floor open to the audience. We had tickets in the stands. Front row, not too terribly far from the stage.
I was with my friend Dustin and someone else. Probably his friend Kris. I was so excited.
For some reason on the floor, up near the stage, they had set these big concrete barriers. The type of thing you see on the highway when they are doing construction. They were just randomly set out for the first fifteen feet or so beyond the state. At the time I figured they were there to keep people from stage diving or moshing (do people still do that at concerts?). That seemed terribly stupid, as people were still going to do that, and now they were likely going to hurt themselves bashing into concrete.
Security seemed awfully tight as well. There were a lot of guards standing around. I remember several fans up in the stands periodically trying to jump down to the floor. They’d run toward the stage, inevitably being caught by security and sent back up. I remember one kid kept jumping down near us, getting caught each time. At about his fourth attempt, he was escorted out of the venue.
A band called Red Red Meat opened for them. I’d never heard of them. I remember liking them, which was probably more of a product of having never been to a rock concert before and being overwhelmed by the entire scene. Still, I do remember wishing they’d hurry up and let the Pumpkins play.
When they did finish their set, they played The Wizard of Oz without sound on a big screen behind the stage. I thought that was cool for some reason. I thought everything was cool. This was all so new to me. I was just terribly excited to be there.
The band finally came on, and they rocked. I don’t remember much about the actual music except that it was awesome, and I could feel D’Arcy’s bass thumping inside my chest. I don’t remember what songs they played. It felt like they played every song I knew, which would have been every song off of Gish and Siamese Dream.
But it is all fuzzy except for how wonderful it all was. I remember Billy Corgan being in good spirits. And then came the encore. I knew about encores from movies and TV shows, but I really thought they were something special. I didn’t realize every band always comes back. So I stood there clapping and shouting, hoping with all of my heart they would come play another song.
It took them a while, but they did come back. I remember Corgan apologizing that it took them so long but that there was some old episode of Star Trek playing on the TV in the dressing rooms, and they got caught up in it. They played another song or two and then were gone for good. I stood there for a little bit hoping they’d come back again, but the lights came up and the crowd dispersed.
The show was over, but that feeling lasted forever.
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