My First Concert… In Love with Donny!

MY FIRST CONCERT

Was on Sept 8th, 1972 when I was about to turn

10 years old!

The ONLY THING IN LIFE I wanted for my birthday was to go see

Donny Osmond!!!

(I could care less about the Brothers!!!)

They were appearing at the Anaheim Stadium which was only about 15 minutes from my house in Norwalk, California.

Donny Osmond was my heart throb… There was no other man in the world for me… even though I was actually only 9 at the time!

I had him pinned up on walls, on my notebooks, I had all the teen magazines that had stories about him….. but I would only buy the ones with him on the COVER or in the centerfold!

When we got to the stadium I was so overwhelmed! I had never been to Anaheim stadium. It was huge!

There were so many grown ups. I was a little put off by all the other little girls there,

I wanted Donny all to myself !

I was there with my Mom, our next door neighbor and her son, Dale.

(I secretly had a crush on him too, but he was my back up in case Donny and I didn’t work out!)

I can`t really remember all the details of the entire experience but I do remember Dale making fun of me when I started crying when Donny sang “Go Away Little Girl”.

I remember the thunderous waves of 30,000 screaming fans… even some of the moms in the crowd! Every time Donny would sing solo, the girls would lose control! I remember crying to my mom, it wasn’t fair… I wanted to be closer to him… I didn’t want the night to end. I cried more that night than I had ever cried in my life! I cried because I was happy I was there, I cried because of the songs, I cried because I wanted to see him up close…. we were in the nosebleed section of Anaheim Stadium, but I could see him on the big screens!

For weeks after that concert I was on top of the world!

I wore out every 8 track and album I owned, and I owned them all….

I hung up even more pictures in my bedroom.

I was love sick!

UNTIL…..

Bobby Sherman came along!

That fling didn’t last very long….. I moved on to Keith Partridge, had a brief thing for Tom Jones… yes he was a much older man!

Then as I grew older, my tastes changed drastically.

I went to the California Jam 2 concert at the Ontario Motor Speedway when I was in High School. Boy was that an experience!

There were close to 300,000 people in attendance to see the likes of such awesome performers as,  Ted Nugent, Aerosmith, Santana, Dave Mason, Foreigner, Heart, Bob Welch (with special guests Stevie Nicks and Mick Fleetwood), Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush and Rubicon.

People were having sex right out in the open, smoking pot and taking acid and LSD right in public view. I remember having the most terrifying moment in my life when I had to go to the bathroom. I had to wade through this massive sea of people and at one point, I was totally sandwiched on all sides by people who seemed to be suffocating me. I couldn’t find my bearings, I couldn’t get out, it was like I was drowning in a sea of people. I was absolutely terrified… and just when I thought I was going to pass out, I popped out in a little break in the crowd that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Like a parting of the Red Sea!!!

I went through most of my teenage and adult years loving Rock & Roll, living the lifestyle. I listened to bands like Journey, Blue Oyster Cult, 38 Special, Kansas, Led Zepplin, Van Halen, Styx, Phil Collins, Rush, Aerosmith, Black Sabbath…

YES… I listened to Black Sabbath.

Please forgive me!

In 1991 I was introduced to Christian Contemporary music at… guess where…. Anaheim Stadium!

I was working at an In N Out Burger and was invited by my boss at the time to attend a thing called the Harvest Crusade. I knew it had something to do with God but I wanted to go just to be on the good side of my boss. I listened to some really good “church” music! I never knew they had that kind of music! I heard Pastor Greg Laurie speak about Jesus and how He died on the cross for me. This Pastor wasn’t like any other Pastor I had heard. He looked and sounded like a surfer! He spoke my language! I could relate. I ended up walking the aisle onto the field that night and accepting Jesus as my Savior!

In 2002 I started working for a Christian Radio Station in Fort Smith www.kzkzfm.com and I have had the privilege of driving around (being a runner) and supporting back stage, artists like Casting Crowns, Mercy Me, Third Day, Toby Mack, Chonda Pierce, Sandy Patty, Michael W Smith, Jeremy Camp, SuperChick and more. I will post some of the pictures I have taken with some of these bands in another post…. so stayed tuned!

But just to set the record straight…. I still think Donny Osmond is “one” of the hottest men around!!!!

So what was your first concert?

I want to know!!

Tagged as: Anaheim Stadium, Christian Music, Donny Osmond, first concert, In N Out Burger