December 3rd, 1979... Thirty years ago Thursday, I and some friends from Lamar Elementary were driven by my best friends' mom from Lamar Elementary to the Amarillo Civic Center after school to pass various protesters and stand crushed in a line for the concert event of a lifetime. It was not my first concert, but it was the best ever. After an unknown band was booed offstage (the Rockets?), around 8pm, the lights blacked out, the fog and smoke rolled offstage as the spotlights and lasers in red, blue, green and purple hit the stage. Strobes started going off, and, as the announcer screamed, "You wanted the best, you got the best, the hottest band in the world..." up they rose. Comic book heroes, part Elvis, part Justice League, part Beatle-level hysteria..."KISS!" Fire, bombs, and Rock 'n' Roll deafened and blinded us all, and I for one was never the same. Only another KISS fan would understand, but I share it nonetheless.
Thanks for it all...
Michael Archer,
Amarillo, Texas
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Posted on 12/02/2009