Live accounts of the May 5th, 1969 Greenlake Aquatheatre show

I worked backstage at this concert. It was an afternoon concert with Three
Dog Night and a group from Canada that I cannot remember. I got to work
backstage because a friend of mine tipped me off on how to do it. The show
was put on by Boyd Grafmire Productions. The on site manager was a Hawaiian woman named Geri. I was told to find her and make my pitch to her. I found her and asked. She said yes. I was in. We basically moved stuff off the stage. The Green Lake Aqua Theatre was built to put on shows by the Aqua Follies. The was a pool (moat?) in front of the stage with two 40 foot diving towers on either side. The seating capacity was probably 2000 at most. The show started around 1pm with the Canadian band on first. Then Three Dog Night. I remember they played through Bruce amps. Mike Alsop played a Telecaster. Floyd Sneed played a double bass Rogers drumset. I almost dropped the bass drum setup when we struck the stage. Zep was on last. I was given a cherry job. Go out to the street to meet the band when they came in. I was given a blue armband to identify me as a crew member. I was 14 but big for my age so I probably looked like I could handle the responsibility. I found the band in the van as advertised. I stopped them and told them I would guide them in. They called me a string of obscenities, and they sounded drunk. I walked the van to the back gate through the crowd. We were in. We set up Zep's stuff behind Three Dog Nights' stuff. Jimmy Page was using Rickenbacker Transonic amps and cabinets. The cabinets have a unique trapaziodal shape. I don't remember what John Paul Jones used, or what drums Bonham
had. I do remember the Danelectro guitar that Jimmy Page used as it was
next to me for most of the show. The band came on around 5pm on an unusally
nice day for early May in Seattle. Of the songs I remember Robert Plant saying
to the audience that they were going to play the single "Communication
Breakdown", to a light smattering of boos and requests for "Good Times, Bad Times", which is what the local stations were playing more often.

The show was hosted by radio DJ Burl Barer. If I remember right he was from KOL-FM, though it could have been KISW. I sat next to him for most of the show on a steamer trunk to the side of Jimmy Page. In July 2001 I received a telephone solicitation from the Washington Firefighters Association announcing the next voice I would hear was going to be Burl Barer. I told him I sat next to him at Led Zep Greenlake. He said "I remember it well..." and we talked for the next five minutes about the concert. He said he has pictures of the concert. I might be in some. I also saw the Gold Creek Park conert at the Seattle Pop Festival and the Seattle Center Arena in October, both in 1969.

courtesy: http://www.geocities.com/ledcollector.geo/May111969.html


I also attended this concert on my 15th birthday. My good friends older sister took us. I do remember "Communication Breakdown" and thinking the band was going to fall in the water and get electrocuted. My fuzzy 53 year old recollection has LZ opening for TDN. Steve Slaton from KZOK was also there. You and Steve are correct, TDN opened for LZ. J. Scott Kirkland