Lou Reed and Todd Rundgren

Fifty years ago today I went down to the Electric Factory on a Friday night to see the Velvet Underground and Nazz. It was interesting seeing two rock icons performing with their bands before becoming big solo stars but of course I certainly didn't know that at the time. This was actually my second time seeing the Velvet Underground. I saw them earlier in the summer at a Be-In on the Belmont Plateau in Fairmount Park. I was still disappointed that there was no Nico on stage.

The show only cost $3.00 to get in and parents were free. I can't imagine my mom or dad going to that show. I would take the trolley downtown and walk over to the club. My parents had no idea where I was that night. I was just out. Because I was under 18 I had to go to the opening show so I was probably home by 10 pm on a Friday night. Well, maybe not. I had been working on summer at the machine shop where my father was the shop foreman which is where I got money for shows like this. And for buying albums too. I especially saw a lot of music in 1968 and 1969 before I was off to the Navy.