Memory:Joe Nichols
I had the great pleasure of seeing the Civilian tour in 1980 at the Tower Theater, in Philadelphia. Someone mentioned this show above, and the New Wave band that opened. Actually, that was a pre-"Stroke" Billy Squire. He was playing much different music then, but just as bad as his more popular crap. And the audience was very patient... to a point. Eventually, a "Giant,Giant" chant began. Billy said,"What's that you're saying? You have to learn to enunciate." [GIANT, GIANT] "Giant? Well, we'll play some of their songs later..." [!!]
I was so happy to be seeing one of my favorite bands. I remember Derek's voice just wrapping around the hall, the percussion piece, and John coming out from behind his drums to play guitar on "Friends". This was the only show I saw, as I hadn't heard of them prior to the release of The Missing Piece (and didn't drive until '79), which I bought after hearing a radio commercial. A much maligned album, but I think only because of the brilliance of the earlier stuff. Actually, it was the second album I ever bought, after Sgt. Pepper. I'm glad to see Gentle Giant still inspires such interest. GREAT band!