Pittsburgh Civic Arena PA. May 2nd 1970

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Pittsburgh Civic Arena PA. May 2nd 1970



"Ah, ladies and gentlemen, I don't know if you realize it, but tonight you're in for a special treat," says Jim Morrison. He's greeted with loud applause from the crowd gathered in Pittsburgh's Civic Arena on May 2, 1970.
"No, not that -- you only get that treat on full moons. Besides that, I know there are a lot of young people out there, and I wouldn't want anyone to faint," he says.
"The last time it happened, grown men were weeping. Policemen were turning in their badges." More applause. "Oh I get it, I get it.
Everyone was intimidated by all the security precautions and everything.
"Ah...well just remember, their motto is ‘Protect and Serve.'"

Someone in the crowd shouts, "Fuck 'em!"

This is one of the 'good' shows from 1970 including an excellent rendition of the funeral dirge 'Someday Soon' one of several excellent new songs the band would drop into their set during what were the Absolutely Live recording sessions.
Someday Soon played twice during that tour. Once poorly and as here once very well done.



The band take the stage.









Photos from the BMR release 'Live In Pittsburgh'




May 5th 1970
The Pitt News
Pittsburgh U PA Student newspaper

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May 2nd 1970 - Pittsburgh Civic Arena.
The Doors are a little slow getting started tonight, but by the time they arrive at their "People Get Ready" jam they are in high gear.
That unreleased jam goes over exceptionally well with the crowd, who are subsequently introduced to two additional new songs- "Universal Mind" and (the still
unreleased) "Someday Soon."
The only other known time that "Someday Soon" is performed will be one month later in Seattle, and that version is pitiful in comparison to this
one.
After superb versions of both of songs, the audience is busy shouting for favourites when Manzarek suddenly bursts into the opening lines of "When the Music's Over"
and the crowd goes wild.
Morrison turns toward Krieger and breaks into a wide smile and Robby reciprocates in kind.
Tonight's version of the song rises to new heights when Morrison begins inserting rare snippets of his poetry in between his legendary howls and groans.

When the song is over, the band takes a pause and Morrison requests a cigarette from the audience. He is bombarded with single butts and full packs.
Morrison gratefully scoops up a handful, strolls over to Manzarek, and the two of them take a brief smoke break.
During it, one heckler successfully provokes Morrison into flipping him off, and then, after a few moments, Jim returns to his mike and makes some brief comments about his experiences in Miami.
Then the band continues with another unreleased song- a rendition of "Close to You" featuring Manzarek on lead vocals, during which Morrison moves to the side of the stage.
As Manzarek cries out his invitation of "Wanna get close to you, Pittsburgh," a portion of the audience responds by spilling out of their seats and advancing toward the stage.

The arena management reacts by bringing up the house lights, but by now nothing can interfere with the high spirits that pervade the auditorium.
After the song, the band members joke around, Robby dances a jig, and Manzarek is beaming with a radiant smile as he breaks into introductory organ passages to "Light My Fire."
During the instrumental excursion, Morrison spins about the stage, stopping frequently to lean over and kiss or be kissed by impassioned women in the audience.
At one point, he gathers up all of the bras that have been hurled at him and playfully holds them up like some sort of a preposterous trophy.
This performance is recorded for Absolutely Live.
Also performing: The Blues Image. Capacity 17,500
The Doors On The Road

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Bright Midnight CD: The Doors Live In Pittsburgh 1970
Recorded on May 2, 1970 at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena, the album includes more than an hour of fire and energy from Jim Morrison, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore and Robby Krieger. Get the scoop on the show and the album from producer Bruce Botnik.



What a concert, in an arena with a retractable roof, which, unfortunately, the building’s management wouldn’t open. Jim crooned and screamed the entire night, but he wasn’t in a talkative mod with the audience until late in the show.
In Boston, Jim was drunk and out of it for both performances, and the guys had to take up the slack. This show, on the other hand, was different — Jim was as clear as he could be onstage, and the guys moved to and fro with him, trusting the journey.
Sometimes The Doors were raging with fire and energy; at other times, when Jim jumped into the lyric of a different song, in the middle of something else, they were right there with him, sometimes taking maybe a second or two to make the leap.
This was the performance magic of The Doors. You could witness the concert of a lifetime — or be mystified and at a loss for words.


Before The Show:

Backstage was unusually quiet that evening in Pittsburgh. In one corner was Robby, sitting with his new girlfriend., Lynn (who later became Mrs. Krieger), caressing his Gibson SG guitar, unplugged and warming up on a song called “Sweet Substitute.”
In another part of the green room was John, circling, his drumsticks in hand, running over the song list in his head. Over by the door, Ray huddled with Paul Rothchild, the band’s producer, and they were in conversation with the local Elektra Records promotion man. In the middle of the room, Jim sat at the piano, playing to himself and deep in though. Bill Siddons, The Doors’ manager, dropped by and said, “Five minutes, and you’re on!” I ran back to the Fedco Audio truck, put the tape machine into “record,” and the guys headed for the stage.



Showtime:


There are some absolutely terrific moments on this album, as the stage was always a place of experimentation for The Doors. Check out the 22-plus minutes of “When The Music’s Over,” where Jim leads Ray, Robby and John into bits of songs they never played live and, in the process, brought in snippets of other songs to extend and enhance the musical dialogue.
Of further interest is “Close To You,” sung by Ray with backup by Jim. Ray always sang this song in concert, and he’d also sung it in 1968 at my wedding, sort of as a “message to the newlyweds.”
This album is a chronicle of a live performance that, coupled with all the rest of the concerts from the 1970 tour, are a magnificent document of The Doors as they were meant to be heard — live, in concert.


After the show:

They say that an army moves on its stomach, and, on the road The Doors were no different. Every town had a place that you had to go to after the show, sometimes even before the show.
In Pittsburgh, one spot in particular, Primanti Bros., down in the Strip District, was a “must-eat.” It stood out for its amazing sandwiches stuffed with the meat of your choice, cheese, coleslaw, fries, sauces and sliced tomatoes sandwiched between two thick slices of Italian bread. Those were the days when cholesterol was just a word, and Primanti Bros. was where we headed after the concert to get our fill of it.

— Bruce Botnick



The concert tapes with a bit of Phily

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