1970 LA Forum

The Jackson 5 break attendance records in two cities

LOS ANGELES. Calif. – The Jackson 5 broke the Los Angeles Forum concert attendance record with 18.675 paid admissions to the second of the two concert performances in California. The first concert, at San Francisco’s Cow Palace turned away hundreds of fans from the overcrowded arena which has a seating capacity of 13.514. The Los Angeles Concert grossed $105.000 for the elated Elgin Baylor Productions.

On the night of the second concert the popular singing group was informed that they had just become the first singing group ever to replace the Beatles in the number one position on pop record charts, twice.

Jackie (Ebony, September 1970)

The Jackson 5 have been gaining popularity at so rapid a rate that it amazes even Motown Records. They amaze audiences even more, however. Michael Jackson is incredibly relaxed on stage and is able to control the capacity crowds which turn out to see the group by holding them virtually glued to their seats, mesmerized by his innate abilities as a showman.

The entire group has special appeal to Black youth, primarily because they are black youngsters from the same background as most of their fans. Thus the group is virtually and vibrantly of the people who love and admire them. These young men have become real live heroes and their youth makes identification easier for the millions of youngsters who buy their records. Their ever-growing popularity has led to speculation that they will out do the Beatles in fanpower, also.

They have so inspired youngsters near their own ages that many have been moved to write poems to them, draw pictures of them, compose songs and form groups of their own, emulating them.

Their appeal in unanimous among boys and girls alike.

In keeping with this inspiration of youth, SOUL asked one of their peers to contribute his impression of the Jackson Five show performed in Los Angeles.

Tal Hawkins attends Los Angeles’ Carmel High. He is sixteen years old and will enter eleventh grade in September. It is with great pride that we present his impressions of the impact the Jackson 5 have made on today’s music scene.

Tito (Ebony, September 1970)

  A night to remember –By Tal Hawkins

The night of June 20, 1970 will reign eternally in the minds of those who saw the Jackson 5 show. It was one of the most breath-taking shows in the history of the Forum. It was a suspenseful event that kept the audience captivated throughout the whole night in spite of sound problems. An array of talent was displayed that evening in the forum of three acts.

The first was the now popular Rare Earth. The group is composed of six young men with an immense amount of musical talent. And they expressed their talent that night to its fullest. They sang three songs of which their current hit “Get Ready” was the finale. While in the process of singing “Get Ready”, they each put on an individual musical extravaganza that held the attention of those viewing the show until the end.

Out of all of those who contributed to this musical exhibition, the Conga player took the show during his sequence. An appropriate round of applause was given to him as a recognition of his talent.

At the close of their performance the audience let them know that they had satisfactorily entertained them.

   A SUDDEN CHANGE

Now originally the second act was billed for Ike & Tina Turner. But due to the sudden illness of Tina, they were unable to fulfill their commitment. But all was not lost, because an equivalent replacement was arranged in Ike & Tina Turner’s place. It was the ever-popular Ice Man, Jerry Butler.

Jerry put on a show composed of his many past hits and a couple of songs recorded by other artists. In his mod-styled bell-bottom outfit, Jerry displayed his well-known singing ability, which makes it obvious why he is the one and only Ice Man.

Among his many hits, Jerry sang “Moody Woman,” “Never Gonna Give You Up,” “Western Union Man,” and others. While singing these songs, Mr. Butler brought you back to the time when these songs were made, and the memories that came with them. All and all I would say no mistakes were made in finding a suitable replacement for Ike & Tina Turner and I’ll bet the audience felt the same way.

Jermaine (Jet, August 31^st 1972)

   THE GOOD PART

Now here comes the good part, the performance of the Jackson 5. First a mighty introduction was given to them by Master of Ceremonies Rick Holmes. Then the Jackson 5 entered going right into their act. In doing this they immediately received the impact of the infinite roars and screams coming at them from all angles possible.

At the close of their first number, there were technical difficulties with Jermaine Jackson’s bass guitar amplifier. This incident caused a brief hold up of the show. During this slight intermission Michael Jackson, who is lead singer for the group, walked over to the mike and said “How are you doing out there?” The female part of the crowd responded in an uproar of “Fine!”

When the corrections were made to Jermaine’s guitar, the MC expressed their deepest regrets and continued with a reintroduction of the Jackson 5. At this, they reentered and began to sing their second song, and first million seller, “I Want You Back.”

Among their other songs such as “Who’s Loving You,” which practically brought the house down, “I Don’t Know Why I Love You,” “ABC,” “Zipp a Dee Doo Dah,” “It’s Your Thing,” “I Found That Girls,” “Stand,” “Walk On Bye,” “There Was A Time,” “Thank You,” and the very difficult Joe Cocker hit “Feelin’ Alright.”

For this act and the others there was a colorful light displayed which brightened up the whole show. The person or persons who worked on these lights should be commended for their knowledge of light effects. These lights brightened up the outfits of the performers and really made them look good.

In the middle of their performance Jermaine Jackson was featured singing lead to a pretty melodied song, “I Found That Girl.” Jermaine executed this superbly with the obvious talent born in his family. He too, caused a totally immense outburst of screaming and yelling from the girls, and even the boys.

There was one particular performance I enjoyed and this was “Walk On By,” in which Michael Jackson, Jackie Jackson and Marlon Jackson were features performing a soft, smooth, rhythmical dance routine to the background music of Tito Jackson, Jermaine Jackson, Johnny Jackson, and Ronnie Rancier.

The biggest highlight of the show featured Michael Jackson dancing to “There Was a Time.” He did such dances as the James Brown, the Camel Walk, and the Funky Chicken. In doing each he proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is truly a master showman.

a picture from the booklet of the ‘Live at the Forum’ cd (Thanks to Nadine for the scan! )

   A HASTY EXIT

To finish their show the Jackson 5 sang their current number one hit “The Love You Save.” By this time the crowd was unable to contain themselves, because before the Jackson 5 could finish the song, they were mobbed by the girls in front of the stage, and many others who had come from all parts of the Forum. The Jackson 5 then hurriedly exited to safety through the back of the stage, into their chauffeur-driven limousine, and home.

The crowd was then released for now the show was over. In summing up, I can say that this was an unforgettable event that has already gone down in Forum history, and will go down in the history of showbusiness.