Tower Theater
Encyclopedia
The Tower Theater is located in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania at the intersection of 69th and Ludlow Streets. It is adjacent to 69th Street Terminal
and is just west of Philadelphia. Since the 1970s, it has been a popular venue for music acts. Known for its natural acoustic properties, the venue has been used for recording live albums by many bands.
acts and movies.
By the 1970s, the Tower had fallen on hard times. It was then owned by the A.M. Ellis chain and showed third-run movies for a $1 admission.
In June, 1972, Midnight Sun Concerts from Northern New Jersey, promoted its first concert at the Tower, Dave Mason
and Buzzy Linhart
, a sold out show on June 14, 1972. Reviewer Jonathan Takiff in the Philadelphia Daily News
announced in the next day's paper that "Philly Finally has its Fillmore," making reference to New York's famed Fillmore East
. Midnight Sun's president, Rick Green, and his stage manager, Upper Darby native Billy Stevenson, were instrumental in adapting the Tower for this role. For the next three or more years, Midnight Sun's Tower concerts became the stuff of local legend. The Tower introduced America to David Bowie
and The Spiders from Mars
in 1972 as well as the then-unknown Genesis
with Peter Gabriel
that same year; Genesis played a midnight concert with a $4 admission price. In September 1974, Bruce Springsteen
– who had an early, strong, and long-lived fan base in Philadelphia – introduced the world to his new E Street Band
, with Max Weinberg
and Roy Bittan
, at the Tower Theater. It was the first time in his career that Springsteen earned $5,000 for a night's work. He returned in early November for two sold-out shows; it would still be a year before his big breakthrough with Born to Run
and the attendant publicity. Other regular Midnight Sun headliners at the Tower included Jackson Browne
, Lou Reed
, Steve Miller
, and various editions of the Jerry Garcia
/Merle Saunders band. David Bowie repaid his Philly fans by recording his David Live
album during a long run of shows at the Tower. The Average White Band's live album, Person to Person
, was recorded at the Tower with Atlantic Records
' Arif Mardin
in the production truck behind the theater. It was not unusual at a Tower show to observe the following rock journalists huddling together during the intermission and comparing notes: David Fricke
, Matt Damsker, Bill Mandel, Jon Takiff, John David Kalodner, together with Ed Sciaky
and Michael Tearson from the city's progressive rock radio
station WMMR
. Bowie and Genesis' Phil Collins
would subsequently mention their Tower shows as being instrumental in introducing them to an American audience.
In late 1975, the owners informed Midnight Sun that they were selling the theater to the promoter's much larger competitor, Electric Factory Concerts
. The final Midnight Sun produced show at the Tower was 10cc
, the British pop duo, in December 1975.
A well-regarded 1980 show at the theater became the source for the video Paul Simon in Concert
, released in 2003 as Live at the Tower Theatre.
The Tower Theater happened to be a popular venue for Berliner's Tangerine Dream
since they played here 4 times on their North American Tours. Dates include April 6, 1977; June 25, 1986; September 10, 1988; and October 10, 1992.
By the 2000s the theater continued to be active, filling much the same role in the concert hierarchy as the Beacon Theatre in New York City
. The theater operates under the Live Nation
/Electric Factory Concerts name.
69th Street Terminal
69th Street Transportation Center is a SEPTA terminal in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. It is also the southwestern terminus of Philadelphia's EL, the Market-Frankford Line ....
and is just west of Philadelphia. Since the 1970s, it has been a popular venue for music acts. Known for its natural acoustic properties, the venue has been used for recording live albums by many bands.
History
The Tower Theater, built in 1927, was opened a year later, by John H. McClatchy, as one of Upper Darby Township's first movie houses. Located just outstide the city limits of Philadelphia, the theater thrived in the busy area that was once the most highly traveled route to Center City from the west. In its early years, Tower Theater showed both vaudevilleVaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
acts and movies.
By the 1970s, the Tower had fallen on hard times. It was then owned by the A.M. Ellis chain and showed third-run movies for a $1 admission.
In June, 1972, Midnight Sun Concerts from Northern New Jersey, promoted its first concert at the Tower, Dave Mason
Dave Mason
David Thomas "Dave" Mason is an English singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Worcester, who first found fame with the rock band Traffic...
and Buzzy Linhart
Buzzy Linhart
Buzzy Linhart is an American rock performer and musician.Born William Linhart in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he began honing his craft playing percussion for symphony at the age of seven, switching to vibraphone at ten...
, a sold out show on June 14, 1972. Reviewer Jonathan Takiff in the Philadelphia Daily News
Philadelphia Daily News
The Philadelphia Daily News is a tabloid newspaper that serves Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The newspaper is owned by Philadelphia Media Holdings which also owns Philadelphia's other major newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Daily News began publishing on March 31, 1925, under...
announced in the next day's paper that "Philly Finally has its Fillmore," making reference to New York's famed Fillmore East
Fillmore East
The Fillmore East was rock promoter Bill Graham's rock venue on Second Avenue near East 6th Street in the East Village neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York City. It was open from 1968 to 1971, and featured some of the biggest acts in rock music at the time...
. Midnight Sun's president, Rick Green, and his stage manager, Upper Darby native Billy Stevenson, were instrumental in adapting the Tower for this role. For the next three or more years, Midnight Sun's Tower concerts became the stuff of local legend. The Tower introduced America to David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and The Spiders from Mars
The Spiders from Mars
The Spiders from Mars were rock singer David Bowie 's backing band in the early 1970s, and consisted of Mick Ronson on guitars, Trevor Bolder on bass guitar, and Mick Woodmansey on drums....
in 1972 as well as the then-unknown Genesis
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
with Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
that same year; Genesis played a midnight concert with a $4 admission price. In September 1974, Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
– who had an early, strong, and long-lived fan base in Philadelphia – introduced the world to his new E Street Band
E Street Band
The E Street Band has been rock musician Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972.The band has also recorded with a wide range of other artists including Bob Dylan, Meat Loaf, Bonnie Tyler, Air Supply, Dire Straits, David Bowie, Peter Gabriel, Stevie Nicks, Tom Morello, Sting, Ian...
, with Max Weinberg
Max Weinberg
Max Weinberg is an American drummer and television personality, most widely known as the longtime drummer for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and as the bandleader for Conan O'Brien on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien.Weinberg grew up in suburban New Jersey...
and Roy Bittan
Roy Bittan
Roy Bittan is an American keyboardist, best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, which he joined on August 23, 1974...
, at the Tower Theater. It was the first time in his career that Springsteen earned $5,000 for a night's work. He returned in early November for two sold-out shows; it would still be a year before his big breakthrough with Born to Run
Born to Run
The album's release was accompanied by a $250,000 promotional campaign by Columbia directed at both consumers and the music industry, making good use of Landau's "I saw rock 'n' roll's future—and its name is Bruce Springsteen" quote. With much publicity, Born to Run vaulted into the top 10 in its...
and the attendant publicity. Other regular Midnight Sun headliners at the Tower included Jackson Browne
Jackson Browne
Jackson Browne is an American singer-songwriter and musician who has sold over 17 million albums in the United States alone....
, Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
, Steve Miller
Steve Miller (musician)
Steven H. "Steve" Miller is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter who began his career in blues and blues rock and evolved to a more popular-oriented sound which, from the mid 1970s through the early 1980s, resulted in a series of successful singles and albums.-Early years:Born in Milwaukee,...
, and various editions of the Jerry Garcia
Jerry Garcia
Jerome John "Jerry" Garcia was an American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead...
/Merle Saunders band. David Bowie repaid his Philly fans by recording his David Live
David Live
David Live is David Bowie’s first official live album, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Recorded on the initial leg of Bowie’s US tour supporting Diamond Dogs in July of that year , it has been cited as one of the best live...
album during a long run of shows at the Tower. The Average White Band's live album, Person to Person
Person to Person
Person to Person was a popular television program in the United States that ran from 1953 to 1961. Well-respected news reporter Edward R. Murrow hosted it until 1959, interviewing celebrities in their homes from a comfortable chair in his New York studio Person to Person was a popular television...
, was recorded at the Tower with Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
' Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco, and country...
in the production truck behind the theater. It was not unusual at a Tower show to observe the following rock journalists huddling together during the intermission and comparing notes: David Fricke
David Fricke
David Fricke is a senior editor at Rolling Stone magazine, where he writes predominantly on rock music. In the 1990s, he was managing editor before stepping down.-Background:David Fricke is a graduate of Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania...
, Matt Damsker, Bill Mandel, Jon Takiff, John David Kalodner, together with Ed Sciaky
Ed Sciaky
Edward Leon Sciaky was a disc jockey in Philadelphia.He was born in New York City and raised in Philadelphia, where he graduated from Temple University...
and Michael Tearson from the city's progressive rock radio
Progressive rock (radio format)
Progressive rock is a radio station programming format that prospered in the late 1960s and 1970s, in which the disc jockeys are given wide latitude in what they may play, similar to the freeform format but with the proviso that some kind of rock music is almost always what is played...
station WMMR
WMMR
WMMR is an active rock radio station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, broadcasting at 93.3 MHz FM. The station is owned by Greater Media....
. Bowie and Genesis' Phil Collins
Phil Collins
Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for British progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist....
would subsequently mention their Tower shows as being instrumental in introducing them to an American audience.
In late 1975, the owners informed Midnight Sun that they were selling the theater to the promoter's much larger competitor, Electric Factory Concerts
Electric Factory Concerts
Electric Factory Concerts is the name of a longtime Philadelphia-based concert promotion firm, affiliated with the Electric Factory venue in that city and also owned by Larry Magid....
. The final Midnight Sun produced show at the Tower was 10cc
10cc
10cc are an English art rock band who achieved their greatest commercial success in the 1970s. The band initially consisted of four musicians -- Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, and Lol Creme -- who had written and recorded together for some three years, before assuming the "10cc" name...
, the British pop duo, in December 1975.
A well-regarded 1980 show at the theater became the source for the video Paul Simon in Concert
Paul Simon in Concert
Paul Simon in Concert dates from October 8, 1980, when singer-songwriter Paul Simon performed a concert at the Tower Theater outside Philadelphia as part of his One Trick Pony Tour. The concert was recorded and released as a VHS video under this name...
, released in 2003 as Live at the Tower Theatre.
The Tower Theater happened to be a popular venue for Berliner's Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music group founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The band has undergone many personnel changes over the years, with Froese being the only continuous member...
since they played here 4 times on their North American Tours. Dates include April 6, 1977; June 25, 1986; September 10, 1988; and October 10, 1992.
By the 2000s the theater continued to be active, filling much the same role in the concert hierarchy as the Beacon Theatre in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The theater operates under the Live Nation
Live Nation
Live Nation is a live-events company based in Beverly Hills, California, focused on concert promotions. Live Nation formed in 2005 as a spin-off from Clear Channel Communications, which then merged with Ticketmaster in 2010 to become Live Nation Entertainment....
/Electric Factory Concerts name.