SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) — While San Diego still gets some amazing concerts, the heyday for musical extravaganzas seems to have been the '70s and '80s. Back when SDCCU Stadium was known as Jack Murphy Stadium – and before that San Diego Stadium – huge artists like The Rolling Stones, Cheap Trick and Blue Oyster Cult passed through town during the heights of their careers.
A look through our News 8 archives, yielded footage from two epic shows – one a quadruple bill of rock 'n' roll in 1979 and the other a visit from rock gods The Rolling Stones in 1981.
Take a journey back as we relive the crowds and chaos that defined these stadium shows from over 35 years ago. It's only rock 'n' roll, but we like it.
The date was August 5, 1979 and chances are, if you were a rock 'n' roll fan, you were there. 55,000 revelers packed San Diego Stadium to see Blue Oyster Cult, Cheap Trick, UFO and Pat Travers. News 8 reporter Jesse Macias says "police and security guards will remember the concert as one of the best with relatively few arrests being made." 93 to be exact!
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In 1981, The Rolling Stones played for a massive crowd at Jack Murphy Stadium. New 8's Ann Shaw reported from the parking lot the day before as folks camped out. She noted it was to be the biggest concert San Diego had ever seen with almost 70,000 attendees. Larry Himmel reported on the show itself which featured the Stones playing 22 songs including new tunes and old favorites. Senior News 8 editor Barb Nielsen was there and paid $15 for her ticket. She recalls that everyone was well behaved - at least in her section of the stadium.
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An unused ticket from The Rolling Stones show courtesy of News 8 editor Barb Nielsen.
Of course, we aren't the only ones with amazing archives of San Diego history. The City of San Diego has a great crowd shot of the 1981 Stones concert.
