Century Theater Memories

  Another Century Theater classic, promoted by the University at Buffalo ’s UUAB (University Union Activities Board) Music Committee, which in the Fall 1973 semester probably included a certain Harvey Weinstein. Could this have been the start of Harvey ’s relationship with the old broke-down movie palace?   Sept. 20, 1973 review   David Crosby Can Play, But Songs Are Far Out             A blue-jeaned and mellowed-out night it is in the Century Theater – in the seats (full except the back of the balcony) and on the stage.           David Crosby is in blue too. Jeans and a cowboy shirt with shoulders embroidered red. A little less hair in front. A little more out back. Haven’t had a good look at him since Crosby , Stills, Nash & Young.           A good-natured, big groundhog of a guy, he’s the one you weren’t quite sure ...

  Continuing a cruise through the greatest rock shows at the long gone Century Theater.   April 22, 1974  Kinkomaniacs Greet Group With Banners, Sing-along             The biggest display of Kinkomania this city has yet seen greeted the British rock band’s third annual appearance here Saturday night. Its expressions were strange and various.           Hanging from the balcony of the Century Theater was a homemade “Demon Alcohol” banner in honor of the villain of that beery Kinks melodrama.           Ray Davies, the group’s fluttery lead singer and creative mastermind, vamped about in a floppy checkered hat flung up to him from the floor.           And the crowd SANG! Buffalo crowds never sing along. But this one sang not only the chorus of “Lola” (which anybody does), but als...

  Another excursion back into great concerts at the Century Theater. Nov. 4, 1975  Prizes at Door, Raitt on Stage for ‘Bonnie’ Good Time             Bonnie Raitt helped open the Century Theater in a concert full of extraordinarily good feelings a year ago Oct. 14. Monday night she came back to give Harvey & Corky’s downhome palace a booster shot, with love.           It was an exuberant sort of belated anniversary party – four bottles of champagne were after-concert door prizes – and Raitt rose beautifully to the occasion, leading a loose and happy masterpiece of a performance that went more than an hour and a half.           Sitting on a chair, the four guys in her band spread across the stage behind her, she opened with a tune from Jackson Browne, who headlined last year’s premiere.       ...

  My Buffalo News colleague, columnist Sean Kirst, shot me an email the other night asking what were the most memorable concerts in the late, great Century Theater, which was demolished in the late 1970s after a regime of rock shows under the aegis of Harvey & Corky.           To give my brain cells a bump, I took a quick dive into newspapers.com, which now offers access to every Buffalo News that rolled off the presses from 1880 onward. To my chagrin, I immediately saw that I missed a lot of stuff in my earlier explorations of the microfilm files at now-abandoned One News Plaza . Here’s the first one that caught my eye.   Feb. 16, 1976 A Valentine Designed by Bette              Bette Midler puts on a Valentine’s Day concert at the New Century Theater (“What’s so new about this dump? I bet Mae Bush played this room.”) and it comes out like Rhoda’s wedding. There’s times you wonder wh...