Douglas Wachter

I was curious about the psychedelic rock concerts at "The Fillmore."  The ballroom of the historic Fillmore property in San Francisco's Western Addition was being rented by promoter Bill Graham to book groups making music far different from the rhythm and blues music I grew up with and loved.  I had photographed an R & B concert at the Cow Palace in San Francisco for a documentary photography class I was taking from John Collier, a well-known WPA photographer.  Before I checked out  the Fillmore, I attended and photographed a May 21, 1966 concert and dance at the Longshoremen's Hall, located near Fisherman's Wharf.  A month or so later I did the same for a concert and dance at the Fillmore.  I don't remember who performed at either.  They weren't big name acts, but both drew decent crowds.

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The Longshoremen's Hall concert had a light show, a relatively new feature of concerts that was meant to mimic some kind of mind-bending drug trip.  The technology was complex and became more so as light shows continued into the late sixties and early seventies.  Bill Graham liked them and made them a big part of concerts.

 

The Longshoremen's Hall concert seemed to be more straight-ahead working class, without all the hippie trappings of the Fillmore show (see photos), although the "Longshore Hall", as it was more commonly known, had developed its own reputation for "acid rock."