Radio City Music Hall

Hey,
I worked across the street from Radio City for years, but only stepped foot inside once, to see Jimmy Vivino's Beatles tribute band The Fab Faux. When you enter a dimly-lit theater, and are ushered to your seat, you miss a lot of the details of the venue. And, of course, you totally miss the behind the scenes stuff that makes so much of a difference in my day on this tour.

Radio City is truly a unique and spectacular venue. It's a total pain in the ass to load into and out of, mostly because of the ridiculous union politics. But once you're inside, it feels like an art deco palace. The stage mechanics are incredible: the large, circular center section rotates, and the other parts of the stage can be raised and lowered like super-duty elevators. The orchestra pit can actually sink 30 feet down, travel beneath the rest of the stage to the far upstage (rear) and raise out of the floor there....with musicians on it! Check out the pic of the brass control panel for the stage elevators. This is not new, retrofitted technology- Radio City was built this way in the early thirties, when it was promoted as the "World's Largest Stage."

During my usual morning venue walk, I found twin Wurlitzer theater organs on either side of the stage. Both organs control the same set of pipes, yes PIPES that still exist, along with drum, piano, and sound effect mechanisms, hidden behind the walls. The organist can even raise and lower curtains from the organ. The local 30-year veteran guy told me all about it.

I asked "Any chance of me getting up there and playing 'In a Gadda Da Vida?'"

"Yeah, there's a chance.... but it's very, very slim!" he replied.

The whole crew got our Conan tour jackets while at Radio City. They're really nice leather jackets. Fuckin' A! A lot of people from Late Night (who didn't move to LA to do the Tonight Show) were in and out. What a blast.

The crowds were terrific, both nights. It was a real treat to be a participant in bringing Conan's comedy back to New York, across the street from where it all began for him.

It was also great to have good pizza around. There was a pizza place and a wine store across the street from the Essex Hotel, where we stayed. I think three nights I had wine and pizza up in my room. I love stepping out of the hotel in the morning and choosing a place to have breakfast at random. Then taking a seat by the window, and watching all the people go by. I miss you, New York.