CENTERSTAGE
If the Live Aid concerts go down as the music event of the century, their latest offshoot, Drive Aid, equally deserves its stature as non-event of the year. A lotta folks forked out $20 for tickets to the Radio City Music Hall happening (but not enough to sell out its 6,600 seats), and we presume that Chevrolet, the show’s sponsor, will indeed channel the proceeds to relieve African famine.
CENTERSTAGE
DRIVE ME WILD
DRIVE AID
Radio City Music Hall, New York Feb. 20, 1986
Toby Goldstein
If the Live Aid concerts go down as the music event of the century, their latest offshoot, Drive Aid, equally deserves its stature as non-event of the year. A lotta folks forked out $20 for tickets to the Radio City Music Hall happening (but not enough to sell out its 6,600 seats), and we presume that Chevrolet, the show’s sponsor, will indeed channel the proceeds to relieve African famine. But the snap, crackle and pop which makes a showgoer gleefully exult, “I was there!” was sadly lacking in this case.
With a co-headlining bill of Kool & The Gang and Joan Jett & The Blackheads, Drive Aid may have immediately suffered from a split personality. As it turned out, a decent amount of Joanie’s legions stuck around to see and appreciate Kool’s dynamic performance, which didn’t even get going until almost 1 a.m. However, the sight of several hundred loyal metallians streaming up the aisles once Joan’s set ended didn’t exactly bode well for brotherly and sisterly support of all types of music.