CONCORD, CALIFORNIA – The Concord Pavilion has been a soundtrack to East Bay life for 50 years — and locals have the memories to prove it.
As the Pavilion prepares to celebrate its 50th birthday with a giant blues bash, we asked our readers about the best concerts they’ve seen there over the years. The result? A rush of names that span genres and generations, each tied to a summer night, a favorite row, or the glow of that hilltop amphitheater under a crescent moon.
Ralph V. rattled off a classic rock trifecta — STYX with Dennis DeYoung and the Panozzo brothers, Boston on another night, and Steely Dan on yet another — the kind of lineup that defined the Pavilion’s arena-ready heyday.
Thomas T. went further back, remembering Journey and Son of Chaplin in the late 1970s, when being up close felt like the whole world was turned to 11. Mary Ann P. swears by a double bill of Chicago and Fleetwood Mac in the same concert, while Pam W. still glows about Chicago paired with Earth, Wind & Fire — “best concert ever,” she said.
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Plenty of fans single out singular masters. Emily D. treasures James Taylor. Debbie F. was in the first or second row for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers — “awesome” doesn’t quite cover it.
Jill S. had Train on repeat for days after. Bob S. puts Jeff Beck and B.B. King at the top, and Brooke S. seconds the King without hesitation. Pat R. still remembers Neil Young and Crazy Horse at the end of their Year of the Horse tour, the music braided with a sky show — a crescent moon conjunct Jupiter overhead.
The Pavilion’s blues and country roots run deep. Linda B. called out Elvin Bishop. Vickie W. named Charlie Daniels, Travis Tritt, Hank Williams Jr., then flipped the dial to Dolly Parton and even Alice in Chains — proof the venue can swing from twang to thunder in a long weekend.
Michele F. made it a family affair — Alabama with K.T. Oslin and the Judds with her mom, then Iron Maiden with her kids. Patricia H. stitched together decades in one breath: Lionel Richie, Cher, Alan Jackson with Brooks & Dunn, Stevie Wonder — a roll call of radio royalty. Francine R. adds Tina Turner, Bette Midler, and Ringo Starr’s All-Starr Band to the scrapbook.
Some memories are pure California. Sue E. goes Beach Boys. Lisa R. smiles at Jimmy Buffett. Stacey S. shouts out Summer Jam 1989. Pat H. says Frankie Beverly. Rhonda T. reaches back to Andraé Crouch in 1977, and Sharon C. campaigns to bring back Spirit West Coast. Rock diehards check in too — Mike L. for Foo Fighters; Keri L. for Rush and the Heaven and Hell tour; Greg G. for the Jerry Garcia Band; Barbara C. for Matchbox Twenty; John M. for every Peter, Paul and Mary show he could catch.
There are the legends you brag about forever. Donna L., who worked seasons there in the 80s and 90s, still puts Stevie Ray Vaughan at the summit. Leslie H. remembers Whitney Houston and Fats Domino on separate nights — different eras, same goosebumps.
Margaret N. recalls Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides.” Diana I. fires off Elton John, Dolly Parton, and STYX without pausing for breath. And for Mary Ann P., ABBA 40 years ago remains untouchable.
The Pavilion is also a place for civic pride and community projects. Barbara G. sits on the internal planning committee for the venue’s 50th anniversary celebration and calls the upcoming benefit show “epic,” urging neighbors to grab seats now — a reminder that the amphitheater’s next half-century is already tuning up.
Andy S. points to Bruce Springsteen’s 2006 stop, when the Boss reimagined Seeger songs and turned the place into a folk-rock revival; others nodded along, remembering how that hillside can feel like a front porch when the right band shows up.
What comes through all these stories isn’t just star power. It’s how the Pavilion has woven itself into local lives — first jobs in the 80s, date nights and family rites of passage, Fourth of July fireworks and fog-softened finales, the kind of nights you measure time against.
Five decades on, Concord’s big outdoor stage still does what it always did best — gather the 925 under the open sky and let the music carry the rest.
