S04.E15 - Free Birding It: Why Tom Always Loses His Shirt at a Skynyrd Concert

Tom Fitzer, STL’s first guest in Season 1, joins Charles and Doug with more bizarre concert going tales. Tom is a social worker and the lead singer/rhythm guitarist of the band Wrought Iron Soul. Tom returns to share a new batch of concert stories. Find out why he always loses his shirt at a Lynyrd Skynyrd or Rolling Stones concert. Other tales focus on concert experiences with John Fogerty, Joe Cocker, and The Guess Who. Tom opens with a story about seeing Peter Frampton and Lynyrd Skynyrd at the Star Plaza around 1998, where the live music overtook him and he ran up and down the aisles with a Skynyrd flag, entertaining the crowd. This became a recurring theme at concerts where Tom often became the "sideshow.” He then shares several Lynyrd Skynyrd stories, dubbing it the "curse of Skynyrd" including one incident that resulted in a visit to the Merrillville County Jail. Tom then shifts to a Rolling Stones story from December 12, 1997, at the TWA Dome in St. Louis — his second Stones concert, which he attended at age 17 with two friends against his mother's wishes. Tom recalls being a "purist" who initially dismissed Dave Matthews but came to appreciate him later. He also shares how his love of classic rock started when a friend's brother played Led Zeppelin II, and how when he heard "What Is and What Should Never Be" it was a life-changing moment. Tom talks about a John Fogerty concert, originally scheduled for June 1998 but postponed because of the Bulls' sixth championship run which gave Tom time to bond with his father on a family vacation to North Carolina, where they listened to the Blue Moon Swamp cassette repeatedly. At the rescheduled show, Tom and his friends successfully shouted "Grapevine" loud enough for Fogerty to hear them and play "Heard It Through the Grapevine." Tom closes with a Joe Cocker and The Guess Who show at the Rosemont Theatre on October 1, 2001, where he threw his shirt during Joe Cocker's set, was told to buy a shirt or leave, and ended up purchasing a Joe Cocker shirt in the lobby. The conversation touches on the power of live music and how songs like the Taj Mahal collaboration can instantly transport you back to a specific moment in time. In the final segment, Tom and Doug discuss Wrought Iron Soul, which has been together for 11–12 years. After an original member retired, they sought a new keyboard player who could also sing. After making an announcement during a gig at Johnny’s Blitz in Westmont, IL, they made a remarkable connection — Billy J. Kramer of the 1960s English band The Dakotas, who had worked with Brian Epstein, John Lennon, and George Martin responded to the announcement by referring the band to Greg Jacks, a full-time professional pianist. The band can be found at wroughtironsoul.com and on Facebook. BANDS: The Allman Brothers, The Beatles, The Black Crowes, The Dakotas, Dave Matthews, Deep Purple, The Doobie Brothers, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Foghat, The Grateful Dead, The Guess Who, The Hurricane Project, Jethro Tull, Joe Cocker, John Fogerty, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Led Zeppelin, Little Feat, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Peter Frampton, Randy Newman, The Rolling Stones, Santana, Sheryl Crow, Steppenwolf, Steve Winwood, Taj Mahal, Wrought Iron Soul, ZZ Top. VENUES: Allstate Arena, Johnny's Blitz, Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont Theatre, Soldier Field, Star Plaza, TWA Dome, United Center, World Music Theater. LINKS: www.WroughtIronSoul.com PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/SeeingThemLive Please help us defer the cost of producing this podcast by making a donation on Patreon. WEBSITE - BECOME A GUEST: https://seeingthemlive.com/ Visit the Seeing Them Live website and click on the link to fill out a form so we can consider you as a guest on the show. INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/seeingthemlive/ FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550090670708