Moon's shadow--September 7, 1978

[wild1forever]

http://www.keithmoon.co.uk/image/km20.jpg

On this date in 1978, one of rock history's greatest characters, the Who's Keith Moon, died from an overdose of prescription drugs at the age of 32.

Moon's destructive--and self-destructive--antics are the stuff of legend, one of which occurred in the [San Francisco] Bay Area. Moon was playing a concert with the Who at the Cow Palace in 1973 when he passed out in the middle of "Won't Get Fooled Again" after having swallowed 15 tranquilizers. An audience member filled in for him the rest of the show.

Here are five things you may not know about Keith Moon:

Four years before his death, Mama Cass Elliott died in the same apartment that he did.
He never practiced, and never kept a drum kit in his house.
He owned a lilac-colored Rolls Royce.
He sat in a chair on the cover of "Who Are You," his last album with the band, because he wanted to hide his considerable weight gain.
The most-told Moon story, his driving a Rolls into a swimming pool, probably did not ever happen.

[surfnburn]

Thanks for posting this, Toni. Keith was an amazing drummer. I remember people talking about the SF who concert when it happened. Someone from the band asked if there was anyone in the audience who could play drums and finish the set. Someone got up from the audience and played with the band. Pretty cool.

I never knew that he died in Mama Cass' apartment. That's really strange.

[agirl]

Interesting. Thanks Toni for posting this.

[Echosoftom]

"Four years before his death, Mama Cass Elliot died in the same apartment that he did."
Wow! Didn't know that either Ames. How bizarre.

You know he was amazing because people are still talking about him and his drumming all these years later.

[Refugee]

WAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! :085:

My favorite drummer in the whole wide world. Still is. NO ONE comes close in my book.

I still remember the day I found out he died. I was inconsolable. That's my band.

That chair they talk about, it said NOT TO BE TAKEN AWAY. Ironic huh?

[wild1forever]

Here's the album cover. Wow, it certainly IS weird that the chair said that. Ironic, too, that the drugs he OD'd on were intended to help with his alcoholism.

http://vinylzart.com/images/AlbumCovers-TheWho-WhoAreYou(1978).jpg

[Echosoftom]

^ Toni, it's so weird. I was looking at what you wrote and wondering where the picture was when all of a sudden my screen slightly flickered and it appeared.

Wow! That is whole chair thing is weird. Love the album cover.

[Refugee]

Thank you, Toni. I love that album cover. I still have it framed.