Rock Band Debuts: Remembering Their First Michigan Performances

On a recent Rockin' Road Trip, we went to The Masonic Temple. The Masonic Temple has hosted tons of bands through the decades. During our tour, the topic of rock band debuts came up. What are the original show dates and locations of some of the biggest bands in classic rock? During our Masonic conversation, Queen was specifically mentioned.

The way we heard it, Queen opened for Mott the Hoople. According to my research, Queen did open for Mott the Hoople during a four week tour in 1974, but there was no Masonic tour date. Queen played two shows, February 11th and 12th of 1976 at the Masonic Temple. Here's the full SETLIST. But those shows weren't technically Queen's first.

According to Concertdatabase.com, Queen's very first gig in Detroit was actually February 10th, 1975. Queen played the Ford Auditorium as part of their Sheer Heart Attack Tour. Tickets started at $4.50! Kansas opened. Here's the SETLIST.

Van Halen's rock band debut in Detroit was opening for Journey at the Masonic Temple on March 10th, 1978. They wrapped their 11 song set with "Eruption/You Really Got Me." Here's the full SETLIST.

Led Zeppelin's first shows in Detroit were a three night run at the Grande Ballroom on January 17th, 18th, and 19th, 1969. Here's the SETLIST for January 19th. The setlist includes 9 songs, 6 of which, are covers. Click HERE to learn more about Led Zeppelin's first time in Detroit.

Aerosmith's rock band debut was opening for Mahavishnu Orchestra at the Ford Auditorium on February 14th, 1973. What a way to spend Valentine's Day!

Aerosmith's first headlining gig in Michigan was April 7th, 1974. They played the Michigan Ballroom. Aerosmith was one of the bands that Leo Speer "encouraged" to play his other venue, the Rock and Roll Farm in Wayne as part of the deal.

MASONIC SIDE NOTE: Mott the Hoople did play The Masonic in October of 1973. Aerosmith was their opener.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers were the ones who brought Peal Jam to Michigan for the first time. Pearl Jam opened for RHCP October 23rd, 1991 at the MSU Auditorium. The Smashing Pumpkins were also on the bill,

Pearl Jam's first solo show in Michigan took place at the Blind Pig in Ann Arbor a month later. On November, 21st, 1991, Pearl Jam played an acoustic set featuring a lot of tracks from Ten plus a Beatles cover for their encore. Here's the SETLIST. The show got moved to a smaller venue because tickets sales were slow!

Pat Benatar's rock band debut was in Grosse Pointe Farms at The Punch & Judy Theater on November 3rd, 1979. A month later, Pat played the Motor City Roller Rink in Warren. Her first big show was as a support act on Journey's "Departure 1980 Tour." Eddie Money was the warm up and Pat was the opener. The show was in Flint at Atwood Stadium on August 2nd, 1980. Tickets were $10.50!

TheConcertdatabase.com is an unbelievably detailed Michigan concert site. Type in any artist and see their history in in Michigan. The creator calls it "a labor of love." We are so lucky to have this resource. I'm in love with this labor of love. lol... back down the rabbit hole I go!