The Loudest, Most Punishing Show I Ever Saw at the Lubbock Coliseum
Oh, you kids.
These days, entertainers fly speakers over the audience so everyone gets to hear. Back in the old days, speakers were not flown; there was a massive wall/tower of speakers on either side of the stage. Sometimes it physically hurt to be near them. I can't tell you how many concerts I went to that left me with ringing in my ears for three days and some discharge. (Yuck, right?)
So, pretty much everybody who was anybody played the Lubbock Coliseum -- from Ozzy Osbourne to Metallica and .38 Special to Heart. No matter what kind of rock you liked, it came through the Lubbock Coliseum.
Our of all of the shows that I saw at the Lubbock Coliseum, the loudest one to my memory was Judas Priest on the Screaming for Vengeance Tour. I remember it tearing holes in my ears from the back of the open floor on the Coliseum. (Anybody remember "open floor" shows, or how for a while, they wouldn't even allow them?)
So there you go, that's my vote for the LOUDEST show ever at the Coliseum. I also have to say that it was really miserable in there for many years due to inefficient or no air conditioning, but I'm really going to miss the place.