Mark,

I saw Three Dog Night at Red Rocks in '69 or '70. What a show!

Funny you mentioned Flash Cadillac and Uriah Heep. I would have enjoyed that show! Flash and the kids were a local band here. Well into the 90's they were playing clubs in Colorado as Sammy and the Sarcastics. It was the same band except for substituting Flash Cadillac's keyboard player with another guitarist and they played a mix of all kinds of rock. The "Sammy" in the bands name referred to Sam McFadin, "Flash" in Flash Cadillac.

In the early 90's they started performing with symphony orchestras. One of the guys in the band, Warren I think, wrote the scores for symphony accompaniment to the bands music. I saw their first show using this melding of early rock and a full symphony orchestra in 1992. It was awesome! The symphony conductor was running all over the stage all night! He and the male musicians were all wearing jeans and t-shirts with the sleeves rolled up, and the female members of the orchestra were all wearing poodle skirts! Flash Cadillac was dressed in coats and ties, it was wild and the music was incredible!

Sam McFadin (Flash) died two years ago at the age of 49 from a heart attack. I got to know him and the rest of the band pretty well when I was doing concert production and promotion here in Colorado. The band took some time off to consider their future after Sammy died. They are touring again on a very limited schedule, and that schedule still includes working with a full symphony orchestra. If you ever get a chance to see these rockers and an orchestra on the same stage, don't miss it!

Bob