''In Concert'' is a late-night television series created by

Don Kirshner Donald Kirshner (April 17, 1934 – January 17, 2011) was an American music publisher, music consultant, rock music record producer, producer, talent manager, and songwriter. Dubbed "the Man with the Golden Ear" by Time (magazine), ''Time' ...

. Hosted by Don Branker, the series was a showcase for bands of the era to be taped "in concert" and then broadcast on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

on Friday nights.

''In Concert''

The series premiered on November 24, 1972, preempting ''

The Dick Cavett Show ''The Dick Cavett Show'' was the title of several talk shows hosted by Dick Cavett on various television networks, including: * ABC daytime, (March 4, 1968–January 24, 1969) originally titled ''This Morning'' * ABC prime time, Tuesdays, We ...

''. The first episode was the broadcast of a concert taped at

Hofstra University Hofstra University is a private university in Hempstead, New York. It is Long Island's largest private university. Hofstra originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University (NYU) under the name Nassau College – Hofstra Memorial of Ne ...

on September 21, 1972 with

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...

Bo Diddley Ellas McDaniel (born Ellas Otha Bates; December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, incl ...

Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.

, and

Seals & Crofts Seals and Crofts was an American soft rock duo made up of James Eugene Seals (October 17, 1942 – June 6, 2022) and Darrell George "Dash" Crofts (born August 14, 1938) They are best known for their hits " Summer Breeze" (1972), " Diamond Girl" ...

. The second episode, broadcast on December 8, 1972 and again preempting ''Cavett'', featured

The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards, songwriting), as well as Dickey Betts (lead guita ...

and

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

. David Sontag became the executive producer of ''In Concert'' starting with the 3rd show and for the rest of the first season. Don Kirshner had no direct connection with the show after the second episode except that the production credits listed ''In Concert'' as a "David Sontag Production" and a "Don Kirshner Production". Starting with the 3rd episode there was no host; Joshua White (Joshua Lightshow) became the director and the voice-over announcing the acts, and serving as the production stage manager was Chip Monk, often known as the voice of Woodstock. In January 1973, both ''The Dick Cavett Show'' and ''In Concert'' became part of ABC's ''

Wide World of Entertainment ''ABC's Wide World of Entertainment'' is a late night television block of programs created by the ABC television network. It premiered on January 8, 1973, and ended three years later. The title was based on the long-running broadcast ''ABC's Wid ...

'' programming block. Kirshner left in late 1973 to produce the syndicated series ''

Don Kirshner's Rock Concert ''Don Kirshner's Rock Concert'' is an American television music variety show that ran during the 1970s and early 1980s, created and produced by Don Kirshner and syndicated to television stations, initially through Viacom Enterprises, and later ...

''. ''In Concert'' continued to appear approximately every other Friday night until it left the ABC schedule on April 25, 1975. During its three seasons on the air, the series received four

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

''ABC In Concert''

The series was revived on June 7, 1991 under the name ''In Concert '91''. It was intended to be a summer replacement for

Rick Dees Rigdon Osmond Dees III (born March 14, 1950), best known as Rick Dees, is an American entertainer, radio personality, comedian, actor, and voice artist, best known for his internationally syndicated radio show '' The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 Coun ...

' late night series ''Into The Night''. ''In Concert '91'' proved to be more popular and achieved high ratings for a late-night show on Fridays. ''Into the Night'' was consequently not brought back for the next season. ''In Concert '91'' featured both newer performers (e.g.

Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AIC) is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1987 by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, who later recruited bassist Mike Starr and lead vocalist Layne ...

Poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...

) and more established acts (e.g.

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and lead singer of the rock band Genesis and also has a career as a solo performer. Between 1982 and ...

), and was simulcast in stereo on ABC radio stations. It was renamed ''ABC In Concert'' in January 1992 and aired its final episode on September 11, 1998.

''ABC In Concert Country''

Created as a country music counterpart to ''ABC In Concert'', ''ABC In Concert Country'' premiered on June 4, 1994. It was hosted by

Billy Dean William Harold Dean Jr. (born April 2, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He first gained national attention after appearing on the television talent competition ''Star Search''. Active as a recording artist since 1990, h ...

and featured performers such as

Billy Ray Cyrus Billy Ray Cyrus (born August 25, 1961) is an American country singer and actor. He has released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, and is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart and ...

Travis Tritt James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 20 ...

, and

Trisha Yearwood Patricia Lynn Yearwood (born September 19, 1964) is an American singer, actress, author and television personality. She rose to fame with her 1991 debut single " She's in Love with the Boy," which became a number one hit on the ''Billboard'' c ...

. This series lasted just over two months, with its final episode airing on August 10, 1994.Brooks & Marsh, p. 2

Local standards controversy

The first ''In Concert'' broadcast was terminated early in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

; the station manager of then-ABC affiliate

WKRC-TV WKRC-TV (channel 12) is a television station in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, affiliated with CBS and The CW. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which provides certain services to MyNetworkTV affiliate WSTR-TV (channel 64) under a lo ...

was watching Alice Cooper's segment and was so disgusted by it that he called the station's master control room and ordered the station to take it off the air. A rerun of '' Rawhide'' was hastily substituted; both WKRC and Cincinnati newspapers received numerous nasty phone calls in protest, which included several bomb threats against the station. The story became front-page news in Cincinnati newspapers for the next several days.

References

External links

* * *{{IMDb title, id=0335599, title=ABC In Concert Country 1972 American television series debuts 1973 American television series endings 1991 American television series debuts 1998 American television series endings 1970s American music television series 1990s American music television series English-language television shows American television series revived after cancellation ABC late-night programming 1990s American late-night television series