Alexander Memorial Coliseum

• 965 Fowler Street NW, Atlanta GA (on Georgia Tech campus)
• Capacity: approx. 8600
• Note: In 2010, the arena received $45 million facelift, which included additional seating expanding the capacity to over 9100. Upon completion, the facility was renamed the Hank McCamish Pavilion. It continues to be home court for Georgia Tech's basketball teams.

Alexander Memorial Coliseum

1970

• The Guess Who - April 24
• Allman Brothers Band, Smith - May 9
• Blood, Sweat & Tears - 

1971

• Judy Collins - April 17
• Steppenwolf - May 14
• Chicago - October 28 (benefit for Voter Education Project)

1972

• Bread - January 22
• Richie Havens - January 29
• The Beach Boys - March 30
• Ten Years After, Wild Turkey - April 22
• Stephen Stills & Manassas - May 15
• West, Bruce & Laing; Edgar Winter; Mose Jones - October 26

1973

• Yes, Poco, Les Moore - April 19
• Uriah Heep; Earth, Wind & Fire; Tucky Buzzard - September 21
• Loggins & Messina, Mark-Almond, Shawn Phillips  - October 24
• J. Geils Band, Foghat - October 28
• Sly & The Family Stone - November 1
• Black Oak Arkansas, Spooky Tooth - November 22
• Emerson, Lake & Palmer - November 28
• The Isley Brothers - December 8

1974

• Yes - February 11
• Traffic - April 23
• Blue Oyster Cult, Manfred Mann, Hydra - May 4
• Kool and The Gang, Eddie Kendricks, The Bar-Kays - May 5
• Doobie Brothers, Henry Gross - May 11
• Earth, Wind & Fire; Richard Pryor; Chambers Brothers - May 25
• Lynyrd Skynyrd, Hydra - September 20
• Seals & Crofts - November 16
• Black Oak Arkansas, Trapeze, Kiss - November 23

Discovery, Inc.

Booking agencies have always navigated the often tricky waters of coordinating artists with promoters and venues. In Atlanta's late 1960s and early 70s, there were several operations handling such business. Discovery, Inc., founded by Steve Cole in 1968, within a few years became the busiest and largest of the local agencies, at least in the rock-and-roll marketplace. Cole was part of the Atlanta music scene from which emerged the Southern Rock genre. He played a key role in mobilizing the legendary Piedmont Park free concerts (which propelled the Allman Brothers Band), and supplied clubs, colleges, and other settings throughout the Southeast with talent as required. Big name national tours, when in the region, often turned to the local talent pool for opening acts. Discovery provided.

Steve Cole (left) and promoter Alex Cooley at Piedmont Park, Atlanta GA,
photo by Carter Tomassi

From the outset, Discovery marketed the agency's presence, profile, and mission. They also promoted their bands' appearances, bolstering any advertising that club and concert promoters might provide. By 1974, Discovery handled about 20 acts. The Hampton Grease Band was with them from the beginning and, in 1970, landed a recording contract with CBS/Columbia. Discovery represented Lynyrd Skynyrd early in the band's career, also Mose Jones (formerly Stonehenge). In 1972, those two bands became label-mates for Al Kooper's Sound of the South, the first acts Kooper signed. Hydra likely logged the most road miles of any band in Atlanta back in the day, and signed with Phil Walden's Capricorn Records by early 1973. A point could be reached when range and volume of requests for a band outgrew the size of the agency. As happened with those mentioned, the time came when an agency with larger reach and capability was required. It was a good problem to have, and reflected success for both artists and agency.

Discovery, Inc., 1973 roster sample,
(click to enlarge)

In 1974, Discovery, Inc., merged with Holliday Group, another agency in the city. They retained the Discovery name and secured their standing as largest agency in Atlanta. Search results past the merger return very little information. A posting at thestripproject.com indicates that Steve Cole has since passed. Longtime Atlanta musician Darryl Rhoades wrote that Cole "understood the possibilities of the music scene way before other promoters actually acted on it. He predicted that one day bands would be playing huge venues to packed audiences." Atlanta's musical past owes much to Steve Cole.

Steve Cole, Discovery, Inc.,
photo from Billboard, May 24, 1974

Acts represented by Discovery between 1968 and 1974 include: Albatross, The American Cheese, Applejack, Armon, Atlanta Vibrations [later, Vibration], Avenue of Happiness, Axis, The Bag, Booger Band [later, just Booger], Brick Wall, Brother Bait, Buster Brown, Caliban, The Celestial Voluptuous Banana, Choice, Clear, The Coconut Confetti, The Daze After, Dear John, Dogwood, East Side Blues Band, The Electric Collage Light Show, Fifth Order, Flint, Foxes, Gingerbread, Glass Menagerie, Hampton Grease Band, Heat, Hydra, Interprize, Kudzu, Leviathan, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Micropolis, Milkweed, The Mud Child, The New Explanation, The Night Shadows featuring Little Phil, Orpheum Circuit, Pale Paradox, Papa Doc, The Peppermint Confederacy, Perpetual Motion [later, The Motion], Protrudamus, Radar, Resurrection, Rude-Frye, Russian Butt Broil, St George and the Dragonlite Show, Scald Cats, Smokestack Lightnin', The Soul-Jers, Soul Support, The Spontaneous Generation, Stillbrooke, Stonehenge [later, Mose Jones], Stump Brothers, Sweet Fire, Sweet Younguns [later, just Younguns], Traktor, Warm, and West End.

I promise I did not make up any of these names.

Sources:

"Bookers See Southern Bands Still to Be Recorded, Allman Brothers Success a Continuing Momentum," Billboard, May 24, 1974
"Inside Track," Billboard, October 26, 1974
The Great Speckled Bird, advertisements, 1968-1974

Moe Slotin, 1950-2001

Moe Slotin was living on Seal Place when we met. He became a good friend: supportive, generous, funny, and kind. He wrote concert reviews for The Great Speckled Bird at the time, and often took me and other friends along as sidekicks, sharing his backstage passes. Sometimes he'd quote us in his write-ups. He even had me cover a show for him once or twice. I always appreciated his trust and confidence. 
During the altered-state haze of the early 70s, Moe remained grounded, our designated driver long before the title was invented. He didn't drink or smoke, much less partake of controlled substances, and he was the first vegetarian I ever knew. I'd never even heard of brown rice until Moe introduced me to his favorite vegetarian restaurant, the Morningstar Inn, near Emory.

Moe Slotin in Underground Atlanta
sharing The Bird with the Atlanta PD,
1970 photo by Carter Tomassi

On top of Moe's writing commitments, he was part of the road crew for Hydra, one of the South's top bands of the time. Moe and Hydra's bassist Orville Davis shared the duplex on Seal Place. (I joined the household, too, and minded the fort while they were on the road.) The band toured extensively and often opened for major headliners such as Mountain, Procol Harum, and Trapeze. 

Hydra opened for Blue Oyster Cult on a leg of their 1974 tour. Moe accepted a subsequent job offer from BOC, and that was the last I saw him. A life-long mutual friend kept me updated as Moe traversed two decades in music. In addition to BOC, he went on to work with The B-52s, Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Aerosmith, and many others. An accomplished sound engineer, he settled in NYC and designed for the likes of Max's Kansas City and Madison Square Garden. 
After 20 years on the road, Moe left rock-and-roll to work as a licensed journeyman Porsche mechanic. In another abrupt career turn, he returned to school to become a physical therapist, and, no surprise, graduated top of his class. He fell in love, married, and had a child. After several years of professional practice in Manhattan, the family moved to Moe's hometown of Savannah GA, where he continued his work in physical therapy and also became an instructor for Armstrong Atlantic State University in that field. 
It was a shock to learn he was taken by cancer at age 51, especially since Moe had lived such a consciously healthy life. He positively impacted so many people in such varied arenas throughout his life. He was well-loved and is well-remembered. His parents created the Morris Slotin Memorial Scholarship for Armstrong State University. It is awarded annually to an outstanding student of physical therapy who has chosen the profession as a second career. Appropriate, especially because Moe was as outstanding as they come. 

Sources:
"The Two Worlds of Moe Slotin," by Barry J. Ostrow
Armstrong University Donor's Report, Fall 2014

The Sports Arena

• 310 Chester Avenue SE, Atlanta GA
  "Only 8,020 Feet East of State Capitol on Memorial Drive"
• Owners: L.C. "Pop" Warren created the venue in the 1930s; sold to Clyde Darby during WWII; in 1965 bought by wrestling promoter Paul Jones
• Capacity: 3600 

The Sports Arena was designed to host wrestling and boxing matches. It was also home to AAU "semipro" women's basketball team The Atlanta Blues. Musical events were interspersed, wherein the wrestling ring was adapted for performances. Early on, square dances were held several times a week, the main moneymaker of the time. Musical prodigy Brenda Lee performed there when she was just 9 years old. Elvis Presley played the Arena at age 20 on December 2, 1955, as his popularity was beginning to surge. Sports events at the venue were phasing out by the mid-1970s. In the mid-1980s the building was demolished. 

Photo by Steve Deal, staff photographer,
Atlanta Journal, October 28, 1983

"The Arena is a ramshackle building [without air-conditioning] long used for local wrestling, boxing, country music, and square dances. Inside, the atmosphere is one of wood and honest corruption, not steel, concrete, and hydraulic hype. Outside, the feeling is, well, like the industrial part of town, you know, warehouses, steel mesh fences, truck loading docks, cotton mill buildings, and even some plain red dirt road dear to the heart of a country boy."
--The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 3, No. 5, February 2, 1970, article by Cliff Endres

1970

• Fleetwood Mac, Hampton Grease Band, Radar, River People - January 25
• The Kinks, Osmosis, Booger Band, Brick Wall (Kinks cancelled day before; replaced with Pacific Gas & Electric) - February 22
• Kenny Rogers & The First Edition, The Glass Menagerie - March 8
• Spirit, River People, Ruffin - March 22 (Spirit cancelled less than 24 hrs before show; Hampton Grease Band and What Brothers added)
• John Mayall, Hampton Grease Band, Chakra - April 5
• Johnny Winter, Radar, Georgia Power Kompany - April 12
• Canned Heat, The House - April 19 
• "Rock and Roll Marathon" - Hampton Grease Band, Radar, Stump Brothers, Axis, Perpetual Motion, Brick Wall, Georgia Power Kompany, What Brothers, Ruffin - April 26 (9 hour benefit for The Midtown Alliance and Community Center)
• Grateful Dead, Hampton Grease Band - May 10 (members of the Allman Brothers Band joined Grateful Dead for an extensive jam; The Dead had borrowed the ABB's equipment as theirs was stuck in Boston)

1971

• Captain Beefheart, Ry Cooder, Booger Band - February 4
• Quicksilver Messenger Service, Brewer & Shipley - March 21
• Spirit, Trapeze, Radar - April 18
• John Mayall, Stonehenge, Randals Island - May 9
• Goose Creek Symphony, Chakra - May 23
• Steve Miller Band - June 10
• Buddy Miles and the Buddy Miles Express, Sugarloaf, Florida's Fabulous Tropics - June 20
• BB King, East Side Blues Band - June 27
• Chuck Berry, Ted Nugent & The Amboy Dukes, Sunday Funnies - October 17
• Fanny, Hydra, Orpheum Circuit, Phat Max - November 14
• The Guess Who, Peace Corps - December 2

1972

• John McLaughlin & The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Hampton Grease Band - May 7
• Edgar Winter, Groundhogs, Eric Quincy Tate - June 11
• Procol Harum, Eagles, Radar - July 13*
• Uriah Heep, John Baldry, White Trash - July 19
• The Byrds, Eric Anderson, New Riders of the Purple Sage - August 2
• T. Rex - August 21
• J. Geils Band - September 1
• Cheech & Chong, Hampton Grease Band - September 28
• John Mayall, Delbert & Glen - November 5

1973

• Mom's Apple Pie, Silverman, Joy - January 28
• Trapeze, Hydra - May 24
• Marshall Tucker Band, Wet Willie, Mose Jones, Eric Quincy Tate, Greg Scott & Eddie Terrill Band - July 1 (benefit for C.A.R.E.)
• Joe Walsh - August 19
• Fleetwood Mac, Jambalaya, Dixie Grease - November 4

*Conflicting tour databases put Procol Harum and Eagles at both Atlanta's Sports Arena and The Warehouse in New Orleans July 14, 1972. Eagles opened several times for Procol Harum on their 1972 tour, promoting the May 1972 release of their debut single "Take it Easy." A couple of online accounts of Sports Arena attendees place both bands in Atlanta on July 14. Promoter Howard Stein advertised only the July 13 concert in The Great Speckled Bird's July 10 and 17, 1972 issues. I will stick with the 13th as evidenced in the display ads. Joe Roman's definitive concert review in the July 24, 1972 issue of The Bird also nails the event to Thursday the 13th.

Sources:

"Arena of Memories," by Sam Heys, staff writer, Atlanta Journal, October 28, 1983

www.thestripproject.com/the-sports-arena

Just for Fun: the Story of AAU Women's Basketball, by Robert W. Ikard, published by The University of Arkansas Press, 2005

Atlanta Municipal Auditorium

• 30 Courtland Street SE (at Gilmer Street), Atlanta GA
• Capacity: 5000
• Note: The building, built 1909, was sold to Georgia State University in 1979.

Atlanta Municipal Auditorium
Photo: Special Collections Department,
Pullen Library, Georgia State University

1970 

• Steppenwolf - January 10
• Jerry Lee Lewis - January 17
• "WPLO Shower of Stars" - Merle Haggard, Bonnie Owens, The Strangers - March 14
• James Brown - March 16-17
• Santana, Allman Brothers Band, Insect Trust - March 19
• Allman Brothers Band - March 26
• B.B. King, Judy Clay, Wild Man Steve & His Revue - April 6
• Johnny Winter - April 12
• Delaney & Bonnie & Friends, Norman Greenbaum - April 30 (D&B refused to play, blaming sound system; Norman Greenbaum performed for small crowd, for free)
• Pink Floyd, The Guess Who - May 12
• Van Morrison, Sabudi, Shelly Isaacs - May 14 (partial benefit for Community Center bail fund)
• The Who - June 22
• Steppenwolf, Chakra - August 3
• Fleetwood Mac, Hampton Grease Band - August 20
• Jefferson Airplane, Radar, Glen McKay's Head Lights - August 24
• Mountain, Mylon LeFevre, Joel Osner - October 8
• Ike & Tina Turner Revue, Chakra, David Kennedy & Fire Power - October 22
• Bloodrock, Hydra, Rusha - October 31
• "WPLO Shower of Stars" - Sonny James & his Country Gentlemen, Ray Price & his Cherokee Cowboys, Compton Brothers - November 28
• Ten Years After, Stonehenge - December 1
• The Band - December 10
• The Temptations, Carla Thomas, The Bar-Kays - December 19
• The Amboy Dukes, Bob Seger System, MC-5 - December 29

1971

• Allman Brothers Band, Hampton Grease Band - January 16
• James Taylor, Carole King, Jo Mama - March 2
• Eric Burdon & War - March 11
• "WPLO Shower of Stars" - Conway Twitty, Bill Anderson, Tom T. Hall, Bobby Bare, Jan Howard, Bobby Johnson & The Swinging Gentlemen - March 13
• Blood, Sweat & Tears - March 25
• Small Faces "featuring Rod Stewart," Savoy Brown, The Grease Band - March 30
• Alice Cooper, Ted Nugent & The Amboy Dukes, Brownsville Station - April 1
• Jethro Tull, Brethren, Younguns - April 13
• Judy Collins - April 17
• Mountain, Procol Harum, Hydra - April 29
• Johnny Winter, Booger - May 15
• "Super Heavy Blues Express" - Big Mama Thornton, John Lee Hooker, T-Bone Walker, Joe Turner, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson, Al Hibbler - May 16
• Elton John, Mark-Almond - June 8
• Edgar Winter's White Trash, Mott The Hoople, J. Geils Band - June 17
• "WPLO Shower of Stars" - Conway Twitty & The Twitty Birds, Loretta Lynn & The Nashville Tennesseans, Dave Dudley & The Roadrunners, Anthony Armstrong Jones - June 26
• Melanie, Janey & Dennis - June 30
• Black Sabbath, Blues Project - July 7
• Allman Brothers Band, Cowboy (7:30pm), Hampton Grease Band (2:30pm) - July 17 (2 shows)
• Bloodrock, Savage Grace, Robert Savage Group - July 22
• Mother Earth, Doobie Brothers - August 2
• Emerson, Lake & Palmer; Humble Pie - August 4
• Faces "featuring Rod Stewart," Southern Comfort - August 5
• Ten Years After - August 11
• John Sebastian, Savage Grace - August 12
• James Gang, Mylon, Smoo's Barn Dance - August 17
• Leon Russell, Freddie King - August 18
• Savoy Brown - September 2
• Alice Cooper, Lee Michaels - September 11
• Long John Baldry, Cactus, Savoy Brown - September 23
• It's A Beautiful Day, Boz Scaggs - October 16
• Traffic, Fairport Convention - October 18
• Mountain, J. Geils Band, Stray Dog - October 27
• Cat Stevens, Mimi & Tom - November 10
• Grateful Dead, New Riders of the Purple Sage - November 11
• David Cassidy - November 13
• Emerson, Lake & Palmer; Yes - November 22
• The Who - November 23
• "WPLO Shower of Stars" - Porter Wagoner, Dolly Parton, Sonny James & The Country Gentlemen, Freddy Weller - November 27
• Canned Heat, Gary Wright, REO Speedwagon - December 15
• Bloodrock, Spirit, Crabby Appleton - December 20

1972

• Alice Cooper, Redbone, White Witch - January 8
• Smokey Robinson, Georgia Prophets - January 20
• Quicksilver Messenger Service, Big Brother & The Holding Company, Malo featuring David Santana - January 24
• Allman Brothers Band, Alex Taylor - January 25
• Traffic, J.J. Cale - January 31
• Melanie - February 16
• Ike & Tina Turner Revue, Wet Willie - February 19
• "WPLO Shower of Stars" - Waylon Jennings & The Waylors, Freddie Hart, Jim Ed Brown & The Gems, Stonewall Jackson & The Minutemen, Barbara Mandrell & The Mandrells - March 11
• Joe Cocker - March 21
• Emerson, Lake & Palmer - March 28
• The Guess Who - April 5
• Humble Pie, Alexis Corner, Edgar Winter - April 6
• Jethro Tull, Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band - April 27
• Jackson 5 - May 8
• Chicago - May 15
• Black Sabbath - June 19
• The Staple Singers, Joe Simon, Stylistics- July 13
• "Rock & Roll Revival" - Bill Haley & The Comets, The Coasters, Chubby Checker, Gary U.S. Bonds, Freddie Cannon, Bobby Comstock & The Comstock Ltd - July 15
• Rare Earth - July 18
• Leon Russell - July 20
• Black Sabbath - July 22
• Badfinger, Bloodrock, Kindred - August 3
• Jackson 5 - August 7
• James Gang, Captain Beyond - August 14
• Deep Purple, Fleetwood Mac, Silverhead - August 28-29
• Allman Brothers Band, Wet Willie (8/30), Eric Quincy Tate (8/31) - August 30-31
• The Al Green Review, The Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose, Herb Jubrit - September 16
• T. Rex, Doobie Brothers - September 23
• Yes, Eagles - September 30
• Brother Bait, performing "Tommy" - October 10
• Ten Years After - October 12
• B.B. King, Bobby Womack with Peace, Eric Quincy Tate - November 6
• The Hollies, Raspberries, Danny O'Keefe - November 8
• New Riders of The Purple Sage, Eric Quincy Tate - November 14
• "Bluegrass Music Spectacular" - Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt, Osborne Brothers, Jim & Jesse, Ralph Stanley, Lewis Family, Jimmy Martin, Mac Wiseman, Reno-Harrell, James Monroe, Clyde Moody, Curly Seckler - November 18 (12 hours!)
• The Supremes, Jackson 5 - December 1
• Humble Pie - December 14
• Edgar Winter, Wild Turkey - December 16

1973

• Rare Earth - January 20
• Charley Pride, Freddie Hart - January 27
• The Delfonics - February 10
• Traffic, John Martyn, Free - February 14
• Johnny Rivers, Brewer & Shipley - February 15
• Stephen Stills & Manassas - February 17
• Uriah Heep, Silverhead, Spooky Tooth - February 22
• Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention, Dr Hook & The Medicine Show - February 26
• "WPLO Shower of Stars" - George Jones, Tammy Wynette, Waylon Jennings - March 10
• Pink Floyd - March 24
• Loggins & Messina, Doobie Brothers - March 29
• Stephen Stills & Manassas - April 2
• Wishbone Ash, Vinegar Joe, Dr Hook & The Medicine Show - April 26
• Chi-Lites, The O-Jays, The Main Ingredient, Detroit Emeralds, Moments, Millie Jackson - May 2
• David Gates & Bread - May 3
• Waylon Jennings - May 12
• Kris Kristofferson & Rita Coolidge - May 28
• George Carlin - June 21
• Ike & Tina Turner - July 12
• Black Oak Arkansas, Jo Jo Gunne - July 14
• Beck, Bogert & Appice; Dr John - July 16
• Curtis Mayfield - July 19
• "CTI Summer Festival" - Esther Phillips, Milt Jackson, Hubert Laws, Hank Crawford, Johnny Hammond, Eric Gale, Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette, Bob James, Ralph McDonald, CTI Strings, Frankie Crocker MC - July 21
• Porter Wagoner, Dolly Parton, Speck Rhodes & The Wagonmasters - July 28
• Cactus - August 3
• Kool and The Gang, Ebony - August 5
• Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - August 11
• Roger McGuinn - August 22
• Sha Na Na, Wet Willie - August 23
• Roy Buchanan - September 6
• Al Green, Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose - September
• ZZ Top, Albert King - September 29
• Yes, Eagles - September 30
• Mott The Hoople, Aerosmith, New York Dolls - October 4
• Pat Boone - October 9
• Ten Years After - October 10
• Joe Walsh, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, REO Speedwagon - October 11
• Steve Miller Band - October 17
• Arlo Guthrie - October 21
• John Denver - October 25
• Conway Twitty, Loretta Lynn - October 27
• John Mayall, Ballin' Jack - November 1
• Freddie King, Tower of Power, Sylvester & The Hot Band - November 14
• John McLaughlin & The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Argent, Papa John Creech - November 21
• "Shower of Stars" - Hank Williams, Barbara Mandrell, Tom T. Hall, Johnny Rodriguez - November 24
• David Crosby & Graham Nash, David Blue - November 28

1974

• Slade, Brownsville Station - January 16
• Emerson, Lake & Palmer - January 24
• Billy Preston - February 14
• Dave Mason, James Gang - February 21
• B.B. King, Bobby Blue Bland, Ann Peebles - February 25
• Foghat, Maggie Bell, Frampton's Camel - March 27 
• Beach Boys - April 11
• King Crimson, Grin - April 13
• Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Climax Blues Band - May 6
• Procol Harum, Renaissance - May 8
• Slade, 10cc, Brownsville Station - June 5
• "Guitar Battle of the Century" - Ted Nugent & The Amboy Dukes, Cactus featuring Mike Pinera - July 26
• Foghat, Brownsville Station - August 5
• Choice, Stories, Brother Louie - August 19
• Mountain - August 21
• New York Dolls, White Witch - September 7
• Joe Cocker - September 9
• Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt - October 31
• Lou Reed - November 7
• Dave Mason, Poco - November 16

Piedmont Park Free Concerts

By Spring 1969 midtown Atlanta's Piedmont Park had become the primary setting for free concerts, usually on Sundays, from the afternoon into the evening. The central location drew local and regional talent, most memorably the Allman Brothers Band, who had recently relocated from Jacksonville FL to Macon GA. Atlanta had yet to open any substantial rock clubs, therefore the park became a key venue for musicians to showcase material to a large audience. 

Piedmont Park, Atlanta, 1969
Photo by Carter Tomassi

Allman Brothers drummer Butch Trucks recalled:

"After several weeks of work learning this new material we were busting to get out of that [Macon] warehouse and play it for people. So... we loaded ourselves and our equipment into our Econoline and what other rides we could glom and headed to Atlanta (later to be renamed Hotlanta, I believe we coined this term but can't prove it). We went straight to Piedmont Park and found a perfect spot to set up. It was a rather large flat space at the top of some stairs with some electrical outlets within reach. We didn't ask permission, we just set up and started pouring out all of this music we had only played for ourselves up to that time.... When we finished some people were so transfixed they simply laid down and spent the night there. Others made sure that the place was cleaned up. Of course the next Sunday we went back and there was a shit load more folks than were there the week before as well as a couple of other Atlanta bands that wanted to play. This grew into a weekly event that went from that little place to a big flatbed stage set up on the end of a very large field that someone provided complete with a massive generator. Plus many more bands. The crowd grew to the level of around 10,000 after a few weeks and I don't recall a single incident of violence in all the months that this magical thing continued."

Duane Allman, Piedmont Park, Atlanta, May 11, 1969
The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 2, No. 10, May 19, 1969
Cover photo by Bill Fibben

According to Duane Allman:

"Playing the park's such a good thing because people don't even expect you to be there. About the nicest way you can play is just for nothing, you know. And it's not really for nothing. It's for your own personal satisfaction–and other people's–rather than for any kind of financial thing."

UPDATE, APRIL 2018: Glenn Phillips (guitarist, composer, co-founder of the Hampton Grease Band) left a comment 4/4/18 on my 1/19/15 Discovery, Inc. post. Here's an excerpt in which he pinpoints the essential birth of the Piedmont Park free concerts. (For full context, click the Discovery label in the right column, then read the comments section.):

"The [Hampton] Grease Band's spontaneous Piedmont Park shows started [...] in the spring of '68 when I discovered there was a live outlet in the pavilion [...]. We started playing there pretty much every week and did shows there by ourselves on the grass by the pavilion, in the pavilion, in the tall brick gazebo off to the side of the pavilion (which also had a live outlet at the time, but was a pain in the ass to carry our equipment up to), and on the stone steps (which is where the Allman Brothers first appeared with us on May 11, 1969, when Phil Walden called the Grease Band personally to see if it was okay if the Allman Brothers played with us that day)."  

1969

• Hampton Grease Band, Crust, Smoke, Nail, Little Phil & The Night Shadows, Toni Ganim, Anne Romaine - March 29 (The Great Speckled Bird first birthday celebration)
• "BE-IN. Atlantis Rising festivities in the park. Music, food, etc." - April 20
• "BE-IN. Atlantis Rising festivities in Piedmont Park, all afternoon, music, rapping etc." - April 27
  
• "ROCK CONCERT/BE-IN. Celebrate opening of Atlantis Rising community trade fair, six rock groups" - May 3
• Allman Brothers Band, Hampton Grease Band - May 11
• Allman Brothers Band - May 18
• Booger Band - May 25 (during Atlanta Arts Festival)
• "BE-IN. Nexus House sponsors a be-in with bands, 2 pm, community supper, 5 pm" - June 22 
• Brick Wall, The Bag, Jim Cross, Semore, Barry Bailey, John Ivy - June 28 ("Grand Opening Be-In" for Atlantis Rising)
• Grateful Dead, Chicago Transit Authority, Spirit, Delaney & Bonnie & Friends, It's A Beautiful Day, Allman Brothers Band, Hampton Grease Band - July 7 (Monday concert following July 4th weekend's Atlanta International Pop Festival in Hampton GA, arranged by festival promoters)
• The Unpolished Brass - August 10
• Solid Blues - August 24 ("Socialist politics, folksingers, rock music, and guerrilla theatre... Jenness for Mayor rally")
• "Free Grease Job - Labor of Love" - Hampton Grease Band, Robin - August 31
• Allman Brothers Band - September 14
• "Mini-Pop Festival" - Allman Brothers Band, Hampton Grease Band, Brick Wall, Sweet Younguns, Booger Band, Radar, Hand Band - September 21 (rally for firebombed Atlantis Rising trade mart; 23 arrests made, initiated by disclosure of undercover narcotics officers; police used tear gas and batons on crowd, some of whom threw rocks; GSB photographer Bill Fibben arrested for taking pictures of police action, "interfering with arrest")
• Allman Brothers Band - September 27
• "Piedmont Music Festival" - Allman Brothers Band, Mother Earth with Tracy Nelson, Billy Joe Royal, Joe South, Boz Scaggs, Second Coming, Royal Blues, Hand Band, Boogie Chillun, Lee Moses - October 17-19
• Community Council of the Atlanta Area, Inc., meeting in the park with free music - November 2

1970

• "Free Music In The Park" - February 28-March 1 (sponsored by Universal Life Church)
• "Free Music In The Park" - March 7-8 (sponsored by Universal Life Church)
• Axis, Handle, Chakra, Paul Hanson & Pat Alger - March 20
• Screaming Yellow, Shayde - April 19
• "Spring Peace Festival" - Stump Brothers, Axis, Ether, Celestial Voluptuous Banana, Country Pye, Eric Quincy Tate, Light Brigade, Eros, Robyn, Perpetual Motion, Ruffin, What Brothers, Stuff, White Lie, Stonehenge, Last Era, Bremrod, Booger Jam, Total Electric, Corn Cobb Jam, Pegasus Lantern Light Show - June 6-7
• Allman Brothers Band, Majester Ludi, Chakra, Ether - June 14
• "Peace Festival" - Stump Brothers, Axis, Celestial Voluptuous Banana, Eric Quincy Tate, Nancy Harmon & The Victory Voices, Robyn, Twelve Eyes, What Brothers, White Lie, Pegasus Lantern Light Show - June 21 
• Hampton Grease Jam, Chakra, Milan, Flint - June 28
• Brewer & Shipley - July 19
• "Free Music" - July 26
• 15 Minutes, Joel, Buckwheat, What Brothers, Malford Mann, Babylon - August 9
• Duckbutter, Axis, Hydra, Flint, Joel, Ewing Street Times - August 16
• Younguns, Perpetual Motion, Hydra, Plymouth Rock, Interprize - August 30
• Sunrise, Horizon, Milkweed, Chakra, Street Explosion - September 13
• Radar, Younguns, Booger, Perpetual Motion, Chair - September 20
• Allman Brothers Band, Hampton Grease Band, Eric Quincy Tate, Avenue of Happiness, Stump Brothers, Chakra - September 27
• Stonehenge, Jelly Roll, Crossover, What Brothers, August, Underground Balloon Corporation, Kaleidoscopic Light Show - October 4
• "Women's Festival" - Anne Romaine, Ruthie Gordon, Carol & Barbara, Esther LeFevre, The Ribs - October 10
• Sweetwater; Warm; Looney Tunes; Red, White & Blue(grass); Chair - October 18
• Hydra; Red, White & Blue(grass); Younguns - October 25
• Joe South, Glass - October 30
• Avenue of Happiness - December 23

1971

• Stonehenge, Chakra - March 28
• Stump Brothers, East Side Blues Band, Horse Roscoe - April 3
• Wet Willie; Alex Taylor, Friends & Neighbors - April 4
• Thunder, What Brothers, Smooth's Barn Dance, Perpetual Motion, John Flynt, Flood - April 11
• Hydra, Flint, Foxes - May 23
• Goose Creek Symphony, Sunrise, Kudzu, Signal, Gladstone, David Harris (speaker) - May 30
• Allman Brothers Band - May 31
• What Brothers, Kudzu, Howling Bull - June 13
• Milkweed, Hansen & Alger, Fox Watson, Doris Abrahams, Vince Quinn, Jeff Espina - June 20
• Hydra, Duckbutter, A Man Called Joad, Glass Menagerie, Perpetual Motion - July 4 (12th Gate benefit)

Sources:
thebutchtrucks.blogspot.com/2011/08/piedmont-park.html
The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 2 Nos. 6, 7, 11, 15, 16, 24
The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 3 Nos. 9, 25, 29
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_International_Pop_Festival_(1969)
www.allmanbrothersband.com
www.hittinthenote.com/first_mountain.asp
Midnight Riders, by Scott Freeman, published by Little, Brown and Company, 1995
Skydog, The Duane Allman Story, by Randy Poe, published by Backbeat Books, 2006, 2008.

Note: Entries in quotes are from The Great Speckled Bird calendar pages.

The Headrest

• 114 Ponce de Leon Avenue (at Juniper), Atlanta GA
• Opened: August 1972
• Closed: February 1973
• Note: The Headrest opened under the management of Gary Rothman, who had previously been running Funochio's nearby on Peachtree Street. In summer of 1972 Georgia's drinking age was lowered to 18, the first change since being set at age 21 post-Prohibition. In this context, still a teenager, I worked at Funochio's for a couple of weeks before being tapped to be part of the team to open The Headrest. An artist, I was enlisted to paint a series of large murals for the club, particularly the floor-to-ceiling portraits of rock musicians which lined the front entrance hall. When I went to collect payment for the work I had done, the huge thug of an assistant manager (I believe called "Doodles") pulled a gun out and laid it on top of his desk. I stood there speechless, then turned and left the office. Needless to say, I was never paid for the work. Few were surprised the club closed only six months after opening.  

1972

• Chambers Brothers, Hampton Grease Band - club opening, mid-August 
• Roadapple, Mother's Son - August 17-19
• Boot, Lynyrd Skynyrd - August 31-September 2
• Smokerise, Cotton - September 4-9
• Bacchus - September 11-13
• Keys, Bacchus - September 14-16
• Keys, Bandit - September 18-23
• Ted Nugent & The Amboy Dukes - September 25
• "reopened - mASSell loses a round" (The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 5, No. 40, October 23, 1972, referring to Atlanta Mayor Sam Massell)
• Keys, Joshua - October 19-21
• Keys, Boot - October 23-28
• Lynyrd Skynyrd, Keys - November 2-4
• Chambers Brothers, Bandit - November 6-8
• Albatross, Bandit - November 9-11
• Ted Nugent & The Amboy Dukes, Blackfoot - November 13-15
• Eric Quincy Tate, Blackfoot -November 16-18
• Mose Jones, Applejack - November 20-25
• Kudzu, Clouds - November 27-December 1
• Kudzu, Eric Quincy Tate - December 2
• Squeeze, New Days Ahead - December 4-9
• Shayde - December 9
• Papa Doc - December 11-13
• Eric Quincy Tate, Papa Doc - December 14
• Lynyrd Skynyrd, Papa Doc - December 15-16
• Mose Jones, Micropolis - December 18-23
• Hydra, Brother Bait - December 26-27
• Kudzu, Brother Bait - December 28
• Hydra, Brother Bait - December 29-30 

1973

• Bob Seger System, Lynyrd Skynyrd - January 1-3
• Blackfoot, Lynyrd Skynyrd - January 4-6
• White Trash, Kudzu - January 8-10
• Brother Bait, Kudzu - January 11-13
• Ted Nugent & The Amboy Dukes, Keys - January 15-17
• Micropolis, Keys - January 18-20

Funochio's

• 845 Peachtree Street (at 6th), Atlanta GA
• Self-titled "Atlanta's Original House of Rock"
• Opened: December 1971
• Closed: September 1973
• Note: Source material for early days of Funochio's is scarce. An article in the December 20, 1971 issue of The Great Speckled Bird [GSB] about the band Flood indicates that owners of Funochio's would not purchase ad space until the newspaper had given the club significant press coverage. The same article refers to Funochio's as "a new place," inferring they had only recently opened. First evidence of ad placement was in the GSB February 14, 1972 issue, text only, in the free club listings of the Calendar page. (Discovery, Inc., an agency that booked and managed much of Atlanta's talent, frequently purchased display ads for their bands' appearances at Funochio's, given the club's early unwillingness to invest in marketing.) Funochio's first purchase of GSB display ad space was for the November 27, 1972 issue, promoting the club's first anniversary in early December.

1971

• Hydra - December
• Birnam Wood - December 
• Flood - December

1972

• Hydra - January 3-8, 10-15
• Stonehenge - February 14-19
• Hydra (with Clear, February 25) - February 21-26
• Kudzu - February 29-March 4
• Orpheum Circuit - March 6-11
• Brother Bait - March 13-18
• Lynryd Skynyrd - March 2o-25
• Taxi - March 27-April 1
• Hydra - April 3-8
• Stonehenge - April 10-15
• Eric Quincy Tate - April 17-22
• Boot - April 24-29
• Lynyrd Skynyrd - May 1-6
• Kudzu - May 8-13
• Macbeth (with Cisco, May 18) - May 19-20
• Flood - May 22-27
• Brother Bait - May 29-June 3
• Birnam Wood - June 5-10
• Papa Doc - June 15-17
• The Motion - June 17 (3pm jam)
• Hydra - June 19-24 (Deep Purple jammed)
• Orpheum Circuit - June 24 (3pm jam)
• Stonehenge - June 26-July 1
• Boot - July 3-8, 10-15 (Al Kooper jammed)
• Lynyrd Skynyrd - July 17-22 (first encounter with Al Kooper)
• Brother Bait - July 24-29
• Wellington Arrangement - July 31- August 5
• Stonehenge - August 7-12
• Hydra - August 14-19
• Lynyrd Skynyrd - August 21-26
• Free Love - August 28-31
• Wet Willie - September 1-2
• Kudzu - September 4-9
• Circus - September 11-13
• Hydra (with Albatross, September 15) - September 14-16
• Stonehenge - September 18-20
• Eric Quincy Tate - September 21-23
• Stonehenge - September 25-28
• Stonehenge, Al Kooper - September 29-30
• Whalefeathers - October 2-7
• Buster Brown - October 9-14
• Lynyrd Skynyrd - October 16-21
• Buster Brown - October 23-25
• Eric Quincy Tate, Buster Brown - October 26-28
• Hydra - October 30-November 4
• Brother Bait - November 6-11
• Kudzu - November 13-18
• Papa Doc - November 20-25
• Eric Quincy Tate, Albatross - November 27-29
• Albatross, Law - November 30-December 2
• Hydra - December 4
• Brother Bait  - December 5
• Mose Jones - December 6
• Armon, Mose Jones - December 7
• Armon, Eric Quincy Tate - December 8
• Armon - December 9
• Whalefeathers - December 11-16
• Hydra, Law - December 18-20
• Hydra - December 21-23
• Al Kooper, Mose Jones - December 26-27
• Mose Jones - December 28-30

1973

• Eric Quincy Tate - January 1-6
• Boot - January 8-13
• Lynyrd Skynyrd, Smokestack Lightnin' - January 15-20
• Mose Jones, Sweet Rye - January 22-27
• Whalefeathers, Sowbelly - January 29-February 3
• Kudzu, Sowbelly - February 5-10
• Law, Orpheum Circuit - February 12-14
• Law, Maelstrom - February 15-17, 19-24
• Eric Quincy Tate, Cotton Small - February 26-March 3
• Blackfoot, Hooker - March 5-10
• Lynyrd Skynyrd, Armon - March 12-17
• Mose Jones, Papa Doc - March 19-24
• Boot, Brown Dog - March 26-31
• Caliban, Scald Cats - April 2-7
• Fat Chance, Mushroom Jones - April 9-14
• Sun Country, Cisco - April 16-21
• Eric Quincy Tate, Cisco - April 23-28
• Caliban, Slick - April 30-May 5
• Lynyrd Skynyrd, Mason - May 10-12
• Orpheum Circuit, Kudzu - May 14-19
• Lynyrd Skynyrd, Traktor - May 21-26
• Brother Bait, Albatross - May 31-June 2
• Ritual, Mudcrutch* - June 4-9
• Brown Dog - June 14-16
• Hydra, Target - June 18-23
• Roadapple - June 25-30
• Eric Quincy Tate - July 2-7
• Birtha, Eric Quincy Tate - July 4-5
• Mose Jones - July 9-14
• Birtha - July 12
• Kudzu - July 12-15
• Birnam Wood - July 16-21
• Whiskey Train, Armon - July 26-28
• Kudzu, Nation Road - July 30-August 1
• Kudzu, Papa Doc - August 2-4
• Micropolis, Scald Cats - August 6-11
• Papa Doc, Catfish Hodge - August 13-16
• Papa Doc, Cisco - August 17-18
• Target, New Day Ahead - August 20-25

*Mudcrutch was Tom Petty's Gainesville, Florida, band prior to formation of the Heartbreakers. The group included Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell, who stayed on as members of the Heartbreakers. Mudcrutch signed with Shelter Records in 1974 and released one single before breaking up in 1975. >>January 2017 update: In August 2007, Tom Petty invited original members Randall Marsh and Tom Leadon to reform Mudcrutch along with Heartbreakers Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell. They have since recorded two studio albums, toured extensively, and released a live album as well. Their last concerts were in June 2016 as of this update.