Pine Knob and Its Very First Concert, 1972

In 2022, Pine Knob once again was called "Pine Knob".

I wasn't too thrilled with the name DTE Energy Music Theatre and stubbornly continued to call it “Pine Knob”....couldn't do it...the DTE name kept getting stuck in my throat and I couldn't get it out. “Pine Knob” kept coming out instead.

50 years after the first Pine Knob concert in 1972, it went back to its old familiar moniker.

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Joe Locricchio was the guy who bought up that 600-acre hunk of land in 1969 with the hopes of creating some kind of music mecca.....and he did.....and it worked.

Pine Knob's very first concert was teen idol David Cassidy on Sunday, June 25, 1972. The big day came, teenyboppers were filing in, screaming and squealing in anticipation to see young David. Even while the audience was arriving, the box office wasn't even finished and the stage and audience seats were still being painted...in fact, many concert-goers went home with orange paint on their pants.

I saw a good many shows at the Knob over the years: Beach Boys, Linda Ronstadt, Monkees, BTO, Eagles.....most of the time sitting in the grass on the hill. I snarfed up some band t-shirts, concert booklets, and memorabilia at the booths but never bought any food there (we always brought our own: usually a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken and beer or pop).

It was called 'DTE' for about twenty years (beginning in 2001)...and the photo gallery below shows images of old tickets and other stuff from the beginning (1972) up to the year 2000.

It was well worth the drive.