Before they were famous...

[porterhaus]

Back in the early seventies (probably 1972) a few of us guys went to a small nightclub called "Richards" in midtown Atlanta. We were there mostly for the beer. However, we had heard that this place had some decent live music. We got there early and sat at a table about 10 to 15 feet in front of the small area where the band had set up their gear. A short time later a band, that none of us had ever heard of, came in and began to play. The music was unique, full of energy, excellent, and new to us. We left there quite impressed.

Now, for the rest of the story...

Here is an exerpt from Wikipedia:

In 1972 the band was discovered by musician, songwriter, and producer Al Kooper of Blood, Sweat, and Tears, who had attended one of their shows at a club in Atlanta. They changed the spelling of their name to "Lynyrd Skynyrd",[6] (pronounced 'lĕh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd) and Kooper signed them to MCA Records, producing their first album the following year "Pronounced Leh-nerd Skin-nerd". 1973's featured the hit song "Free Bird", which received national airplay, eventually reaching #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, and is still considered a rock and roll anthem today.

Now, I have no real way to know for sure. However, I think it is entirely possible that they were "discovered" in that very club the very night while we were there...


Anyway, I thought there might be some other similar stories out there that would be fun to read about. These can be about any famous personalities. Not just musicians. Have you encountered someone famous (before they were)?


Please let us hear about them folks...

 

[guyhayton]

I knew John Amaechi the now retired NBA player. Knew him when we were both 14-15 years old - used to hang out around Cheadle in Stockport.

He was always very tall, and we lost touch when he moved to America to live with his Dad and go to College on a basketball scholarship.

Next I heard was that he was playing for Orlando Magic, scored the first NBA points in the new millenium and then got fame for turning down a $17million contract to join the LA Lakers.

Lives back in London and Manchester now - keep thinking of looking him up bu I am sure he won't remember me now!!!!

 

[ClubmanRob]

I met Jack White at SXSW approximately a year before the White Stripes got big.

I met Matchbox Twenty (shudder) backstage at my highschool. They played there along with some other up and coming bands (Screeming Cheatah Wheelies was the other group I think). The following year that song "I want to push You Around" blew them up.

He's technically still not a superstar, but I've known Jim Heath (The Reverend Horton Heat) since I was ten years old.

My brother was fast friends with Sully from Godsmack back in highschool. He supposedly spent a lot of time at my parents house, but I was so young I don't remember him. My brother always had some long haired metalhead over so he could have been any of the thousands of guys with acne and cut off jean vests that smelled like pencil shavings and reefer.

Matt and Jeff Hardy (the Hardy boys of WWE fame) and I grew up about five miles apart from one another. I never knew them personally (different schools) but knew their house quite well; they had a giant homemade wrestling ring in the backyard visible from the road. When they started making a name for themselves in pro wrestling I put two and two together and realized who they were. I don't follow wrestling so I'm not sure if they're still "big" anymore.

 

[porterhaus]

Some great responses so far...


Here is another one:

A long time ago, playing regularly at a pub in Marietta, GA called Chico Dill's, there was a young guitarist/singer (just starting out). He hailed from the local area and he had a large notebook full of songs he covered. And he liked doing requests. I stopped there after work on occasion and really enjoyed his music. Little did anyone know that the young Travis Tritt would go on to become quite a star...



Lets hear some more!!!

 

[Luc]

Back in the early seventies (probably 1972) a few of us guys went to a small nightclub called "Richards" in midtown Atlanta. We were there mostly for the beer. However, we had heard that this place had some decent live music. We got there early and sat at a table about 10 to 15 feet in front of the small area where the band had set up their gear. A short time later a band, that none of us had ever heard of, came in and began to play. The music was unique, full of energy, excellent, and new to us. We left there quite impressed.

Now, for the rest of the story...

Here is an exerpt from Wikipedia:



Now, I have no real way to know for sure. However, I think it is entirely possible that they were "discovered" in that very club the very night while we were there...


Anyway, I thought there might be some other similar stories out there that would be fun to read about. These can be about any famous personalities. Not just musicians. Have you encountered someone famous (before they were)?


Please let us hear about them folks...

That's one cool story!

 

[MrGuy]

My brother was good friends with Adam Vinatieri in High School. The gave me that standard big brother treatment. It's kind of neat to think that I was "bullied" by an NFL player

 

[erudolph]

I've got a couple from the wayback machine.

In 1967 I was going to school in NYC on 8th Street, just east of 6th Ave. One night, my friends and I went to a basement club just down the block from us. Pretty much nobody was there, maybe 10 people sitting at picnic tables in the large club. The one and only act was Sly and the Family Stone and they did their full-up show, Sly doing the hambone on top of the piano etc.

Incident #2. In the 70s I was living in San Francisco and played from time to time in a very out-of-the-way neighborhood at a club called The Garden of Earthly Delights. A few times an out-of-town band named The Justice Brothers played at the same club, led by two very dynamic singers, and one (or both) of them was a fine guitar player. The guitar player was Sammy Hagar.

 

[dpm802]

I went to college with Bruce Willis.

He was totally different from the Macho He-Man image he portrays today.
He was very skinny and effeminate, sort of a Richard Simmons wannabe.

 

[mretzloff]

How do people find six-year-old threads?

 

[dpm802]

How do people find six-year-old threads?

At the bottom of each thread page, there is a listing of "Similar Threads" ... that's how I found this one, along with several other Golden Oldies.

 

[dpm802]

I once lived on the same block with Hyman Pressman. He was the Comptroller of Baltimore City from 1963~1991.

Comptroller is a behind the scenes office that ranks in status right up there with the Mayor. While the Mayor takes care of all the public appearances, shaking hands, making speeches, and so forth, its the Comptroller who is in charge of watching over financial matters, adjusting budgets, collecting revenues, disbursing funds, etc.

Its a toss-up between Mayor and Comptroller as to which one actually has more power and influence.

 

[jpakstis]

With my daughter playing soccer and myself being cajoled into being her coach, my dad told me about the time he was my soccer coach when I was kid. We were living in condominiums near the University of Virginia campus and our next door neighbor was one of the assistant coaches, so my dad asked him for some advice and of course the stuff he offered (like running actual plays and defensive schemes) went way beyond what we kids could handle. It turned out our neighbor was Bruce Arena who ultimately became the USNMT coach and the first coach of DC United (and current coach of the LA Galaxy).

I also played football in college with Eric Mangini, who later went on to be the head coach of the NY Jets and Cleveland Browns. At the time I was in college, Bill Belichick was the head coach of the Browns and there was a basic understanding that if you played football at Wesleyan University (Belichick's alma mater) you could join his staff no problems, which is what Mangini did.