30 Aug
Attending shows at the old Electric Factory — 21st & Arch Streets.
by Gail, Phila, PA
What a venue — offering concerts by some of the top acts of the day as well as up-and-comers. Great place.
One Response to “Attending shows at the old Electric Factory — 21st & Arch Streets.”
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I started going to the original Electric Factory probably in 1968, when I was 13 years old. I lived not far from there and spent much of my time is Philly’s local version of haight-ashbury …..The Sansom Street/Rittenhouse Square area……
I saw many great acts at the factory. I became a regular and was usually let in for free….
Some highlights:
I had never heard of Tracey Nelson and Mother Earth but when she started singing “Down So Low” I was mesmerized.
When Santana played the Factory, I had better than front row seats, I sat on the stage, leaning against an amplifier….
The whole neighborhood was crowded that night…. these type of crowds I am sure contributed to the eventual closing….
By the way, UNDER the stage was a big exhaust fan… You could hang out back behind the factory, hear all of the music, and just BREATHE in the exhaust, if you get my drift…
I used to pick up dayglow paint at Apparatus or some other headshop on Sansom Street and paint peace signs on people for a quarter…..
Speaking of Sansom Street, I remember panhandling outside of the Second Fret while the Velvet Underground played inside…..
A final note: A few years later, I would occasionally go to The Hot Club, Philly’s punk venue….
September 18th, 2007 at 12:56 pmI remember a regular from the Factory, who had become a regular at the Hot Club…
His clothes, his hair, everything about him had transformed from a classic hippie to a classic punk…. He went from long straight brown hair and torn jeans…..to
black spiked hair, swashtika, etc….