Ranch Records co-owner Lori Close looks for a Three Dog Night record Thursday. (Saphara Harrell/ Salem Reporter)
The 1970s are still rocking, if decades-old bands still touring and drawing large crowds is any evidence.
On Friday, Three Dog Night, whose songs “One” and “Mama Told Me Not to Come” became hits of the era, plays the Elsinore Theater in Salem.
Three Dog Night is popular enough among locals that Ranch Records is sold out of the band’s CDs.
Co-owner Lori Close said any 1970s rock, like Pink Floyd or Steppenwolf, sells really well at the Salem record store. She grew up during that era and said “that was playing in my parents’ car.”
The 1,290-seat Elsinore Theatre has not yet sold out, said Tom Fohn, executive director, but they have sold 900 tickets.
Fohn said he’s seen the band play nearly 50 times and has developed a personal relationship with the musicians.
People of all ages still come to see them play, he said.
“It seems to be resonating with a lot of people,” Fohn said.
Ranch Records was sold out of Three Dog Night CDs Thursday. (Saphara Harrell/ Salem Reporter)
Three Dog Night rose in popularity more than 40 years ago, after forming in 1967 with Danny Hutton Cory Wells and Chuck Negron. Its name is said to have come from Hutton’s girlfriend at the time, June Fairchild, who read Australian aborigines gaged coldness by the number of dogs they slept near to stay warm. A “three-dog night” was especially cold.
Three Dog Night has lost some band members over the years. Wells, the vocalist, and keyboardist Jimmy Greenspoon both died in 2015. Today, the band consists of Hutton on vocals, Michael Allsup on Guitar, Paul Kingery on bass, Pat Bautz on drums, David Morgan on vocals and Howard Laravea on keyboard.
Still, listening to the music can transport people back in time, Fohn said.
“These bands that are out here, they’re doing it for us,” he said. “They’re doing it because people still want to hear them.”
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. at 170 High St. S.E. Tickets cost between $34.50 to $99.50 online, plus fees. More info can be found on the Elsinore website or by calling 503-375-3574.
Have a tip? Contact reporter Saphara Harrell at 503-549-6250, [email protected] or @daisysaphara.
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