To date, more than 600 people have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, most of whom are fantastically famous. Yet, somehow, one of the least-known inductees managed to receive one of the hall’s highest honors. In 2005, Frank Barsalona, a concert promoter, received a “lifetime achievement” distinction at the Cleveland-based institution. So, how did a guy who, some might think, simply booked talent, earn such a lofty distinction?
The answers lie in an informative new documentary, The Show’s The Thing: The Legendary Promoters of Rock. In colorful detail, the film lays out how Barsalona blueprinted the modern concert business (now a $10bn industry), along the way changing how audiences relate to the music, while also providing crucial support for some of its greatest stars. “No act becomes huge without a key promoter doing his work,” says Bob Geldof in the film.
“These guys were as much tastemakers as any head of a record company,” adds manager Winston Simone.
“They’re at the center of it all,” said Philip Dolin, co-director of the documentary.
In fact, Barsalona was the one who established that center. After witnessing the size and passion of the crowd for the Beatles’ first Washington DC concert in 1964, he began to imagine a full network of concert tours by scores of rock bands. “The 40-, 50-date tour cycle didn’t exist back then because people did not realize that there was a market,” said Irv Zuckerman, who became an early rock promoter.
While other agents, journalists and music executives in the early to mid-60s viewed rock as a fad on the wane after Elvis entered the army, Barsalona recognized that “this wasn’t the end of something, it was the beginning”, said Dolin.
A key connection in realizing his vision came through the woman who became his wife, June Harris. When Barsalona met her, she was working in her native UK as one of the first rock journalists, scoring early interviews with the Beatles and the Stones. “She introduced Frank to all the British invasion acts and their representatives,” said the film’s co-director, Molly Bernstein.
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