Remember the time Green Day played Milwaukee’s MECCA Auditorium in 1995, and frontman Billy Joe Armstrong got arrested for mooning the crowd? Of course you do. How about the time the band played Milwaukee’s Mega Jam in 1993, and introduced a new song, “Longview,” to a largely uninterested crowd? No? It was the same show—held at the Summerfest grounds—where bassist Mike Dirnt threw some cocktail wieners into the crowd. Still not ringing a bell? Well, here’s the video!
And yep, the crowd threw the wieners back at the band.
The classic clip comes courtesy of Atomic Records legend Rich Menning. (Thanks, Rich!) His description says it all:
The ill-fated Milwaukee Mega Jam took place on the lakefront Summerfest grounds; June 4, 1993. The weather was unnaturally cold and dreary with a stiff breeze off Lake Michigan holding the temperature in the 40s(F), resulting in attendance in only the low hundreds. When the rain hit, the rest of the event—headliners Agent Orange and The Dickies (along with Tar and The Didjits)—was moved inside to The Unicorn club. Here you see Green Day introduce a new song to the dispirited crowd eight months before it became a huge MTV hit upon the release of the Dookie LP. You also catch a portion of the infamous cocktail wiener incident!
Just over 30 years later (!), Green Day will headline tonight’s Harley-Davidson Homecoming concert at Veterans Park. (Foo Fighters headline tomorrow night’s show.) Mooning and wiener fights may or may not be involved.
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