A Look Back: June 17

By Mike Stampalia on June 17, 2025

50 years ago (1975): Lynyrd Skynyrd / Wet Willie / Atlantis @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center

The group came back for an encore and, with some help from Wet Willie’s Jimmy Hall, did Jimmy Rogers’ 1920 song “T for Texas,” a song that seemed to be 50 years ahead of its time. The night’s finale was the highpoint as the band did a tribute to the late Duane Allman and Berry Oakley by playing “Free Bird.” Van Zandt literally had to pull his guitarists off the stage after 20 minutes to end the concert. By the night’s end, the crowd seemed to be as physically drained as the group was.

– Steve Grandin for the Saratogian

30 years ago (1995): Melissa Etheridge / Paula Cole @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center

But those who lounged in the grass above the amphitheater on a warm and humid Saturday night got a little more for the $20 they paid – an acoustic set from Melissa Etheridge.

The Grammy-winning rock artist performed the most intimate segment of her two-and-one-half-hour show on the cement divider in front of the lawn, far from the stage where she played most of her exhilarating music.

– Jim White for the Post-Star

20 years ago (2005): Rascal Flatts / Blake Shelton / Shelly Fairchild @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center

The group’s presentation often drifted out of focus, with violin solos that went nowhere and precious time wasted on extraneous renditions of the Beatles’ “Let It Be” and Garth Brooks’ “Friends in Low Places.”

Even after a thrilling finale of “These Days,” the trio returned for an encore full of more moldy oldies.

– Mike Curtin for the Post-Star

10 years ago (2015): Craig Wayne Boyd / LANCO / Chris Dukes Band @ Empire State Plaza