Penfield Library Blog: News & Highlights

Oswego Rocks! The Beginnings and Laker Hall

Bruce Springsteen. Billy Joel. The Doors. Sly and the Family Stone. Roberta Flack. Pat Benatar. The Clash. Blues Traveler. Walk The Moon. Beyonce? If you ask someone who went to SUNY Oswego if they remember a rock concert, there's a good chance the performer they saw was either on their way to fame or had already achieved stardom. Archives & Special Collections brings you Oswego Rocks!, an exhibit in Penfield Library that explores the history of popular concerts at SUNY Oswego. Photographs, posters, backstage passes, newspapers, yearbooks and more are used in this exhibit to learn about the performances and highlight the sources to research our rock history. 

The Oswego Rocks! exhibit is on display in Penfield Library from June through December 2025. We invite anyone with memories to share, memorabilia to donate, or questions to ask about concert performances at Oswego to please contact us at archives@oswego.edu. A special thank you goes out to the following alumni for their contributions to the exhibit: Joyce Thompson-Hovey '69, Jim Gemza '70, Lou Borrelli '77, Mark Allen Baker '79, Andrew Hans '81, and Allan Shaw '86.

The Beginnings

To understand the history of popular concerts at Oswego we must briefly examine the groups responsible for making it all happen. Since the 1960s students were actively involved with bringing in popular acts to places like Lee Hall, Laker Hall, Waterman Theatre and the Hewitt Union Ballroom. The College Union Board of Managers (CUBM) was the first student organization to focus on bringing appealing art and culture to the growing student population. Within CUBM was the Major Attractions Committee, who focused on popular musical acts of the time. CUBM evolved into the Hewitt Union Board of Managers (HUBM) shortly after the opening of the Hewitt Student Union in 1967 and then once again into the Hewitt Union Activities Council (HUAC). In May 1971, the Program Policy Board (PPB) was established through the Student Association Senate ("PPB Offers Wide Variety of Entertainment For 72-73"). The students on the committee were tasked with scheduling engaging events and creating a buzz on campus. Students were even hired to set up Laker Hall for concerts by constructing the stage, sound equipment, lighting, and mixing boards to save money on production and gain professional experience ("Student crew helps transform Laker gym into concert hall"). The Student Association Programming Board, and specifically the Concerts Committee, took over responsibilities handled by the Program Policy Board in 1997 and immediately brought in recognizable acts.

Simon and Garfunkel at Lee Hall ticket, courtesy of Joyce Thompson-Hovey '69

Performers during this period tended to be popular on the radio or within the coffee house scene. The Major Attractions Committee brought in musical groups popular with the college crowd like The Highwaymen in 1963 and The Lettermen in 1964 ("Lettermen Entertain"). Artists like Ian and Sylvia (1965), We Five and Brothers Four (both in 1966), and Simon and Garfunkel (1967, R&RHOF 1990, "Simon and Garfunkel") also came and played their preferred folk music in Lee Hall. Popular acts like the Four Seasons (1966, R&RHOF 1990), The Association ("The Association Interview"), Tommy James and the Shondelles ("Jam Session..."), Deep Purple (R&RHOF 2016, "Deep Purple and Friend and Lover to Appear"), The Buckinghams, and The Youngbloods entertained students with their more rock-driven musical styles. Arguably the biggest, and most controversial, rock group to visit campus during this time was The Doors (R&RHOF 1993), who performed in Lee Hall on September 11, 1967 ("Doors swing open to Frosh"). The band was a last-minute fill in after two other bands, The Buckinghams and The Blues Project, suddenly became unavailable. SUNY Oswego student Mike Lazar interviewed the band members before the show, which is available on The Doors YouTube channel.

The Doors with SUNY Oswego students Mike Lazar and Steve Flessner, courtesy of Jim Gemza '70

Laker Hall

Laker Hall was the site of the largest concerts on campus in the late 1960s and 1970s. Actor and musician Josh White, Jr. is remembered as the first HUBM-sponsored performer to play Laker Hall on March 14, 1969 ("Josh White adds bit of humor to concert"), and Sly and the Family Stone (R&RHOF 1993) headlined Fall Week the following semester.

Sly and the Family Stone, courtesy of Jim Gemza '70

In May 1971, the Program Policy Board (PPB) was established through the Student Association Senate ("PPB Offers Wide Variety of Entertainment For 72-73"); students on the committee were tasked with scheduling engaging events and creating a buzz on campus. Students were even hired to set up Laker Hall for concerts by constructing the stage, sound equipment, lighting, and mixing boards to save money on production and gain professional experience ("Student crew helps transform Laker gym into concert hall"). The list of popular performances at Laker Hall in the 1970s is impressive: Mountain, B.B. King, Richie Havens, Gordon Lightfoot ("SA Spring Week: Gordon Lightfoot Performs"), Lou Reed (R&RHOF 2015, "Street Punk Comes to Oswego") with opening act Hall and Oates (R&RHOF 2014), Peter Frampton R&RHOF 2024, "Peter Frampton Breaks the Noise Barrier"), Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band (R&RHOF 2004, "Bob Seger: 'joyous rock and roll'"), Peter Gabriel (R&RHOF 2014), and The Kinks (R&RHOF 199).

Richie Havens (left) before performing in Laker Hall, photographs collection

One music legend who rocked Laker Hall three times in the 1970s is Billy Joel (R&RHOF 1999). His first time performing in Oswego was in March 1972 and before his signature hit song "Piano Man" was recorded. Joel would come back two more times and rock Laker Hall in 1974 ("Piano Maní comes to SUCO") and 1977 ("Billy Joel finds Oswego again").

Backstage pass for Billy Joel at Laker Hall, courtesy of Mark Allen Baker '79

Arguably the biggest rock performance at SUNY Oswego happened on December 16th 1975. Billed as the Super Concert, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (R&RHOF 1999, "An evening with Bruce Springsteen") drew a crowd of 3,000 to Laker Hall during their winter run of the Born To Run tour. Audio recordings of the show are found online, including through the Springsteen Archives YouTube channel. An article in the Oswegonian even reported that a chartered bus brought concert-goers from Cortland to see The Boss to play hits like "Thunder Road", "Born to Run", and "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out". There is even lore around this concert; Syracuse seemed to be the likely stop on the tour but a last-minute offer brought the concert to Oswego with a reported price tag of $19,000 in 1975 ("Election to include 'double charging' referendum").

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, courtesy of Lou Borrelli '77

Up Next... The Rock Continues, Student Organizations, and Infamous Concerts posts on June 10th, 2025