by Marc Nelson.
River Parks Amphitheatre, Tulsa, OK, USA. April 28, 1996.
It was a cold, rainy day in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Primus had just come in from Dallas the night before. There was some speculation as to whether the show would go on or not, since it was unseasonably cold and wet, and it was to be an outdoor concert.
Nonetheless, the Primus fans showed, so the show went on. Weapon of Choice started out, and the mosh pit was already getting into it seriously. While I enjoyed Weapon of Choice a lot, we were all anxious for Primus to take the stage. It was the first time Primus had ever played in Tulsa.
By the time they finally did come on, Les said something along the lines of "Well you guys are out here in this, so what the hell... if you can be out here, we can, too." They opened with "To Defy the Laws of Tradition," and all hell broke loose in the mosh pits.
It was clear this was going to be on great show, until someone threw a bottle and hit Les' Carl Thompson 4-string (with tremelo.) At that point, the whole band stopped, and Les reacted with "Okay.... you know, it happens a lot that when you get a crowd of about 6,000 people together, there's always a handful of dipshits... please don't throw anything at this stage..." and they resumed the show. The throwing stopped for a while, like a few minutes, and then it happened again, although this time a roll of toilet paper hit Herb's kit on stage. "Looks like we've found Dipshit #2 for the night!" said Les. "If there are any more dipshits out there, who insist on ruining the show for all the cool people out there by throwing anything at this stage, or anyone on this stage, please do me a personal favor... when you get that bottle, and you're getting ready to throw it, please spit on the end of it and shove it up your ass." Les was not too happy. I was beginning to worry that someone else would throw something and Primus would quit early on their first show here. Still, they played the whole show out and encored with "Jerry Was a Race Car Driver." It was one of the better outdoor shows I had ever seen, and Primus rocked Tulsa for the first time. The rest of us who were not dipshits really appreciated that Primus brought a little "taste" to Tulsa.