Security Mars Benatar Concert at Saratoga

by Yvonne Daley, Rutland Daily Herald, August 19, 1981

Pat Benatar’s performance at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center Sunday night was sensual, gutsy, powerful, and loud, but the night was marred by SPAC’s rough security force, Pyramid Security.

Benatar, a hot rocker who belts out a song with sexy charisma, performed for 28,000, said to be the fifth-largest audience in SPAC’s 16 years.

Maybe security personnel weren’t prepared for such a large crowd — or perhaps they were overly prepared. Either way, Pyramid Security treated the crowd roughly, appearing to incite the crowd on several occasions by overreacting to the fans’ desire to see this talented performer.

Children and adults who were attempting to sit in aisles to get a better view of the stage were surrounded by a swarm of security people who locked arms and pushed violently against the crowd.

Some fans were pushed down and appeared to be hurt.

When this tactic failed, guards grabbed fans one at a time, throwing them against cement and metal rails. Several were handcuffed and taken away. One young girl cried and said she was just trying to get to her seat.

Meanwhile, Benatar’s rock — a mixture of sweetness and violence — rolled on.

Her music reflects what she calls her double personality. Benatar says that at home with her lover, guitarist Neil Giraldo, and dogs, she is quiet and shy and sometimes has trouble relating to her other self, the performer.

On stage, she’s all business. Yet songs like “Fire and Ice,” “Hit Me with Your Best Shot,” and “Take It Anyway You Want It” reflect the duality of Benatar’s performance.

Both selves are visible, the raucous one more apparent. The songs are simultaneously cold and hot, detached yet revealing, rough and loving at once. They reflect the image of someone living on the edge, protecting that edge all the while.

On some songs, Benatar’s band seemed to compete with her, rather than play with her. Lead guitarist, Giraldo, appeared to be trying to upstage her on many occasions.

Giraldo’s Black Oak Arkansas — or Thin Lizzy — type guitar gyrations were a bit ridiculous as he charged across stage with his sabre-guitar.

Myron Grombacher on drums competed for the limelight, but his performance worked, laying down a basic staccato beat — rhythmic and pulsating — for the songs.

Benatar is an attractive woman with a strong voice. Her performance would be enhanced by attempting more rapport with her audience. Sometimes, the performance seemed too mechanical.

I’d like to say more about Benatar. But after being nearly strangled during the first song by a Benatar security guard who violently wrapped my camera strap around my neck and after watching a Pyramid Security guards manhandle the crowd, I admit to some distraction.

Actually, I left before the encores. I could have taken a lot more of Pat Benatar and her band, but had had my fill of SPAC’s policing.

About 35 individuals were arrested, according to State Park Police at Saratoga Springs.

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