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I remember that horn.
I also remember their in-house band, "The Sound of the Spurs". I took some guitar lessons from the guy who played for them.
I think you're referring to the brawl between the Nets and the Spurs that cleared both benches. It spilled over into the crowd when some of our snockered citizens decided to throw beer and holler insults at huge athletes that can run like deer. Not a good idea.
One fat guy got into it with Rich Jones, a PF at 6'10 with an AFRO and a real bad at ude on the court, an old time enforcer you don't see in the league anymore. He wasn't about to take from some fat nerd on the floor.
The next thing you saw was the fat guy actually outrunning Jones up the stairs for the safety of the upper reaches of the Arena. I guess fear won out over rage. I was laughing so hard I dropped my beer on the guy in front of me and we got into it. It was a of a night. I miss the out of those wild and wooly ABA days.
I remember that horn.
I also remember their in-house band, "The Sound of the Spurs". I took some guitar lessons from the guy who played for them.
Nope, that was ABA, as you point out.
This was during the Spurs' first year in the NBA, and it wasn't the Cowens/Bird altercation with a fan which happened after a game in 1980.
Bill Walton remembers it:
http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache...n__Day_23.html
The history here in San Antonio at the old HemisFair Arena…Ice Gervin, James Silas, Artis Gilmore, the old owner Red McCombs, who was at the game today, and who could forget the BASELINE BUMS, as WILD and CRAZY a group of fans that have EVER EXISTED in the NBA. So CRAZY, in fact, that the master of decorum, discipline and proper behavior, Dave Cowens, even went up into the stands one day -- years ago -- when he was with the Celtics, to punch out a few over exuberant fans during the game.
And before we got that music they play now, the song that got everyone on their feet and stamping on those aluminum stands down on the floor level was the Orange Blossom Special and Cotton-Eyed-Joe.
They'd start the record with that long violin note that drags out and everyone would leap to their feet and start clapping and stomping with their feet. You could literally feel the vibrations in the air and the build would ROCK!
We didn't proclaim ourselves the loudest arena, that le was given to us by our opponents and visiting sportswriters. But when they extended the Hemisfair arena to gain 6,000 more seat, the acoustics were never the same.
Wow, some fantastic memories on this thread. Glad to see I'm not the only old-timer, you guys are great.
Someone mentioned that the infamous "moving pick" game 7 was not televised in SA. I recall watching it on TV...is this yet another hazy memory on my part? Verification, please.
The Hemisphere rocked and I deeply cherish the memories. In addition to the Cotton-eyed joe, there was that Tejano/Spanish number that was also a regular feature and used to bring the house down. (Does anyone remember this and/or know the name of the tune?) Talk about a family atmosphere, in those days you really felt part of the show and that you were involved in something uniquely San Antonio and Texas.
Viva San Antonio!
That infamous Game 7 was not televised, which was very common in that era.
That tune you're talking about....I cant recall the words, but they would play it only between the 3rd & 4th qtrs...the Bums would stand, sing with the band and by the end of the song, the whole damn arena was singing in Spanish, or trying to!!
They also used to play the out of the theme from the 'Blues Brothers'. as well.
I think you mean that Mexican drinking song with everyone lifting their beer cups in unison. Everyone calls it "Volver" but that isn't the correct le.
The words they sung to that song were "The Spurs just can't lose."
The Spurs band also adapted the Jim Croce tune "Bab Bad Leroy Brown" into a song about Spurs foward Larry "Mr. K" Kenon:
Not the most inspiring lyrics but at least something the fans could get behind. Back then the fans, themselves, provided some of the entertainment. These days, every minute of the contest is way too programmed for that.He's bad bad Mr. K.
Baddest man in the NBA.
Badder than old Swen Nater.
Quicker than a swamp alligator.
They need to bring the Cotton Eyed Joe back. That song always brought the house down and seemed to pump up the team.
That's exactly the one!
Is that the song that then used to segue into "Yellow Rose of Texas"?
I'm pretty sure the song is Volver Volver. Dancing Harry would dance to it holding a beer as his partner. Puro San Antonio.
The Bums were great back in the day. When Kareem's house burned down, the big story was that he lost a priceless jazz record collection. When the Lakers came to down, the Bums held up burning albums.
And they definitely waved bananas at Daryl Dawkins and spit on Larry Bird. Those were some wild days in the Hemisfair Arena. And that place was deafening, even after they raised the roof.
Shoogar,
You're right about that jersey mishap being in the 1978 series, not 1979. Check out Mike Gale in the inside-out jersey.
I have been to games in many different venues in my years and the Hemisfair Arena was the loudest by far. As he said, your ears would ring for an hour after the game because of the noise during the games. The Lakers even said that they hated playing there even more than The Boston Garden, and I took that as a huge compliment.
ding ding ding
Very good, you win a free dental cleaning.
I miss that at Hemisfair. I doubt the crowds they get nowadays would respond though.
Are you talking about Bob? Did you know Leon? That dude was insane with the way he would heckle other teams, doing stuff like dressing up like a giant beer when Mullin came to town right after getting out of the Betty Ford clinic and so on... and Big George Valle makes the best briscuit I've ever had in my life. It's so good the players would come out to the bums' bbqs.I remember one Bum had one of those long red plastic horns that sounded like a diesel truck horn when it went off. He kept blowing it and finally an exquisitely dressed Houston lady sitting in front of him turned around, almost in tears, and asked him to quit blowing it. Wrong move. He deliberately blew it next to her ears until she and her husband left the arena.
It was a victory of sorts I guess.Until the cops came.
He got married at mid-court one game. Probably the only game where people didn't get up to leave at halftime.
Can't remember his name, but he was thin, had a heavy 5 O'clock shadow and wore black horn rim glasses.
I was dating Marie Ann. And occasionally went out with her sister when we got drunk enough. Ah, those were the days, my friend.
I also remember watching that game. I don't know why it wouldn't have been televised since it was an out of town game. Maybe it was on cable? Either that or they televised it later, but my memory says I got so pissed at the call at the time, I'm pretty sure it was on TV.
The Bum's annual BBQ deserves some mention all its own. George was a great BBQ cook, but the food wasn't the attraction. The feature of the event was the continuous volleyball game with teams made up of Bums (guests) and Spurs.
In those days, the Spurs were much more accessible to the public and they and the Bums were like family. The Spurs knew who their fiercest supporters were and often credited them with energizing the players during games with their cheering and antics.
Most of the Spurs would come out to the BBQ out at the county park as well as coaches like Doug Moe.
Everybody got drunk--and then the killer Volleyball game would start.
The Spurs were good about dividing themselves between the two sides according to height and always with an equal number of the Bums on each side.
It was a lot of fun and sorta exciting just to be on the same court with them, even if it was just for laughs. Players would go on and off the court to drink or puke and others would replace them. Sometimes a player would get hooted off the court if he or she made a particularly bad play.
George Karl was always the fiercest compe or, treating these games like they were life or death on every shot, diving and digging into the sand
for the save. It was the way he played on the court. Mike Gale was pretty serious about winning too as I recall.
It was hilarious to see some out of shape, drunk Bum shouting at a huge Spur to "get you mind in the game, Man, or you out of here and back on the bench!" if the Spur missed a shot. The Spur would smile sheepishly, laugh and promise to do better.
I remember being in the middle of the front line near the net and watching a lobbed return go over the net. Guess how lucky you have to be to lob over a guy that tops 7'? I watched Artis Gilmore sky up in the air across from me to e it. I swear I'll never forget the evil smile on that normally phlegmatic face, framed by that huge afro, as he prepared to stuff it down my throat. I said, " this!" and ran for the beer keg. Mama didn't raise me to be a fool.
Halcyon Days! In our innocence we thought they'd never end.
That's so...Dallas.Lame to drink champagne after winning the conference semifinals.
But it was the first playoff series victory in Spurs history, NBA or ABA.
You guys probably think I'm a complete dork for saying this yet again, but my dad has also told me about the legend of George Karl, the overly aggressive picnic volleyball player. I bet that was hillarious to watch.
BTW, this should be a classic thread because you guys are sharing some awesome stories.
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Good bump, nice to see the potential of spurstalk
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