75,000 swarm Calder Park to see Guns N’ Roses

The Gunners ended the evening as they expected, with a touch of Alice Cooper’s “Only Women Bleed,” then a stadium rock version of Bob Dylan’s “Knocking on Heaven’s Door,” before the sky opened with fireworks and Floods of tears from the girls opened up as Axl disappeared. It’s hard to share a hero with half the world.

First published in Age on February 2, 1993

No roses for PTC from the Gunners’ lovers

Getting there was the easy part. As 75,000 Guns N’ Roses fans discovered as they tried to make their way home from Calder Park last night, saying goodbye was more difficult than the onstage language.

After a day that saw 1,000 people treated for heat-related illnesses, many thousands more were stranded when public transport officials turned down a request from police to increase train times by half an hour.

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As a result, the Calder Highway was closed in both directions and police expressed concern that young people could be coming home.

A public transport worker, who asked not to be named, said at least four additional six-car trains were available and crews could work late. But railway officials had ruled out additional services.

Despite the scorching heat and torrential rain, the world’s most roared band seemed to hit the mark with the crowd.

A big part of the performance was the swearing-in by Sebastian Bach, lead singer of Axl Rose and Skid Row. It was like a dialogue from Goodfellas.

But fans seemed to be having a good time despite seeing little.

Rod, 24, an unemployed mechanic from East Keilor, was in an undercover position. could he see something? “No way, but it sounds great,” he said.

Madeleine Sleeth, 21, a Shepparton waitress, paid a scalper $90 for a $50 ticket and was glad the rain cleared before support act Skid Row kicked in.

Some people weren’t so lucky. Several people were crushed, including a woman six months pregnant, and a young woman was elbowed in the throat.

Police said the crowd behaved well, with only a few people being expelled for misconduct.

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Keilor Mayor Councilor Sam Cortist said there were no objections or complaints from local residents before the concert and it was “a hugely successful” event.

When Guns N’ Roses showed up an hour late due to rain, one fan climbed over the fence until security told him to come down – and he did. It was all in the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll.

Note: Inadequate public transport and toilets, overpriced food and drink and the general failure of venue and events staff to adequately manage conditions on the day would result in an investigation into the event by a Victorian Ombudsman.