Croke Park dubbed ‘biggest toilet' by Neil Diamond entourage with big contract clause shut down before gig made history

The Irish Sun

3 days ago

CROKE Park was dubbed a 'toilet' by a member of singer Neil Diamond's entourage — before he agreed to perform a ­history-making gig at the home of GAA.
The Sweet Caroline star was reluctant to become the first artist to play the
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Neil Diamond played a major Croke Park gig in June 1984
Credit: Time & Life Pictures - Getty
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Jim Aiken's son Peter revealed some behind-the-scenes info to The Irish Sun
Credit: PA
Promoter Jim Aiken had to cobble together a makeshift events 'team' to convince Neil and his crew to ­perform — which he eventually did in June 1984.
Jim's son, Peter, said: 'He met [Neil's manager] Jerry Weintraub in Park Lane in
'The auld fella said to him about the offer he could make for Neil Diamond to play
'And he said to him, 'Sure, Neil could leave the house, go to the bottom of the street and get that
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Fields Of Dreams
on
In episode five of
'I was in college at the time, Dad got us to come down. It's like, I was crew boss, and this is our team.
'The Neil Diamond people were there, and they'd looked after Barbra Streisand, Bob Dylan, and they're looking around Croke Park.
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"We think Croke Park is magnificent. This is our stadium.
'And one guy, Patrick Stamson, he says, 'This is the biggest toilet I was ever in'. That's what he said!
Dublin GAA legends beam while returning to Croke Park for spectacular Bruce Springsteen concert
'However, he said, 'But we can make it work. We'll drape out this, and we'll drape out that'.'
The promoters, with
Peter said: 'A couple of the chairmen at that time were anti-Dad for bringing all the
'They put in the contract with Neil Diamond a big clause that there had to be traditional Irish dancing on before. He said no.'
Superstar Diamond emerged in June 1984 to the still ramshackle Croker with a hurl and sliothar, sending fans into delirium.
START OF A NEW ERA
The era of Croker gigs had well and truly begun.
Episode five also charts the rise of the Slane Castle gigs from a low-key beginning in 1981 to one of the biggest events on the Irish musical calendar.
Alex Conyngham, the Earl of Mountcharles and son of the late Lord
But thanks in large part to the major rock events — including the
And the young Alex — who is decades later now in charge of the music events — had a front row seat.
'SQUEAKY LITTLE KIDS'
Among his first duties was to welcome the guests off their helicopters, and then he got to sit in on the odd rock 'n' roll party.
He said: 'The first job he gave us was to check in those guests and to escort them either down to the backstage or up to the VIP area.
'Normally they'd be greeted by, you know, big security guards and everything else.
"And instead they got these squeaky little kids going, 'Hi, welcome to Slane.'
'It was quite clever because it was disarming for them and sort of became part of the Slane experience.'
WILD NIGHT
He added: 'I think the industry was just a little wilder back then. I remember when the Stones came — at one point I think Mick Jagger took my toy tractor and trailer for a joyride. So I was a bit upset about that.
'There was a pretty wild night the night before and then Mum had to go around.
'The room we're sitting in now is the drawing room and Mum had to go around and kick all the roadies awake in the morning.
"I don't know what she put in their tea to get them going but it seemed to do the trick.'
GIG RIOTS
Slane hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons in 1984 when riots the night before the Bob Dylan gig destroyed the town.
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Incredibly, Dylan's support act UB40 had no idea what had happened the night before — and thought the manic crowd was just standard Irish behaviour.
'And one guy, Patrick Stamson, he says, 'This is the biggest toilet I was ever in'. That's what he said!"
Peter Aiken
Band frontman Ali Campbell said: 'I remember everybody jumping in the water, and us getting very worried that somebody might have a mishap, or we might drown, or something, because it was a riotous crowd, you know.
"We loved it. We loved the reaction, but we were a bit worried about people's safety jumping in the water.
'So there'd already been a bit of trouble? Yeah, we thought it was just a lovely welcome for us.'
'FUNNIEST DAY OF MY LIFE'
This episode also examines the opening up of Pairc Ui Chaoimh to major gigs — including
Stockton's Wing were supporting
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The Irish Sun's new Field of Dreams podcast is available now
Credit: The Irish Sun
Guitarist Mike Hanrahan said: 'That was the funniest day of my entire life in music.
"I think it was great as a lesson because we left Pairc Ui Caoimh.
"We booked a yearly gig in Salthill that we do every year, and again, our manager Oliver Barry said, 'Look, guys, you've got to honour the gig, but let's do Prince because it'll be good for us.
'WASN'T A SINNER IN THE PLACE'
'So he hired a helicopter to take us from the gigs in
'I remember rising up from Cork and the stadium, I always remember looking at (the late broadcaster)
'Off we went and headed north to
"By the time we land in Salthill there wasn't a sinner in the place. It was empty!'
The first two episodes of Fields Of Dreams are available on
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Neil rejected a clause in the contract saying there must be an opening Irish dancing performance
Credit: Getty
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Croke Park has been drawing huge crowds for gigs for decades now
Credit: Getty