My first major gig was for Van Halen, this was back in the late 77s.
I was section of the crew, which meant I unloaded the gear from trucks plus helped set up the stage.
They were a major rock band at the time – those young people out there may not believe how huge a Van Halen show used to be – plus we had to work hard. That was where I got a brainstorm, one that would take myself and others almost several years to act upon. After that tour I went back to my hometown plus signed up for an Heating, Ventilation plus A/C training program at the community university. My goal was to get Heating, Ventilation plus A/C certified plus then return to the road, offering the touring songsians a more specialized kind of service. It ended up being the best system I had ever had, because with my Heating, Ventilation plus A/C certification plus my concept, I was easily well received upon my return. I talked to the band manager about how I could install air duct under the stage, plus also put a few air grates into the floor of the stage itself, and from the crowd there would be no difference, however when the band members stood over the air vents they would believe a strong blast of cooling system coming up from below. The cooling system unit was far enough away from the mics plus the sound device that it didn’t register. I can’t say that my cooling system helped the band play better on hot days, however deep down I believe that it really did!