The final Fillmore East show has been called the Last Dance, but it was more dramatic than that; it was a bitter pill to swallow for rock fans everywhere. Pre-dating the Fillmore West’s closing by a week, the finale capped a month-long series of outstanding performances by old friends and relative newcomers, many of whom had careers launched from the Fillmore’s stage. Billed as a celebration featuring “Food, Drink and Joy,” the last audience entered the auditorium to find a single red rose speared to the back of each seat and settled in to hear the Allman Brothers, J. Geils, Albert King, the Beach Boys and others deliver the venue’s swan song. At the very end, Bill Graham and his staff gathered onstage for final farewells. It was dawn and it was over.
