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California Jam Drew Over 250,000 Fans in 1974
Over 250,000 people attended the California Jam festival at the Ontario Motor Speedway on April 6, 1974.
On April 6, 1974, more than 250,000 people attended the California Jam festival at the Ontario Motor Speedway in California. A large portion of the festival was broadcast live on the American television network ABC. To reduce changeover time between acts, sections of the stage were placed on railroad tracks.
The lineup for the first California Jam featured eight bands: Rare Earth, Earth, Wind & Fire, Eagles, Seals & Crofts, Black Oak Arkansas, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple Mk III, and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Rare Earth opened the festival, taking the stage at 9:45 AM, 15 minutes ahead of schedule. During the concert, the Eagles performed with Jackson Browne on keyboards.
Bassist and vocalist Glenn Hughes joined Deep Purple in 1973, while David Coverdale was chosen as the vocalist for the band's Burn album. Following the 1974 event, the California Jam II festival took place on March 18, 1978, featuring a lineup of nine bands.
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