This feature is an ongoing attempt to list all the major concerts at the DECC Arena and Symphony Hall from 1966 to 2010, which of course includes the era when they were known as the Duluth Arena and Duluth Auditorium.
The images above were added four years after this post was started. They were created by Duluth artist Don Esse in 2016 for the DECC’s 50th anniversary, commissioned for a gallery of memorable concerts on the concourse walls of DECC Arena.
Recommend additions to this list in the comments, or point out if you have missing dates or opening acts.
The Beach Boys and the Unbelievable Uglies — Aug. 13, 1966
Herman’s Hermits, the Hollies and the Seven Sons — Jan. 1, 1967
The Supremes — 1967
Paul Revere and the Raiders, Sounds Inc and Seven Sons — 1967
Linda Ronstadt
Grand Funk Railroad
Herman’s Hermits and the Who
The Letterman — April 18, 1968
Rare Earth
Chicago
Lawrence Welk
Shawn Phillips
Sonny & Cher
The Buckinghams and 1910 Fruitgum Company — 1968
Johnny Cash, Mother Maybelle, June Carter, the Statler Brothers, et. al. — Oct. 11, 1968
Hank Snow, Roy Drusky, Bobby Lord and Margie Bowls — Nov. 3, 1968
Buck Owens, Don Rich and the Buckaroos, etc. — June 19, 1971
International Rock Opera Company presents Jesus Christ Superstar — Dec. 8, 1971
Three Dog Night — Feb. 4, 1972
Andy Williams and Henry Mancini — March 4, 1972
Duke Ellington — April 1, 1972
Creedence Clearwater Revival — May 7, 1972
Johnny Cash with the Carter Family, Tennessee Three and Carl Perkins — May 21, 1972
John Denver — March 23, 1973
Charley Pride, The Pridesmen, Johnny Russell, Alex Houston and Elmer — April 29, 1973
Deep Purple, Fleetwood Mac and Rory Gallagher — May 8, 1973
Gordon Lightfoot — Feb. 16, 1974
Dr. John, Kiss and Raspberries — Nov. 3, 1974
Roy Orbison and Joleen Benoit — Jan. 25, 1975
Bill Anderson and the Po’ Boys, Jan Howard, Jimmy Gateley — Jan. 26, 1975
Alice Cooper — July 3, 1975
Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow
Blue Oyster Cult, Rush and Ozone Grater & the Moon Rock Band — May 23, 1976
ZZ Top and J. Geils Band — July 21, 1976
The Lettermen — July 23, 1976
Bobby Vinton and the Jack Gillespie Orchestra — Sept. 9, 1976
Elvis Presley — Oct. 16, 1976
Hall & Oates and Funky Kings — Nov. 2, 1976
Kiss and Uriah Heep — Jan. 18, 1977
Elvis Presley — April 29, 1977
Styx and Rush — May 8, 1977
Ted Nugent — May 1977
Firefall, Pablo Cruise and Pure Prairie League — Sept. 21, 1977
Harry Chapin — Oct. 1, 1977
Melissa Manchester — Oct. 20, 1977
Blue Oyster Cult, Black Oak Arkansas and Lake — Oct. 23, 1977
Sha Na Na and Darryl Rhoades & the Hahavishnu Orchestra — March 5, 1978
Gordon Lightfoot — March 11, 1978
Ronnie Milsap, Rex Allen Jr. and Dotsy — May 14, 1978
The Kendalls, David Houston, Gene Watson, Tom T. Hall, etc. — Oct. 7, 1978
Emerson Lake and Palmer — Nov. 7, 1977
The Doobie Brothers — Nov. 24, 1977
Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty — March 12, 1978
Montrose, Journey and Van Halen — March 29, 1978
REO Speedwagon and the Babys — April 30, 1978
Heart — Nov. 26, 1978
Harry Chapin — May 11, 1979
Cheech & Chong — May 18, 1979
The Charlie Daniels Band – May 18, 1979
Nazareth and Jay Ferguson — May 31, 1979
Edgar Winter Group and Montrose
Cheap Trick and the Romantics — July 19, 1979
The Platters, the Shirelles, Freddie Cannon and Danny & the Juniors — Sept. 22, 1979
Van Halen and Screams — Sept. 25, 1979
Doc Watson — Oct. 5, 1979
Kiss and John Cougar (Judas Priest failed to appear) — Oct. 6, 1979
ZZ Top and the Rockets — March 3, 1980
John Denver — June 4, 1980
Ted Nugent — June 7, 1980
Waylon Jennings & the Waylors, the Original Crickets, and the Joe Ely Band — June 8, 1980
The Beach Boys — July 1980
Molly Hatchett and Michael Schenker Group — Dec. 1980
Ted Nugent — June 26, 1981
Rick Nelson & the Stone Canyon Band — Aug. 28, 1981
Barry Manilow
Ozzy Osbourne and Starfighters — Jan. 17, 1982
Loverboy and Quarterflash — Feb. 15, 1982
Bobby Vee, Del Shannon, Tommy Roe, the Crystals, the Regents and Freddie “Boom Boom” Cannon — May 23, 1982
John Denver — Aug. 7, 1982
B.B. King — Sept. 26, 1982
Pat Benatar — Nov. 16, 1982
The Charlie Daniels Band — Nov. 21, 1982
Judas Priest — Jan. 30, 1983
Hall & Oates — April 19, 1983
Sammy Hagar — April 29, 1983
The Oak Ridge Boys and Lacy J. Dalton — July 17, 1983
Loverboy and Quiet Riot — July 27, 1983
The Tubes and the Romantics — Oct. 8, 1983
The Statler Brothers and Charly McClain — Nov. 19, 1983
Ricky Skaggs and the Whites — Jan. 29, 1984
Conway Twitty and Ronnie McDowell — Feb. 19, 1984
Gordon Lightfoot — April 21, 1984
Ozzy Osbourne and Ratt — April 22, 1984
Ted Nugent and Pat Travers — May 5, 1984
38 Special and Eddie Money — June 22, 1984
Huey Lewis & the News — July 22, 1984
Sammy Hagar and Krokus — Oct. 7, 1984
Kiss — March 13, 1985
Bryan Adams and Kim Mitchell — July 19, 1985
Krokus and Dokken — 1985
Motley Crue and Autograph — Nov. 5, 1985
Kiss and King Kobra — March 15, 1986
Loverboy and the Hooters — March 30, 1986
Robert Palmer and Bourgeois Tagg — May 1986
Starship — Aug. 12, 1986
The Monkees — Nov. 8, 1986
David Lee Roth and Tesla — Feb. 7, 1987
The Johnny Cash Show — Mar. 13, 1987
Bryan Adams and the Hooters — July 26, 1987
Whitesnake and Great White — Nov. 11, 1987
INXS and Steel Pulse — May 18, 1988
REO Speedwagon — July 27, 1988
Poison and Britny Fox — Nov. 6, 1988
Stryper and White Lion
Metallica and the Cult — June 8, 1989
Cinderella, Winger and Bulletboys — July 12, 1989
George Thorogood and Zen Identity — Aug. 6, 1989
Motley Crue and Faster Pussycat — March 11, 1990
Richard Marx — March 31, 1990
Kiss, Slaughter and Faster Pussycat — May 27, 1990
Randy Travis
Bad Company and Damn Yankees — Feb. 27, 1991
Warrant, Trixter and Firehouse — Jun. 2, 1991
ZZ Top — Aug. 21, 1991
Metallica — Nov. 9, 1991
Skid Row and Love/Hate — May 24, 1992
M.C. Hammer
Tesla and Firehouse — Aug. 11, 1992
Def Leppard — Nov. 14, 1992
Damn Yankees, Slaughter and Jackyl — Dec. 9, 1992
Queensryche and Suicidal Tendencies
Billy Ray Cyrus
Alan Jackson
Brooks & Dunn
The Moody Blues and Duluth Symphony — March 9, 1994
Barry Manilow — April 12, 1994
Indigo Girls — May 12, 1995
Big Head Todd and the Monsters — Oct. 31, 1995
Tim McGraw and Faith Hill — Dec. 29, 1995
James Brown
The BoDeans
Soul Asylum and Honeydogs — Sept. 4, 1996
Melissa Etheridge — Sept. 30, 1996
Starship and the Outfield — 1996
Hootie and the Blowfish and They Might Be Giants — Nov. 3, 1996
Big Head Todd and the Monsters — March 10, 1997
Collective Soul — July 16, 1997
B. B. King — Nov. 11, 1997
Sammy Hagar — Nov. 23, 1997
Violent Femmes — Feb. 28, 1998
Megadeth, Sevendust and Monstermagnet — June 21, 1998
Yanni
Aerosmith and Seven Mary Three — Nov. 13, 1998
Bob Dylan — Oct. 22, 1998
Motley Crue and Nobody — Nov. 25, 1998
Jonny Lang — Feb. 20, 1999
Lyle Lovett — March 16, 1999
Collective Soul — April 13, 1999
38 Special — July 1 or 2, 1999
Def Leppard — Aug. 7, 1999
Ani DiFranco, Gillian Welch and Greg Brown — March 10, 2000
Indigo Girls — June 25, 2000
George Thorogood — July 4, 2000
“Weird Al” Yankovic — Oct. 16, 2000
Alison Krauss & Union Station — Nov. 19, 2000
Steve Earle & the Dukes with Stacey Earle — Feb. 26, 2001
Violent Femmes and Harmony Riley — April 28, 2001
Ani DiFranco — June 23, 2001
Rod Stewart — Nov. 12, 2001
REO Speedwagon and Styx — March 3, 2002
The Newsboys
Jewel — 2002
Poison — 2002
Anne Murray — 2002
Gordon Lightfoot — 2002
Bonnie Raitt and Lyle Lovett — Aug. 26, 2002
Kenny Chesney — Sept. 18, 2002
Incubus — October 2002
Snoop Dogg — Dec. 4, 2002
James Taylor — 2003
Tori Amos — March 30, 2003
Tom Petty — July 9, 2003
George Jones — March 12, 2004
The Eagles — May 16, 2004
Kid Rock — Aug 19, 2004
Cher — Nov.17, 2004
Nickelback — Jan. 30, 2006
Wilco and the Black-eyed Snakes — July 2, 2006
James Taylor — Aug. 8, 2006
Goo Goo Dolls — Feb 25, 2007
Shawn Colvin — May 4, 2007
“Weird Al” Yankovic — June 24, 2007
Davy Jones — Feb. 7, 2009
Wilco — Feb. 19, 2010
Rob Zombie and Alice Cooper — May 12, 2010
