So much of Cheap Trick's history is the result of the same stories being told over and over. Many of them are half-truths or outright falsehoods. The events that led them to breaking at Budokan are usually listed as "opened for Queen, the Runaways and KISS." Since those bands were a hit with the Japanese, music mags like Ongaku Senka and Music Life got a look at Cheap Trick. Rick Nielsen then wrote an account of his experiences opening for Queen in January of 1977. He often says it was for one magazine or the other. It was for Music Life, but he could be forgiven if he didn't know himself. Things were happening really quickly at that time.
The Mad City Music Sheet provided the band with some of its earliest coverage even before the Queen dates. Gary Sohmers reported in 1976 that the band would be touring England of the following year, which turned out to be when they ended up opening for KISS. He also reviewed the December 5 Stone Hearth show, which you can read below.
Brian Kramp meticulously described how the band ended up opening for Queen in Wisconsin. The Music Sheet reported the headliner returning to Madison in January before Cheap Trick were tapped to be the opener. Also mentioned is the February 4 KISS date at the Dane County Coliseum that Cheap Trick also almost served as the support act for. The recording of the second Queen show, remastered by Bobby Cannon, can be heard here:
You can also download it in Apple Lossless here.
Even though it would be five months until Cheap Trick opened for KISS, they did get an all-important photo on February 4 backstage.
Of course, KISS was instrumental in getting Cheap Trick exposure. But as Rob Lawson aptly noted in his book, Still Competition, "Surrender" was not a tribute to the band. It also wasn't a reference to the bands' time together. It was written before the groups ever crossed paths. One of Rick Nielsen's early drafts of the song, which was on display at the "Ricks Picks exhibit," revealed that Queen was originally the band the parents in the song were listening to while rolling on the couch. More on the Queen/Runaways/KISS connections later. Keep checking back for more things American Standard.
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