Australian Riot '78
EC makes a list of 'bad first impressions' in the Australia's The Age:
"December 7, 1978. Crowd riots at Elvis Costello’s first show
The crowds at Elvis Costello’s 2002 tour were mostly chin-stroking, head-nodding fans who had to rush home before the babysitter star-ted charging double. But twenty-five years ago, the audience for the angry new wave hero’s first ever Australian show at Sydney’s Regent Theatre was more excitable. When Costello and the Attractions refused to do an encore after playing for only 57 minutes, the crowd went berserk. While promoter Zev Eizik was trading punches backstage with Costello’s manager, Jake Riviera, the audience decided the best way to encourage the band to do some more songs was to rip up the seats and throw the cushions on stage, along with anything else that was or wasn’t nailed down. The riot, the media agreed the next day, was Costello’s fault. "