Patsy Cline's Final Concerts

Patsy Cline's Birmingham Concert
March 2, 1963

Thanks once again to Chantel for providing this interesting article that was recently printed in the Birmingham Daily Mountain Eagle (I've typed out the article down below in case you have trouble reading the copy). Chantel's grandmother knows this woman who was interviewed, Ms. Sanford. I know this is such a treat for Patsifans, since 99% of us never had a chance to see her perform live. As ever, thank you, Chantel!

Note: Some of the dates/factoids in this article are slightly incorrect. Patsy's Birmingham concert was on Saturday, March 2, 1963. Her final concert in Kansas City was on Sunday, March 3, 1963. The plane crash occurred on the evening of Tuesday, March 5, 1963 and was not discovered/reported until the following morning, Wednesday, March 6, 1963. Also, the date of Patsy's car accident was June 14, 1961.

Patsy Cline's Birmingham Concert, 1963

by Susan Sanford, Copy Editor
Birmingham Daily Mountain Eagle
March 6, 1999

Thirty-six years ago today, on a Monday I stayed home from school with a sore throat. I'd had a busy weekend even for a high school student.

I always slept with the radio on in those days, afraid I'd miss my favorite song, I guess. It was middle of the morning and the radio announcer was giving an account of a tragic plane crash, while I tried to clear my sleepy head and comprehend what he was saying.

Near a mountain top in Camden, Tennessee, the remains of a small four-seater private plane had been found. Killed were Cowboy Copas, Hawkshaw Hawkins, manager Randy Hughes and the hottest country star of the day ~ Patsy Cline.

Two nights earlier, on Saturday I was sitting in Birmingham watching and listening to Patsy Cline sing those songs that could send cold chills down your back. I could not believe what I was hearing.

In the early '60s, before the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center was even sketched on paper, the Boutwell Auditorium was the place to be for big shows, especially the WVOK Parade of Stars. Since then, it has degenerated into a place for those cultural events called wrestling matches or some other such low-budget affairs. But back then, it was big stuff.

That Saturday night, March 4, 1963, I'd been on a double date. We had seen a long list of country music stars which, as best I can remember, included the late (and great) Charlie Rich, (the truly awful) Jerry Lee Lewis (how else would you describe a man who would marry his 14 year old cousin?), Flatt and Scruggs, Mel Tillis and, of course, Patsy Cline.

I will never forget how beautiful she looked that night. We borrowed some guy's binoculars and I could literally see her jewelry sparkling. Her hair was very dark and her skin was, by contrast, very fair, and she wore a gorgeous bright coral chiffon dress.

She talked about how lucky she was to be there and how thankful she was for all her fans. Just a few months earlier she had been in a very serious car accident in which two other people were killed. She had spent three months in the hospital and had not been back to work a very long time.

If you ever saw the movie "Sweet Dreams," which was supposedly based on her life, you know that she didn't like her producers' ideas about letting the Jordannaires (sic) back her up or the addition of violins to the song (Sweet Dreams). In the end, both ideas turned out to be wildly successful.

But if you've never heard the song, or haven't heard it lately, do yourself a favor by looking up a friend who has it on tape, CD or whatever and getting them to play it for you on a really good stereo. My dear, that's country music at its very best, the way singers wish they could all sound. It can give you cold chills and curl your hair at the same time. Vintage country.

Though she was at the peak of her career when she was lost forever, she left a musical treasury that is hard to top by any standards.

And I was left with an eerie feeling I'll never quite forget, especially when I hear "Sweet Dreams."

Patsy Cline's Final Concert - Kansas City
March 3, 1963

The last photo
courtesy Mildred Keith

From the Margaret Jones biography, "Patsy:"

Reports vary as to whether there were two or three shows that Sunday. Some accounts say there were shows at 2, 5:15 and 8:15pm. The 3000+ seat Memorial Building was filled to near capacity with fans who had paid $1.50 admission to hear Patsy, the headliner, and the other acts. Patsy's name appeared neither in the short press release that ran in the Kansas City Star nor in an advertisement Guy Smith bought in the same edition, but radio plugs for the benefit touted her as a last-minute addition.

The Last Performance
courtesy Francis Nunez

The following photos of Memorial Hall were kindly supplied by Mr. David Payne. I've included his commentary, below.

I have returned from KC and I found the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall in downtown KC, Kansas (best known as Memorial Hall in KC). I received information from Daniel Coleman of the KC library about the history and location of the building.

I was very fortunate to get into the building. It is still used for concerts and other activities (the Allman Brothers Band was there on Tuesday, June 25th), but it is not open for tours. I did meet the maintenance man (Steve) outside the building, and he was gracious enough to let me in for some pictures. Steve said that he was aware that the building was the site of Patsy Cline's last performance and told me that a copy of the last picture taken of her was once in the building and that he knew where in the building the picture was taken. I did not ask how he knew the exact location, but I will send him a thank you note and ask. Regardless, he took me to a location off to the left of the stage (as you look at the stage) and down a hallway. One of the pictures attached was taken there. The rest of the pictures show the outside on 7th street, the lobby (elaborate), a picture from the stage looking out, a picture from the seats looking toward the stage, and a picture of another room on the third floor. This room has been used for several things but was originally built as a chapel. In the picture of the stage, you can see the flag, but you cannot see the stage very well. The Allman Brothers had extended the stage so it was about three times the normal size.

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