January 29, 1975

Memorial Coliseum

“Up. Up with people, you meet ‘em where you go. Up, up with people, they’re the best kind of folks we know. If more people were for people, all people everywhere, there’d be a lot less reasons to worry about and a lot more reasons to care.” The concert in Tuscaloosa by the perennially happy musical ensemble Up with People was just a few months before they performed in 771 cities in all 50 states for 3.9 million people during a Bicentennial tour of the United States from September 1975 to July 1976. Up with People’s ultra-happy performance stood in stark contrast to the rest of UPC shows presented in 1975 which included Buckingham Nicks, Ohio Players, Elvis Presley, The Doobie Brothers, Earl Scruggs Revue, Tim Moore, and the Amazing Rhythm Aces. Nearly exactly one year to the day after the UA appearance, according to their website, Up with People became the first non-marching band to perform during a halftime show at Super Bowl X in Miami, FL on January 18, 1976, forever changing the format of the Super Bowl halftime show. Up with People returned to perform during three more halftime shows in 1980, 1982 and 1986. Up with People is still in business as a nonprofit organization that brings its members, college age students, what they call “the ultimate gap year abroad experience” to “travel, perform for thousands, and impact communities.”