The Red Hot Chili Peppers shut down The Palomino Club

1985

Thousands of performers played at The World Club.  None, however, created the chaos that ensued during the Red Hot Chili Peppers performance.  The band had only been created five years earlier and quickly became an instant local sensation, packing out clubs around the Los Angeles area.

During the fateful event, thousands of people lined up outside , attempting to get a seat in the a venue that only had the capacity of 264 people.

Rumors have it that local businesses and cars passing through were panicked by a large disturbance at The ‘s location.

Over 27 police cars from several precincts were called to disperse the crowd.  There was police all over the place and traffic had to be stopped in order to regain order and control around the area.

According to Billy Thomas who was interviewed by the Los Angelas Times, “There was just too many people,” said Bill Thomas, owner of the Palomino. “It was a bunch of maniacs getting into a frenzy. They were stopping traffic out there. They were coming through the windows in here.”

Later the Chili Peppers and The Palomino was featured in the documentary series “Behind the Music”.

1 thought on “The Red Hot Chili Peppers shut down The Palomino Club”

  1. It was pure chaos that day! You couldn’t see the cars in the south parking lot because the crowd was standing on them. When we opened the doors I got sucked into the crowd and Steve Stefonic had to grab my collar and pull me back inside. The show lasted only 10 minutes before the Fire Marshal shut it down for overcrowding. I will never forget that day!

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