Grande Ballroom

The Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan was the hotspot for psychedelic rock in the Midwest. Many memorable shows were promoted here by Russ Gibb and they are well represented by the stunning art of Gary Grimshaw, Carl Lundgren, David Carlin, Donnie “Dope” Forsyth and others. Russ Gibb also helped to promote shows that were held at other venues such as the St. Louis Pop Festival, the Detroit Pop Festival and the Cincinnati Pop Festival. All of the Russ Gibb and Grande Ballroom items are included in Eric King’s book and are designated as G/G items.

Grande/Gibb items tend to be very scarce when compared to the Bill Graham or Family Dog series. The print runs were quite small and few of the posters were ever reprinted. The standard postcard set includes 81 different cards for shows held at the Grande proper, but most collectors include a few extras such as the Pop Festivals and Grande Family cards. To complete a set of the posters will require a lot of time and effort as well as a thick pocketbook. Some of the posters are represented by as little as three known copies and there are many where less than 10 to 15 are known. This is not an area for condition freaks as some just do not exist in Near Mint condition. As for the handbills, even the most common are quite scarce. At the time of this writing, there is no complete set in any one person’s hands.