Former location –
Cobo Arena was built in 1960 and closed in 2010. As part of a major renovation in 2015 what remained of the venue became a part of the TCF Center.
The arena hosted a lot of Rock concerts in it’s 12,000 seat venue including Bruce Springsteen, Prince, The Who, Black Sabbath, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Jefferson Airplane, Parliament-Funkadelic, Duran Duran, Thin Lizzy, Queen and the Cure.
Bob Seger recorded all of Live Bullet
The Doors‘ complete concert performance on May 8, 1970, was released in its entirety on their own label in 2000. It’s also one of the shows that was included in their 1970 album, “Absolutely Live
Notable concerts at Cobo Hall/Cobo Center/Cobo Arena
11/18/2019 – Phish
9/26/2009 – KISS
3/18/2007 – Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band
12/1/1995 – Ted Nugent
11/27/1987 – Jethro Tull
3/22/1986 – Black Sabbath
4/6/1984 – Van Halen
1/29/1982 – The J. Geils Band
3/15/1981 – Rush
8/5/1980 – Journey
7/8/1980 – Foghat
2/17/1979 – Alice Cooper
11/1/1979 – Styx
8/23/1977 – Yes
7/22/1977 – Emerson, Lake & Palmer
On June 23, 1963, following the Detroit Walk to Freedom civil rights march, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the original version of his “I Have a Dream” speech here to a full house. In addition to its Rock music history, the venue served as the home court of the NBA’s Detroit Pistons from 1961 to 1978.
Cobo Arena
1 Washington Blvd
Detroit, MI 48226
J Geils also recorded a live record at Cobo. Full House, was recorded at Cobo Hall and both of the band’s subsequent live albums, Blow Your Face Out, released in 1976 and 1982’s Showtime, also prominently featured performances captured live at this Detroit venue.