Long before I spent most of my waking hours at Rolling Stone, I spent my teenage summers working at a large amphitheatre in New Jersey. While my peers were serving greasy chicken fingers at the concession stands and ripping ticket stubs at the front gate I was lucky enough to work backstage. Working there, I was assigned some really bizarre tasks like helping Britney Spears' assistant track down a nail salon in central Jersey that would cater to Brit's gel acrylic manicure habit (it's harder than you think) and picking blue M&Ms out of a bowl for a band I won't mention (I swear I did this). And while I missed out on the experience of actually attending a show as a patron, I thought I'd seen and heard it all at PNC. Until now, that is.

Last week it was announced that LiveNation (the promoter who books the venue) would be banning tailgating at specific shows: John Mayer, O.A.R., 311 with Snoop Dogg, a WKTU Radio Show and Linkin Park's Projekt Revolution. This action is in response to an incident last summer where 2 concertgoers overdosed and died and another 83 were arrested at an Ozzfest concert for drug and alcohol possession. I guess I can understand why they chose Linkin Park. But John Mayer? Are they scared of sorority girls getting too rowdy? In a summer line up that includes Mötley Crüe, the Allman Brothers and Judas Priest it's surprising which artists are targeted and which aren't.

I understand they are trying to crack down on underage drinking and illegal drug possession but if someone wants to drink or partake in other activities, a ban on tailgating is not going to stop them. They can easily do either before going to the show. This seems like several drunk driving accidents waiting to happen since the PNC Bank Arts Center is located on one of the largest major highways in the state. There has to be a better solution to this. Perhaps reserving specific sections in the parking lot for 21 and over tailgating? Or are they just trying to increase the money spent inside the theater? The majority of ticket sale revenue and merchandise goes to the artist. The one place revenue directly goes back to the promoter and venue is in the concessions (i.e. beer). So is LiveNation trying to make more money or are they looking out for their patrons?

Probably a little bit of both, but I have a feeling they are primarily concerned with the liabilities they face for death, injuries or property damage. People always say if you leave a place and then come back it's quite never the same. I have a feeling that statement holds true to my old summer home, PNC.

[Photo: Getty]