By Daily Press staff
Tonight’s free concert at the pier will feature more than music, there also will be what’s been dubbed “the world’s largest” cake to celebrate the 75th birthday of Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus.
However, the Big Blue Bus’cake has to be bigger than 58 tons, which is the largest on record, made in Alabama in 1989.
The opening group of tonight’s performance is Billy Richards’ Coasters, a spin-off of the original Coasters, legends credited with “Yakety Yak” and “Love Potion Number Nine.” The band was the first vocal group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
The main show will feature The Platters, a veteran rock and roll band that has sold more than 80 million albums worldwide.
Pier officials also have promised celebrity guests at tonight’s concert.
The Platters have recorded nearly 400 songs since the 1950s and are credited with putting Mercury Records on the map. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, have performed in more than 90 countries and have received more than 230 awards from all over the world.
The show runs from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the stage set up on the pier’s parking deck. It is strongly recommended that visitors either walk, bike or use mass transit to get to the concert as parking is limited. A free shuttle is available from the 2030 Barnard Way parking lot south of the pier starting at 6 p.m. each Thursday. Concertgoers can reach the lot by exiting 1-10 west at Fourth Street, south to Pico Boulevard, turning right on Pico and following the Pier/Shuttle signs to the lot.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 21, 2003. Read the original PDF.