"Biggest band in smallest place was Green Day play a punk show in Bloomington, Indiana on their first tour really outside of California. They weren't 21 as a buddy of mine got them some beer and they crashed at a local punk party house."

Jeanne Smith: "A brush with stardom. I was in the little Big Red Liquor Store on West 17th Street. A kid came up to me and complimented my Bikesmiths 'Beefy Tee' shirt. Then he told me, 'My band is playing in this garage across the street. It is an all ages club. We are Green Day and we are going to be famous. Do you want to trade T-Shirts?' I looked at his, it was simple white, really thin, 50/50 cotton /polyester. It had a one color (purple design) of someone pushing a vacuum cleaner. I thought to myself sarcastically, 'Yeah, right', but I was so flattered by his liking my shirt, I said, 'Okay.' Being guys, we took off our shirts and traded right there. I don't think I ever wore it but that one time and I am sure I have it around here someplace. I googled and could not find an image of one of these shirts online. I wonder how many were printed. I wonder who locally saw this gig? I always figured it must have been their first tour, today that seems to be what I have found. It was a couple years later, camped in Michigan I heard Green Day mentioned on the radio and thought, That kid was right, they did become famous."

gdtourvan1990: "Tuesday July 10: We departed Chicago for Bloomington, IN; a state with its own song! Nice to be off the expressway and back on two lane blacktop in the countryside. I was running strong at this point. A bit heavier after picking up a load of 39 Smooth vinyl in Chicago, but this was offset by brisk Cometbus sales, so less of them to haul around. Still having issues finding reverse gear, but the power steering belt was holding. Sorry to make you guys lay on your backs in the dirt every time I needed to back up. The venue was a cluttered recording studio of some sort, hotter inside than it was outside; a bit of a mess. Though, #aaroncometbus did once say every great punk club had a pole. The guys walked around the neighborhood trying to round up more kids to come to the show. There was even the promise of one more giant firework leftover from South Dakota: the Rainbow Warrior. It was a dud. Not much left of this venue. The liquor store across the street is still there, but it appears the warehouse on 17th street is now a strip mall of some sort. This photo of the show reveals two things. John on drums and Billie and Mike with not a tattoo between them. Mike’s rocking his new bass here too."