25 years ago today (September 9, 1994) - Boston radio station WFNX wanted to welcome back college students with a free concert at the city's Hatch Shell concert venue.
The show didn't quite go as expected ... with 65,000 people showing up. Things got out of control early and often .. The band asked the crowd to calm down which 'helped' but a few songs into their set - the crowd went haywire - ripping up flower gardens (this was just a few months after their Woodstock 94 mud fight) and throwing Snapple bottles at the stage (this is why you don't let sponsors hand out free glass bottles of iced tea at concerts ).
The show was cut off when lead singer, Billy Joe Armstrong, joined in the melee and jumped off the stage and tore up flowers himself.
Its amazing the band was ever allowed back in Boston !
Full GREEN DAY segment from WE WANT THE AIRWAVES(The Riot Gig)