1,700 turn out for golden oldies celebration.

LEWISTON – Jim Spencer stood near the entrance of the Androscoggin Bank Colisee, looking at old photos from Lewiston’s Police Athletic League dance days.

He could name many of the musicians in the pictures, but he was having a little trouble with the names of the bands.

“We thought things were bad then, with the Vietnam War and all that,” said Spencer, 56, of Sabattus. “It was the Beatle-boots days. These were good times, the PAL Hops and the dances at the Lewiston Armory.”

It might not have been the PAL Hop, but it was pretty close for 1,700 old-time rock ‘n’ roll fans. Some came early for a cabaret-style dinner and show. Most came later, filtering in to the bleacher seats, ready to watch some of their favorite acts on stage and on two massive screens beside the stage. The screens showed the live music as well as short documentaries made just for the evening.

And when the Girls of L-A – local singers Bonnie Edwards, Kathy Hale, Jeannie Martin, Debbie Morin, Bette Sanborn and Laurie Sidelinger – took the stage to belt out some classic rock tunes, their fans moved to the dance floor.

“How many here are between the ages of 50 and 75?” asked comedian Louise Philippe, as the character Father Frenchie. The question was met with a huge roar from the crowd.

“And how many of you are already dead, and just came back for the show?” Philippe asked.

The concert was a benefit for Museum L-A. Museum Executive Director Rachel Desgrosseilliers noted that the museum has specialized in reuniting workers from Lewiston’s past and helping them tell their stories.

“We’ve reunited Lewiston’s millworkers and shoemakers,” Desgrosseilliers said. “Tonight, we ended up reuniting Lewiston’s musicians.”

The show featured acts from the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s. Performers included the Moon Dawgs, a Lewiston-based rock band that toured all over Maine and New England; the Rockin’ Recons, another 1960s PAL Hop favorite; and local singer Nick Knowlton, who performed with a number of bands Saturday.

The talent wasn’t all up on stage, however. Ray Biron, lead singer and guitarist for Little Cesar and the Romans back in the day, watched the show from a table near the dance floor. His band won a Police Athletic League Battle of the Bands show at Lewiston City Hall back then.

“The bands, they’ve gotten so much better than they were,” Biron said. “The sound, the tone, the equipment, its all better. And the music is played much better than it was.”

That’s what happens with 40 years of practice, he said. Players get better with practice.

“But the crowds, with the way music is produced, I think people are kind of jaded,” he said. “They expect a lot more from a live show. But back when we were performing, it was all brand new. Everybody was more excited. They were more into it than I think they are today.”