Quote
Gazza
Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band, Wembley Arena, 29th May 1981.

First night of a six show stand on the 'River' tour and the day before I turned 18.

My first ever trip to London. Went there on a 15-hour bus journey!

Only the third concert I ever attended - and a few hundred gigs later, still the best one.

I'm familiar with that bus journey, even if I can't emotionally relate to the Springsteen experience. "He's onstage for three hours," friends of mine at school would say. You do realise that's the equivalent of five chemistry lessons, I would retort.

Snap - Pink Floyd - Earls Court 14.6.81 Block 24 Row E seat 8

Page & Plant - Cornwall 15.7.95
Genesis - Birmingham 4.4.80

plus quite a few others

1.Rolling Stones - No Security opening night (front row)
2.Bruce Springsteen - St Louis 2008
3.Bruce Springsteen - Mansfield 2009 (2 shows count as 1 great experience)
4.Rolling Stones - 2002 Oakland Arena
5.Paul McCartney - Arizona 2010

STONES -1975
LED ZEPPELIN-1977
QUEEN-1977
PINK FLOYD-1995
SPRINGSTEEN-1980
JOHN FOGERTY- 1999
THE WHO-1980
MCCARTNEY-2003
ROGER WATERS-2008
A.R.M.S CONCERT-1983

Aerosmith-Nashua High School 1972
J. Geils Band-Machester,NH Ice Rink 1973
Kinks-Winterland 1977
Stones-SF 1975
Tubes-New Years Eve in San Jose 1978
Grateful Dead- Almost any show from the October Warfield-SF/Radio City-NYC run in 1980
Grateful Dead-Oakland December 1986
Jerry Garcia Band- Keystone Palo Alto,Berkeley,SF 1978/1981

Quote
Thricenay

Quote
Gazza
Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band, Wembley Arena, 29th May 1981.

First night of a six show stand on the 'River' tour and the day before I turned 18.

My first ever trip to London. Went there on a 15-hour bus journey!

Only the third concert I ever attended - and a few hundred gigs later, still the best one.

I'm familiar with that bus journey, even if I can't emotionally relate to the Springsteen experience. "He's onstage for three hours," friends of mine at school would say. You do realise that's the equivalent of five chemistry lessons, I would retort.

Yep. Via the Larne-Stranraer ferry! I actually had to get my tickets changed as the original shows were postponed and the rescheduled date clashed with my French A-Level!

Quote
deeppurple
Rolling Stones: Auburn '69 Atlanta '02
The Who: Atlanta '70
Deep Purple: Lakeland Fl. '85 St. Petersburgs Fl. '07 Katowice Poland '10
Faces: Jacksonville Fl. '72 Readings England '72
Free: Jacksonville Fl. '72
Page/Plant: Atlanta '94
Too others. I could go.
Steve Morse Band: Tampa Fl. '10

F*^king great list!

My personal all-time best was John Fogerty in Atlanta @ Tabernacle mid-2000's. Loud, front, clear, great!

Lots of others including THE ROLLING STONES!

"No Anchovies, Please"

The shows that come to mind are Twilight Singers , Greg Dulli's band a few years ago in a tiny club - redhot show.
Several Contortions shows in NYC.
James Blood Ulmer in Atlanta, GA in a punk rock club; a guitar lesson for all present.
But I say the best show I ever went to was spiritual experience. A band that I wasn't much into then, or later; it was Santana in Rome, Italy. He had cut his hair and was all in white; some religious thing. But the stage was all in green lights, and for the first num,ber there was a lot of cymbal swells and big droning synth; and while it had been hot in there, somehow once they came on it cooled down and you could see air blowing with huge clouds of incense smoke everywhere. Carlos was in the middle just with his arms up in prayer. I swear, I have always been a rocker, and this was not my scene but I lost it. I was so into it.

Some very interesting posts! This is a great thread. Ok, well am mining my memories, and there are some incredible shows I have been to so I will list a few, not in order...

Willie Dixon- Rick's American Cafe Ann Arbor Michigan, 1983. Small bar, college crowd, but Willie was on fire. And we pushed our way backstage with albums in hand and the man was a true gentleman! He invited us in and gave us beers and nachos! And hung out and talked with us for quite a while. A true legend.

Luether Allison- Harpos, Detroit Michigan, unsure of the date, the late 80's. His first tour of the US for quite a while. He was an exile in France for years playing blues to an appreciative audience. My crew went with albums in hand and sat in the front row. He saw our albums and then after the show a bouncer came up and invited us upstairs to hang with Luther. He was so pumped to see fans who knew his stuff. WOnderful!

Iggy Pop, Michigan Theater Ann Arbor Michigan, 1982: The Zombie Birdhouse tour, on Halloween night, many folks came in costume. Nash the Slash warmed up and he is/was a freak, one man show behind a huge counsel of synths and keyboards with a hokey mask on his face. Iggy was on fire! And stoned to the bone.

Iggy Pop, California's, Windser Canada, 1988: A small bar across the Detroit River. I went early and hung out at the bar, then low and behold Iggy comes out with his band to run through a sound check. I just hung out and watched them jam for a good hour, working on a new one for the show they hadn't done together yet, China Girl and Johanna. INCREDIBLE! Then there was the show. SMALL Place with the crowd surging toward the low stage and Iggy just slashing through his stuff at a frantic and energetic pace. AND IT WAS LOUD! Shredded my ears. I will never forget some punk int he front kept bugging Iggy with taunts so Iggy spit in his hand and grabbed the punks face like a basketball and pushed him back from the front.

David Bowie, Singapore National Stadium, Singapore, 2003. Incredible show! Incredible band. And oh, that voice! Sublime. And spine chilling when he strapped on the acoustic and did Quicksand. I also got to go backstage and meet my hero, which was a seminal moment for me. Another true gentleman, friendly, fun, and down to earth.

Stevie Ray Vaughan, Medobrook Theater, Michigan, 1985: Small outdoor theater in Michigan. Wonderful show, raw and full of passion. And that guitar just blew everyone away.

The Rolling Stones, Alpine Valley, 1989: It had been since 1981 since they toured and everyone was in total anticipation wondering what they would be like. They pulled out all the stops and played a long and versatile set. They were on fire, polished, but enough grit to remind you why they are the world's greatest garage band. Some stunning songs that I never thought I would hear them play live. Play With Fire! Ruby Tuesday! Gimme Shelter! And Midnight Rambler! Incredible! Saw them both nights.

The Rolling Stones, Singapore National Stadium, Singapore, 2004. Two nights with front row tickets. An impossible feat in the US, but in Singapore where rules rule, no scalping and the internet ticket site actually works! They sounded incredible! And again a stunning set list with Can't You Hear Me Knocking finally being played live! One of my best memories of the Stones is after Keith finished Thru and Thru he dropped his guitar pick into my open palm!

Paul McCartney, Munich Olympic Stadium, 1989: My first time seeing McCartney. We drove from Frankfurt with no tickets, scored main floor, got within the first three rows. His first big world tour since the Wings. Incredible sound and a great set list.

Paul McCartney, Salt Lake City, 2010: Another stunning McCartney show that lasted three hours! And I attended the sound check where he played for one hour and forty five minutes! And we got to see him work out the beginning of Rock Show with the band, stop, request the iPod to play the Venus and Mars version so they could all hear the original opening then they worked on it! Wonderful! ANd a great version of I'm In Love Again! So I got over four hours of Macca!

Johnny WInter, Nectarine Ball Room, Ann Arbor Michigan, 1983: Small place and a full on sound explosion! Johnny was on fire and tore the roof off the place.

Albert King, Sully's, Dearborn Michigan, 1986: Sat next the blues giant at the bar, bought him a whisky and asked him to sign my album. He says with my marker in his shaking hand, "sorry I am so nervous!" "Why Mr. King?" "I was in an accident! IN 1955 I was in a terrible car accident!" That is when I figured out the man probably didn't know how to read or write. Later a roadie handed me the album with a beautiful signature on it. I doubt he wrote it, and I doubt he ever did. Probably an "X" was his true signature. During the show he rips into Laundromat BLues, and he starts rapping saying he sees his woman at night with..."what are those sexy things that ladies wear??" I screamed out, "NEGLIGEE!" Albert yells back "YEAH! ONE OF THEM NEGLIGEEEES!" Classic!

The Grateful Dead, Ohio, 1988: A full on acid Dead experience at a big outdoor show. Incredible, and probably the best acid trip ever!

Bob Dylan, Medowbrook Theater, 1988: Dylan was on the road with GE Smith on guitar. Small tight band, no talking between songs, but he played and sang his heart out. Some great moments, like Forever Young and Boots of Spanish Leather on acoustic. He was in fine form.

The Kinks, Cobo Hall, Detroit Michigan, 1980: My first Kinks show with them touring behind One for the Road. At the famous and legendary Cobo Hall no less. Incredible! I remember the rarity of seeing Dave Davies do one of his solo tunes with The Kinks. Ray was on fire running around the stage like a true punk. And oh, they did the majestic Prince of the Punks!

The Kinks, Joe Louis Arena, 1983. The State of Confusion tour, which is what they opened with. Apocalyptic grinding power chords opened their stunning show. Great seats, with buddies, and a band on fire. Can't be beat!

Buddy Guy, The Attic, Detroit, 1986. Not the usual set by numbers show from Buddy. He really played entire songs and didn't tell his schlockly stories of how he is the King of the Blues and taught everyone how to play guitar! Nope, he just let the music do the talking and took the entire bar to school that night. ANother fun show where we snuck backstage and opened his dressing room door where he was smoking down with a trio of beautiful blond girls. "boys, you need to go now, I will be back on in a bit!" Yes, sir Mr. Guy!

Roger Waters, Pine Knob Music Theater, 1987: The interesting concept of taking questions from the audience during the show! Great band, great set list embracing Floyd's past, and a passionate voice. Long show too!

Santana, Pine Knob Music Theater, 1980: ONe of many summer shows with Santana. Loud and propulsive latin rock that captivated a young high school music fan.

The Police, The Masonic, Detoit, 1979: Before they hit world superstardom. A tight, no frills powerful show. Punk, ska, and reggae. Fantastic!

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Joe LOuis Arena, 1982: The Hard Promises tour, where during the intro to A Woman in Love his guitar strap comes off and his guitar goes crashing onto the stage. He apologized and picked up the guitar and started right where the song was left at. Fantastic show and a night of classic American rock.

Lou Reed, State Theater, Detroit, 1989. My first Lou show, he comes out and says he is going to play all of New York, then starts with the first song, Romeo Had Juliet and the mike starts shocking him. He stops, road crew fixes, he starts again, same problem, then he swears and the road crew comes back out, starts again, then the same problem, he stops the show and says, "we are going to get it @#$%& right or not at all!" and he storms off stage. For what seems like an eternity, he comes back and proceeds to give us a blistering version of the entire New York album. Incredible!

Keith Richards, State Theater, Detroit, 1988. I never thought it would happen, but it did! He did a solo tour! The anticipation was palatable and there were thoughts of "can he really pull this off?" and man did he! Small venue, great sound, and a full on Keith onslaught! Riff hard indeed!

I gotta stop now! Take a break and think of some more!

The WHo, Pontiac Sliverdome! 1979. It was two weeks after the Ohio tragedy. My folks almost made me pull the plug on it. I was 15 and my best friend had his driver's license. Three of us drove out at 2am in the morning and parked across the street in his Trans Am. Slept for a bit, then we headed across the parking lot to get in line. It was in December I believe and FREEZING!! We stood in line with thousands of freaks. I mean almost medieval in its intensity. Freaks galore partying harder than I had ever seen. I was a bit scared, we all were. I had no albums by The Who. I had heard their stuff on the radio for sure, but really didn't know what to expect. We got halfway decent seats, we couldn't get to the main floor. Thank god! And I was stunned, captivated, aroused, confused, and exhilarated! After the show I spent the next two months saving up my allowance and paper rout money, and proceeded to buy every Who album I could get my hands on! Quadrophenia was my first album and I was so excited to rediscover The Punk Meets the Godfather, 515, and The Real Me. They did all those songs the night I saw them and I had no idea what they were but I loved them. Then hearing in the context of the album I was mystified. I seemed like Townshend had written an epic teen code that spoke directly to your psyche. The WHo! Probably the top show for me. It broke my cherry to freakdom.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2011-04-26 12:44 by whitem8.

Emmylou Harris & Her Red Dirt Boys - Munich, Germany, September 17, 2008; at a small and beautiful venue called "Philharmonie", which normally hosts mainly classic concerts. My wife and I will return there this June to see her again. The best concert I've ever seen.

Bruce Springsteen - Vienna, Austria, May 7, 1997. The second of two consecutive shows which marked Springsteen's live debut in my home country (of course I saw both) during his awesome first "Solo Acoustic Tour".

The Rolling Stones - Vienna, Austria, July 31, 1990. The first large outdoor rock concert I ever attended. Breathtaking. Their 2006 Vienna show - with Mick in a particularly good mood and fine form - also is a favorite.

Mark Knopfler & Emmylou Harris - Hamburg, Germany, May 28, 2006. The one and only time I ever boarded a plane to travel to a concert. That show was worth every second of near-panic inside that @#$%& steel tube.

Kiss - Vienna, Austria, December 16, 1996. The smallest venue (about 4,000) they played during their entire "Alive Worldwide" reunion tour. The place was packed! Great fun, and brought back some childhood memories for sure, although they weren't allowed to use any pyro.

Quote
DaveG
So many from which to choose. I guess my criteria will be, if I could see it again:

Newport '69 A 3-day festival at Devonshire Downs in the L.A. area. The acts I saw were Creedence Clearwater Revival, Hendrix, Johnny Winter, Jethro Tull, Steppenwolf, Chambers Brothers, Booker T, and a few others I cannot remember. It was an event! Hot as hell, but some great music.

McCartney in, I think, 2006 in Seattle.

Beatles at Dodger Stadium. Historic and unforgettable.

The Louie Bellson jazz band at a small club in '68 with my dad. I was 18 and into rock, he was into jazz. The club was a few blocks from our house. Guesting that night on trumpet was Doc Severinson. A great show in an intimate setting.

Temptations and Supremes at Melodyland in Anaheim in '67.

The Manhattan Transfer in 2000 on the waterfront in Seattle, with my college age daughter. Full orchestra, great music, warm evening. Very pleasant.

Mountain, Zappa's Hot Rats at the Olympic in L.A.

Ten Years After at the Rose Palace in Pasadena.

I'd love to hear what that show was like. It seems very few people here actually saw the Beatles as a group together live. How was it? Could you hear them or just faintly make them out?

Stones Fleet Center -1999
Stones Hartford - 1981
Stones TD Garden 2003
Bruce Springsteen - 1984
Neil Youg

Quote
whitem8
Some very interesting posts! This is a great thread. Ok, well am mining my memories, and there are some incredible shows I have been to so I will list a few, not in order...

Willie Dixon- Rick's American Cafe Ann Arbor Michigan, 1983. Small bar, college crowd, but Willie was on fire. And we pushed our way backstage with albums in hand and the man was a true gentleman! He invited us in and gave us beers and nachos! And hung out and talked with us for quite a while. A true legend.

Luether Allison- Harpos, Detroit Michigan, unsure of the date, the late 80's. His first tour of the US for quite a while. He was an exile in France for years playing blues to an appreciative audience. My crew went with albums in hand and sat in the front row. He saw our albums and then after the show a bouncer came up and invited us upstairs to hang with Luther. He was so pumped to see fans who knew his stuff. WOnderful!

Iggy Pop, Michigan Theater Ann Arbor Michigan, 1982: The Zombie Birdhouse tour, on Halloween night, many folks came in costume. Nash the Slash warmed up and he is/was a freak, one man show behind a huge counsel of synths and keyboards with a hokey mask on his face. Iggy was on fire! And stoned to the bone.

Iggy Pop, California's, Windser Canada, 1988: A small bar across the Detroit River. I went early and hung out at the bar, then low and behold Iggy comes out with his band to run through a sound check. I just hung out and watched them jam for a good hour, working on a new one for the show they hadn't done together yet, China Girl and Johanna. INCREDIBLE! Then there was the show. SMALL Place with the crowd surging toward the low stage and Iggy just slashing through his stuff at a frantic and energetic pace. AND IT WAS LOUD! Shredded my ears. I will never forget some punk int he front kept bugging Iggy with taunts so Iggy spit in his hand and grabbed the punks face like a basketball and pushed him back from the front.

David Bowie, Singapore National Stadium, Singapore, 2003. Incredible show! Incredible band. And oh, that voice! Sublime. And spine chilling when he strapped on the acoustic and did Quicksand. I also got to go backstage and meet my hero, which was a seminal moment for me. Another true gentleman, friendly, fun, and down to earth.

Stevie Ray Vaughan, Medobrook Theater, Michigan, 1985: Small outdoor theater in Michigan. Wonderful show, raw and full of passion. And that guitar just blew everyone away.

The Rolling Stones, Alpine Valley, 1989: It had been since 1981 since they toured and everyone was in total anticipation wondering what they would be like. They pulled out all the stops and played a long and versatile set. They were on fire, polished, but enough grit to remind you why they are the world's greatest garage band. Some stunning songs that I never thought I would hear them play live. Play With Fire! Ruby Tuesday! Gimme Shelter! And Midnight Rambler! Incredible! Saw them both nights.

The Rolling Stones, Singapore National Stadium, Singapore, 2004. Two nights with front row tickets. An impossible feat in the US, but in Singapore where rules rule, no scalping and the internet ticket site actually works! They sounded incredible! And again a stunning set list with Can't You Hear Me Knocking finally being played live! One of my best memories of the Stones is after Keith finished Thru and Thru he dropped his guitar pick into my open palm!

Paul McCartney, Munich Olympic Stadium, 1999: My first time seeing McCartney. We drove from Frankfurt with no tickets, scored main floor, got within the first three rows. His first big world tour since the Wings. Incredible sound and a great set list.

Paul McCartney, Salt Lake City, 2010: Another stunning McCartney show that lasted three hours! And I attended the sound check where he played for one hour and forty five minutes! And we got to see him work out the beginning of Rock Show with the band, stop, request the iPod to play the Venus and Mars version so they could all hear the original opening then they worked on it! Wonderful! ANd a great version of I'm In Love Again! So I got over four hours of Macca!

Johnny WInter, Nectarine Ball Room, Ann Arbor Michigan, 1983: Small place and a full on sound explosion! Johnny was on fire and tore the roof off the place.

Albert King, Sully's, Dearborn Michigan, 1986: Sat next the blues giant at the bar, bought him a whisky and asked him to sign my album. He says with my marker in his shaking hand, "sorry I am so nervous!" "Why Mr. King?" "I was in an accident! IN 1955 I was in a terrible car accident!" That is when I figured out the man probably didn't know how to read or write. Later a roadie handed me the album with a beautiful signature on it. I doubt he wrote it, and I doubt he ever did. Probably an "X" was his true signature. During the show he rips into Laundromat BLues, and he starts rapping saying he sees his woman at night with..."what are those sexy things that ladies wear??" I screamed out, "NEGLIGEE!" Albert yells back "YEAH! ONE OF THEM NEGLIGEEEES!" Classic!

The Grateful Dead, Ohio, 1988: A full on acid Dead experience at a big outdoor show. Incredible, and probably the best acid trip ever!

Bob Dylan, Medowbrook Theater, 1988: Dylan was on the road with GE Smith on guitar. Small tight band, no talking between songs, but he played and sang his heart out. Some great moments, like Forever Young and Boots of Spanish Leather on acoustic. He was in fine form.

The Kinks, Cobo Hall, Detroit Michigan, 1980: My first Kinks show with them touring behind One for the Road. At the famous and legendary Cobo Hall no less. Incredible! I remember the rarity of seeing Dave Davies do one of his solo tunes with The Kinks. Ray was on fire running around the stage like a true punk. And oh, they did the majestic Prince of the Punks!

The Kinks, Joe Louis Arena, 1983. The State of Confusion tour, which is what they opened with. Apocalyptic grinding power chords opened their stunning show. Great seats, with buddies, and a band on fire. Can't be beat!

Buddy Guy, The Attic, Detroit, 1986. Not the usual set by numbers show from Buddy. He really played entire songs and didn't tell his schlockly stories of how he is the King of the Blues and taught everyone how to play guitar! Nope, he just let the music do the talking and took the entire bar to school that night. ANother fun show where we snuck backstage and opened his dressing room door where he was smoking down with a trio of beautiful blond girls. "boys, you need to go now, I will be back on in a bit!" Yes, sir Mr. Guy!

Roger Waters, Pine Knob Music Theater, 1987: The interesting concept of taking questions from the audience during the show! Great band, great set list embracing Floyd's past, and a passionate voice. Long show too!

Santana, Pine Knob Music Theater, 1980: ONe of many summer shows with Santana. Loud and propulsive latin rock that captivated a young high school music fan.

The Police, The Masonic, Detoit, 1979: Before they hit world superstardom. A tight, no frills powerful show. Punk, ska, and reggae. Fantastic!

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Joe LOuis Arena, 1982: The Hard Promises tour, where during the intro to A Woman in Love his guitar strap comes off and his guitar goes crashing onto the stage. He apologized and picked up the guitar and started right where the song was left at. Fantastic show and a night of classic American rock.

Lou Reed, State Theater, Detroit, 1989. My first Lou show, he comes out and says he is going to play all of New York, then starts with the first song, Romeo Had Juliet and the mike starts shocking him. He stops, road crew fixes, he starts again, same problem, then he swears and the road crew comes back out, starts again, then the same problem, he stops the show and says, "we are going to get it @#$%& right or not at all!" and he storms off stage. For what seems like an eternity, he comes back and proceeds to give us a blistering version of the entire New York album. Incredible!

Keith Richards, State Theater, Detroit, 1988. I never thought it would happen, but it did! He did a solo tour! The anticipation was palatable and there were thoughts of "can he really pull this off?" and man did he! Small venue, great sound, and a full on Keith onslaught! Riff hard indeed!

I gotta stop now! Take a break and think of some more!

The WHo, Pontiac Sliverdome! 1979. It was two weeks after the Ohio tragedy. My folks almost made me pull the plug on it. I was 15 and my best friend had his driver's license. Three of us drove out at 2am in the morning and parked across the street in his Trans Am. Slept for a bit, then we headed across the parking lot to get in line. It was in December I believe and FREEZING!! We stood in line with thousands of freaks. I mean almost medieval in its intensity. Freaks galore partying harder than I had ever seen. I was a bit scared, we all were. I had no albums by The Who. I had heard their stuff on the radio for sure, but really didn't know what to expect. We got halfway decent seats, we couldn't get to the main floor. Thank god! And I was stunned, captivated, aroused, confused, and exhilarated! After the show I spent the next two months saving up my allowance and paper rout money, and proceeded to buy every Who album I could get my hands on! Quadrophenia was my first album and I was so excited to rediscover The Punk Meets the Godfather, 515, and The Real Me. They did all those songs the night I saw them and I had no idea what they were but I loved them. Then hearing in the context of the album I was mystified. I seemed like Townshend had written an epic teen code that spoke directly to your psyche. The WHo! Probably the top show for me. It broke my cherry to freakdom.

Great post; instantly triggered more memoried w/ me.
Keith very first solo show. I was there and he rolled it. The encore of "It Means A Lot" was like a wave coming at us.
And Iggy Pop in Hamburg w/ Bowie; the place went insane! Jane's Addiction at Tippitinas.
Jane's Addiction on Lollapalooza. The real Janes; not the regrouped version.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2011-04-24 16:29 by Palace Revolution 2000.

Dan please give us more memories!

John toured with "Mahavishnu" in '84.Saw him 3 times.

Here he shows how to rape a Les Paul.
No shredding: Free fall Coltrane style.
The best player in my book.

Pink Floyd 87 Vancouver
Pink Floyd 94 Vancouver
Stones Vancouver 94
Stones Vancouver 07
Stones Buffalo 81

Quote
Amsterdamned
John toured with "Mahavishnu" in '84.Saw him 3 times.

Here he shows how to rape a Les Paul.
No shredding: Free fall Coltrane style.
The best player in my book.

does absolutely nothing for me.

Stones -98
Television -77
The Clash -77
Generation X -77
X Ray Spex -77
999 -78
Johnny Winter -81
The Buzzcocks -77
Pretenders -78
Elvis Costello -78
Dylan -78
Springsteen -81
Bowie -76
Patti Smith -76
Bob Marley -80

2 1 2 0



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 2011-04-27 16:31 by Come On.

Quote
Palace Revolution 2000

Quote
Amsterdamned
John toured with "Mahavishnu" in '84.Saw him 3 times.

Here he shows how to rape a Les Paul.
No shredding: Free fall Coltrane style.
The best player in my book.

does absolutely nothing for me.

No problem.
I'am fascinated every fast note he plays fits the chords.
It's jazzy an sleazy at the same time imo.

stones : marseille 2003 - lyon 2006
rest of the world :
john mellencamp n.y. town hall- trouble no more tour
tom waits firenze 1999
willy deville- piacenza/fillmore 2005
stevie ray vaughan -pistoia 1989

Stones - Columbus 2005 and Atlantic City 2006.

Quote
dcba
Dan please give us more memories!

Oct 1-2-3 1998 Cheap Trick House Of Blues (Wayne Kramer opened Oct 1, MIRV Oct 2) first 3 albums in entirety with lots of other rare tracks, like 50 different songs including Bakersfield show, met lots of cool people for the first time. Oct 3 "Heaven Tonight" show best CT show ever, Wayne Kramer joined them, they did "Kick Out The Jams," also watched the soundcheck.

[ijwthstd.webs.com]

I was suprised to see how many people listed Page/Plant.

I saw them in Phoenix in about '97 and they actually were almost better that when I saw Led Zeppelin in '73 in Chicago. I saw both Zep and Alice Cooper at the Chicago Stadium in '73 and Alice was a better show.

the Rolling Stones - too many to remember, I'd say Boston 1999 or Milan 2003
Talking Heads - Palalido, Milano 1980 or 1981 (Remain in Light Tour)
Bob Marley - San Siro Stadium, Milan 1980
Lou Reed - Basel, 1979 (the Bells tour)
Patti Smith - Bologne 1980
Police - Palalido, Milano spring 1980

Bubbling under
Ramones - Palalido, Milano, 1980/81
Frank Sinatra - Palatrussardi, Milano, 1986

Happy Jack, I was 16 when I went to see The Beatles at Dodger Stadium (I may have posted these memories before at some point). Anyway, I went with a friend and our seats were on the second level, between home plate and first base. It was just electric in that stadium. the opening acts were Bobby Hebb ("Sunny"), and the Ronettes. The Ronettes were really good and had had many hits by that time. I think there may have been one other group but I don't remember. The stage was set up right around the pitcher's mound. I was a real fan of the Beatles and knew all their songs, had all their albums to date, and couldn't wait to hear them preform.

Finally, they emerged from the dugout and ran to the stage, to the deafening screams of thousands of teenage girls. It was just wild. However, as they performed, much of their sound was drowned out by the screaming. I mean, literally on all sides of us were screaming girls, some of them crying. They sang about 10 songs or so. Upon finishing their set, the exited the stage and ran into a large tent behind the stage, just beyond second base, that had a huge "Dressing Room" banner on the front. Suddenly, out drove a limo heading for the gate at center field. However, the crowd was so huge that the limo was forced to turn back and it drove back to the dugout, where the Beatles got out and ran back into the dugout. Everybody was still in the stadium and screaming and cheering over the incident. We left our seats and the stadium and went around back and joined the crowd at the center field gate. People were standing on a classy Ford Mustang to get a better view, and the car was literally crushed.

There is more to the story but I'll stop there. I do remember the music, but I remember it more as an event. I don't know what I ever did with the ticket stub but my buddy still has his. Now I look back and see what an historic event that was.

Quote
joejagger
I was suprised to see how many people listed Page/Plant.

I saw them in Phoenix in about '97 and they actually were almost better that when I saw Led Zeppelin in '73 in Chicago. I saw both Zep and Alice Cooper at the Chicago Stadium in '73 and Alice was a better show.

I never saw Led Zeppelin. Page and Plant WAS my Led Zeppelin show. That second tour they did, the stripped down ROCK tour, in 1998-99, the one without all the middle-eastern trappings, that really was the Led Zeppelin reunion tour. They didn't call it that, but that's what it was.

Quote
tatters

Quote
joejagger
I was suprised to see how many people listed Page/Plant.

I saw them in Phoenix in about '97 and they actually were almost better that when I saw Led Zeppelin in '73 in Chicago. I saw both Zep and Alice Cooper at the Chicago Stadium in '73 and Alice was a better show.

I never saw Led Zeppelin. Page and Plant WAS my Led Zeppelin show. That second tour they did, the stripped down ROCK tour, in 1998-99, the one without all the middle-eastern trappings, that really was the Led Zeppelin reunion tour. They didn't call it that, but that's what it was.

Saw Page/Plant on the same tour in 1998, and it WAS a great show...but oddly not one that I put on my top-few list. Not sure why, as it was objectively just a very solid show as I recall it now. And this tour was in a sense a Zep reunion tour considering the setlist and rockin' nature of the shows, but...the arena I saw them in was only about 2/3 full, which surprised me and made me think, "you know, if they would've just hit the road billed as LZ, this would be another Voodoo Lounge." I do remember giving both Page and Plant very sincere kudos after the show and being very satisfied with what I had witnessed.

Anyway, if you ask me tomorrow what my top all-time shows are it'll be different than what I"m about to list, but here are a few that stand out without doing an exhaustive recollection. I'm sure I'm overlooking some obvious show, but here's what's on the brain tonight:



Replacements 1991 (loud and loose last tour; pure fun)

Springsteen 85, 88, and heck, I even loved the non E-street 1992 outing, plus even the later tours. The guy just never disappoints.

Prince: anytime, anywhere

Stevie Ray Vaughn: Alpine Valley 1990 (Yes, I was at his last-ever show. Heard an early report of the crash on the late drive home but didn't know SRV was involved until the next day...and wow...such a loss.)

AC/DC: geez, these guys always satisfy live. Never seen them do a bad show. You know exactly what you're gonna get, and you still love it.

Chuck Berry: as an old geezer in the Duck Room in St. Louis circa 1998-2008. (Also, some of the absolute WORST shows were by the same guy in the same venue during this same timeframe. He's amazingly inconsistent, but that's part of the fun as you never quite know which Chuck is going to show up that particular night)

Pixies: circa 1991 or so...deafness...surprisingly punk and loud. Benefitted from my having zero expectations perhaps.

The Who: Oh, god, how could I forget. Well, I thought 1989 was crap...but man did 2000 and 2002 just blow me away. Pete played, and I have the soundboard boots that the band so generously made avaialalbe of every show, I swear to god, with an intensity that rivaled Live at Leeds. Amazing. Jaw-dropping power. Left the show knowing that I had just witnessed greatness. Viva La Pete! Perhaps my biggest regret is that I was too young to see them circa 70-76.

U2: ZooTv and Elevation tours. Finally pulled the trigger and got 360 Tour tix for STL this coming July when I read they overtook the Stones for all-time gross/tix sold, etc. For some reason that made me just HAVE to see them. Plus, I have a curiosity to see over-the-top Marc Fisher productions. Am looking forward to it. And who would've ever guessed that they have their own Blondie underneath the stage as well!

ZZ Top: Afterburner Tour 85-86 or so.... Hey, this seemed like Spinal Tap at the time, but it was fun nevertheless.

John Mellencamp: About 1985? The Scarecrow Tour. Mike Wanchic and Larry Crane on guitar were just fabulous. John Mellencamp? meh...not so much. His BAND (also including Kenny Aronoff) was the attraction to me.

Warren Zevon: 1994 or so, Madison Theater in Peoria, Illinois...he comes out with an electric guitar and says he's "gonna play loud. And not folk-singer loud. I'm gonna play Pantera loud!" He blew us away, and I think delighted in delivering a show that was heavier/rockier than most of the audience was expecting.

Paul McCartney: 1992 and 2002. Wow. Just wow. Especially 2002. The guy can bring it in a way I never suspected. Fantastic, truly.

So many others! I can't recall them all now but wow, so much fun. Where do you put a guy like Tommy Emmanuel on a list like this? That was just a jaw-dropping display of guitar virtuosity, and the more I sit here and think the more I'll just yammer on and on...

As for the Stones...I kept them out of this list because even though, objectively, many of the shows I've seen by them have been subpar, I still rate them super high as I just love them so. My biggest gripe with them is that for the the last 30 years they never play loud enough and the guitars are too low in the mix.

******

Now, as for shows that were either simply atrocious or just somehow disappointed, there are few obvious ones easily recollected:

Journey circa 1986: Oh, god. the worst. Awful.

Neil Young and Crazy Horse circa 1996: Hmmm... I LOVE Neil and Crazy Horse, and think Live Rust and Rust Never Sleeps, and even Weld, are awesome. Seeing them this tour, I was bored. Perhaps he suffered from my high expectations but I was unsatisfied. Just didn't click for me.

Rolling Stones: January 2003 in Chicago at United Center. Saw them both nights on the Licks reprise/repeat/overkill-saturation of the Chicago market in January '03; neither show was great but night two was dreadful awful. Worst performance I've personally seen by the Stones and I've seen about 20 shows, I guess. Funny, this followed the MSG ppv show by days, and they were a totally different band. And this will sound like sacrilege, but I saw them at the Aragon Ballroom in 2002 (one of the "club" shows on Licks) and I was underwhelmed. Nice to see them in a small venue, but they played like a lukewarmcarpet.

And the show I perhaps most wanted to like, but just couldn't quite get there...Dire Straits circa '91 for the On Every Street tour. I love Knopfler and think he's brilliant and amazingly talented, but every time this show was on the verge of just elevating into something great, Mark would seem to pull back in a display of "tasteful restraint." Arggghh!!! It was so frustrating. He could've really taken off and always was on the brink...but no, he's all about being "tasteful." Well, it was unsatisfying to the max...

Anyway, a fun if incomplete trip down memory lane. My experience has shown that there are a few performers who just always kill:

Stones: okay, despite what I've said above, for me, always the greatest even though they suck terribly at times if you truly view them objectively. Hey...well...just sayin'...And his is just post-1994 or so. I will take the shittiest show from '78 over ANY show from 2002 on. Really, I know most would not...that's just me. But still, a Stones show...I'm there, and somehow I'm happy even though I'm also "mad" at how awful it might sound, or whatever. I will always love them. Even when I hate them.

Okay, aside from the obvious Stones, these guys deliver every time:

Bruce Springsteen. Stud muffin' supreme in the live setting.
AC/DC. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Spinal Tap, etc. They deliver ALWAYS.
Prince. In a way he's like Chuck Berry because he's so unpredictable, but he's also totally anti-Chuck Berry in that the unpredictableness is always somehow amazing. With Chuck it's train-wreck city often, which is also fascinating to witness so he gets a pass in a way that somehow the Stones don't quite get yet. Maybe it's because they charge $300 a ticket and Chuck charges $25.

and I'm almost tempted to put the Who here...but I still have nightmares about 1989...But give Pete a loud electric guitar, and I'm in heaven.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2011-04-27 09:13 by rocker1.

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whitem8


Willie Dixon- Rick's American Cafe Ann Arbor Michigan, 1983. Small bar, college crowd, but Willie was on fire.

That must have been great! I saw Willie Dixon around 1976 when I was a student at San Diego State University at this small on campus venue called The Backdoor. Not sure if it is still there. I also saw Savoy Brown and Roy Harper there, but Willie was a truly great experience.

My live top Ten in no particular order :

Rolling Stones - Olympia 1995
Rolling Stones - Cirkus Krone 2003
Rolling Stones - Stuttgart 1999
Rory Gallagher - Olympia 1994
AC/DC - Paris 2000
Page/Plant - Paris 1998
Robert Plant - Cologne 1993
Metallica - Paris small club gig (Reload release party)
Iron Maiden - Mulhouse 1992
Scorpions - Strasbourg 1993

[doctorstonesblog.blogspot.com]

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BluzDude

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whitem8


Willie Dixon- Rick's American Cafe Ann Arbor Michigan, 1983. Small bar, college crowd, but Willie was on fire.

That must have been great! I saw Willie Dixon around 1976 when I was a student at San Diego State University at this small on campus venue called The Backdoor. Not sure if it is still there. I also saw Savoy Brown and Roy Harper there, but Willie was a truly great experience.

I saw Willie only once, and that wasn't until 1990, when he briefly appeared at an all-star tribute to John Lee Hooker at Madison Square Garden. The girl I was with ran into to some guy she knew at the concert and we got invited to a party he was having in one of the VIP "luxury suites". Worst place you could ever want to be at a concert. They were all busy having a party, and were not paying any attention AT ALL to what was happening on stage. Out came Willie, shakin' his cane, Willie and John Lee, on stage TOGETHER. I said to my date "I can't believe this. There is something AMAZING going on down there and no one here is paying any attention to it". She said, "If you're not having a good time you can just leave". New York girls. That's a big reason why I got out of there.