Whoa nice! I saw him three years ago and I’m gonna be seeing him again this Sunday at Fenway! It’s a great show (well it was last time and I trust he won’t disappoint this tour), he’s unlike any other artist I’ve ever seen, you’re gonna have a great time!
@jbartus I did have a great time! Didn’t hurt that the girl in front of me looked like a slightly younger Olivia Munn with long tan legs, wearing tight white shorts. She spent the evening dancing non-stop. I believe there was also a concert.
@jbartus As an overall performer and person, totally great. I’m truly happy that I finally got to see him. But to be completely honest, concert-wise, I wouldn’t pay that much to see him again and again like so many there have done. There’s a fine line between appreciating the show because he’s a legend and doing so because it was musically entertaining. I enjoyed it way more simply because it was him.
Finally, he came to town on September 13th, 2006 (wow, has it REALLY been ten years??). My girlfriend got me tickets for the show! I was SO excited!
I’m pretty sure he was smacked out of his head. He mumbled most of the lyrics, and at least a half dozen times he sort of trailed off in the middle of the song… like he FORGOT the words! It was the most uninspired concert I’ve ever attended. Huge disappointment to realize I sing Morrison better than Morrison sings Morrison!
TL;DR - he sucked.
Now I guess I’m looking forward to catching Neil Diamond some day.
I saw Van the man at the Berkeley Auditorium… he decided to start almost an hour early… the users were freaking out trying to seat people while explaining it. He played an hour and 20 minutes, walked off stage and that was that. One of my fav artists… and the least fav to see. Found out later that he is a bit of a hermit and hates appearing.
Now Neil Diamond… what a concert! Saw him at the Cow Palace in 85 or 86… drives all the women crazy and belts it out. Nice long concert but… no Porcupine Pie… just saying.
Seen Boston (x3) the Who, the Boss (4.5 hours!) James Taylor, Supertramp and LOTS of others but I haven’t seen Zeppelin… a true tragedy. With Jason Bonham all ready to stand in I would be ready to drop some ridiculous coin on it but NOOOOOOOOO… Robert Plant just will not let it go. DAMN!
@ruouttaurmind So true on the Boss… was at the Coliseum in Oakland and right around two hours in he says… “We are going to take a break but don’t go anywhere because we are coming back”…
We were practically delirious looking at one another like… is he serious? as this has already been one of the most intense concerts EVER up to this point. They came back and played for another two and a half hours. The delirium was very real at that point… and was not caused by any products brought to the stadium by us.
There are a lot of bands I like better but NOBODY gives you a better concert experience than the Boss.
@Veloslave Zeppelin was on my list of ones I missed, although I DID get to see Robert Plant last fall when he was on tour. Worth it, even though his register has dropped a bit with age, and I’d go again.
@spectra242 I saw Soundgarden in 1996. Lollapalooza tour. Also saw Screaming Trees, Metallica, and Devo.
@vanslaterco, The Ramones were there, but my buddy dragged me over to the Indie stage to watch some crappy Scottish act, so I missed them. Got back to the main stage in time to see the last half of Devo, then settled in for Soundgarden and Metallica.
@vanslaterco Ok, now you’re just pulling my leg. LOL!
Although Devo wasn’t what I would call a pinnacle of musical excellence, Mothersbaugh went on to find his niche scoring countless animated tv features.
@spectra242 I was in the front row at one of Soundgarden’s last shows before their breakup. It was one of the most uninspired boring-ass shows I’ve ever been to. They all just sort of stood there and gave the crowd the death stare. They were good. The music didn’t suck, but man… was their stage presence BOOOOORING.
I want to see Moby live sometime. I’ve also read that Chuck Berry still does a show every month at St. Louis’s Blueberry Hill. I’d like to see that. The best concert experience I’ve ever had was Roger Waters performing The Wall in its entirety a few years back. Amazing show!
@jqubed Second favorite show of all time right there. I saw him do The Wall first inside at Wells Fargo Center, than the following summer at Citizens Bank Park. I preferred the inside show as the acoustics are much better but the extra large wall outside was pretty spectacular.
@jqubed I saw Chuck Berry in Seattle almost 30 years ago. Sadly, he appeared to be drunk, mumbled a lot, and stopped in the middle of a song to drunkenly yell at someone in the front row.
I’ve been lucky enough to see a bunch of bands and artists that I never imagined I’d get to see in the last few years:
King Missile
Pere Ubu
Rocket from the Tombs
Stan Ridgway
Sparks
The Residents
Laurie Anderson
The Long Winters
Cibo Matto
Negativland
Suicide
The bands and artists I want to see live and never will are ones that’ll never tour again because of too much bad blood (Talking Heads, Oingo Boingo), or because they’re dead (Bowie, Ramones)
@sanspoint The Ramones played at my college. They had the B-52s scheduled but they backed out. It was amazing. My little geek school was full of punk rockers.
@sammydog01 The Ramones and The B-52’s on the same bill kinda hurts my brain. They’re on such opposite sides of the spectrum to me. (I love both, though.)
First concert: Barry Manilow, Copacabana tour in the late 70s. Hey, I was 14, deal.
Since then: Eagles, Styx, Kansas, Little River Band, America, The Zombies(2 years ago at Bumbershoot, and they were great!), 3 Dog Night, Journey, Sammy Hagar (pre Van Halen), Joe Satriani, Concrete Blonde, and others I can’t remember.
Pink Floyd was such an amazing concert. I’ve been to dozens of concerts, but they were all between 1970-1980.
I really wish I could really remember them all… lol…
The California Jam was the largest outdoor concert I’ve seen. That was 1974, I guess. Deep Purple, ELP & the Eagles were my favorites.
@denboy I was at the Dark side of the moon concert, '72. San Diego. I think that was the one we each brought a bota-bag filled with Southern Comfort. I still can’t stand the smell of that crap.
@daveinwarsh So you’re saying that show had an effect on the rest of your life. Sick tour to have seen. Dark Side certainly their most commercially accepted offering and a great collaboration with Alan Parsons.
@denboy If he makes his way back to buffalo I’ll be sure to check him out. It was fun to see the Foo Fighters dvd where Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones joins them for “Rock ‘n’ Roll” and “Ramble on”
Funny how this became a mix of ‘bands you want to see’ and ‘best bands you’ve seen.’
I’m glad I finally got to see Paul. His voice isn’t what it used to be, but hell, he’s 74 freaking years old. I got to see a living legend! He’s incredibly personable and comes across as a guy you’d really like to sit down and have a pint with. Could’ve played more well known songs but he’s earned the right to play what pleases him. Here’s the Philly set list: http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/paul-mccartney/2016/citizens-bank-park-philadelphia-pa-bffcd56.html
Of all the concerts I’ve ever seen I’d put him up there just for the sake of status but as an overall show I wouldn’t quite put him in the top 5. As a ridiculously big fan of Rush, having seen them 20+ times, I won’t include them as they’re my obvious favorite. Top concerts include (mentioned above), Roger Waters - The Wall (saw it inside and outside), David Bowie - got to see him 3 times but my favorite was the Glass Spider tour. You can laugh at this one, but Cher was absolutely incredible. So much better than I could have ever expected. Didn’t hurt that Cyndi Lauper opened for her and she was also amazing. Billy Joel and Elton John (separately and together) are great shows, though neither really does anything very different from show to show. As a teenager I got to see the Beastie Boys, Run DMC, and Public Enemy together in one night. I think that speaks for itself. The Who were spectacular as were Pink Floyd (twice). The only band that I haven’t gotten around to seeing in person but really want to is Foo Fighters.
@hems79 Yeah, but you have to remember that a lot of his songs (particularly the Beatles songs) are pretty short. Last Rush show, they played 27 songs and were on stage a similar 3 hours.
I wish I could’ve attended a Pink Floyd show when they were in their prime! You know, when tix were like $8. Nowadays, I’d like to see John Mayer or maybe Clapton @ $200 per seat.
@cinoclav I think they added it to give Gronk something to dance too. Birthday while energetic is a bit less dynamic for dancing to I’d think. It was cool to see Paul and Bob Weir performing together too!
@cinoclav Thanks a bunch, I’ll keep that in mind for next time. I tried Ticket Master’s website 15 seconds after they went live, and they were all sold out…
@boinks I knew regular tix were going on sale that Friday and remembered pre-sales should be available Thursday morning. I happened to find it about 25 minutes before they went on sale. A little luck never hurts. Hope it helps you in the future!
@SUP3RMAN13 Well, it won’t be with Alice Glass, but Crystal Castles is touring this fall. And LCD Soundsystem reunited, and they’ll be touring after their new album drops.
I grew up in Houston. Back in the 60’s and 70’s; tickets were $ 3.50, $4.50 or $ 5.50 depending on where you sat. Scalping was rare, you might be able to get a ticket outside the venue, but it was just someone with an extra or two. The Stones tix were around $ 20, and they had a lottery system.
Now, I’m not bragging or one-upping, but this is my list of who I saw back then; at those prices:
Allman Bros w/Duane twice
ZZ Top (w/Allmans & Duane,) and at little clubs in town
Jethro Tull
Yes
Mountain
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Jefferson Airplane
Byrds
Grateful Dead
Poco
Ten Years After
Cream
James Gang
Santana
BB King
Dan Fogelberg
Dickey Betts
Little Feat
Led Zeppelin
Steve Miller Band
Mahavishnu Orchestra
Traffic
and some more I can’t remember…
These shows I know were at the prices stated above, or at least under $10.
Starting in the early 70’s, prices started rising, but still affordable, top price was maybe $25.
I’m not dissing the Eagles, I liked them and still do. But the first time they played, the tix were like $40 and up. After that, all the arena bands started raising their prices; almost like a bidding war. Then, the scalpers started buying big block of tix and that’s when I stopped going. I’m not against anyone making money, but it was going to lavish lifestyles and coke. “Life’s Been Good”
I live in Nashville now, and you can go out any night and see world class musicians and bands. Cover charge is usually $20 or so.
When Steely Dan came to town last year, tickets were outrageous, and you had to buy thru a scalper. Coincidentally, we saw an excellent Steely Dan cover band the same night. It wasn’t Walter and Donald, but worth the $20 cover.
@FranKeepy I’m younger than you, but yeah, ticket prices are insane these days. And then you get the fucking fees on top of it. Even for small shows, I’ll pay $10 to see a local band through something like Ticketfly, and get $3.75 in fees on top of it. That’s absurd!
Most I ever paid for a single show was $150, but that was a VIP ticket for DEVO’s last tour which was a fundraiser for the family of a member of the band who died earlier that year. I figured the VIP ticket meant more money for the guy’s family.
The last show I saw at a big venue was Jimmy Buffett, and the tix were gratis. A bit before that was Paul Simon’s tour for the album after Graceland. We took my mom & dad to their first and only rock concert that time. I can remember mom saying “that drummer is GOOD.” Steve Gadd…90’s
There’s degrees of separation between myself and Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo. My old friend Ken’s wife’s sister was married to Mark. She’s not anymore, and that’s all I know ;o) @sanspoint
@sanspoint I’ve never met the sister, and Ken’s wife Ellen only 2 or 3 times. Don’t know what Ellen’s maiden name is, but I can ask Ken. He’s in our group of College and HS buddies that get together every other year since the mid 90’s. He lives in LA, I’m a Texan transplanted to TN for 30 years now. I’ll get back to you, watch this space.
@FranKeepy Ok, I didn’t have it exactly right, here’s Ken’s reply:
" Ellen’s sister is Maria, mother of Bob (1) Mothersbaugh’s two oldest daughters and divorced from him about 15 years. Nancy is Mark Mothersbaugh’s ex-wife."
Right family, wrong sib. It’s on Wiki:
Devo The Wipeouters The Bob I Band Visiting Kids The Jitters Jihad Jerry & the Evildoers
Sorry for hijacking the thread. The only shows I’ll buy tickets for at today’s prices would be The Beatles and the original Allman Bros lineup; and maybe Stevie Ray and Albert Collins if they were on the same bill.
@pitamuffin The Who were playing literally a 30 minute walk from me recently. I considered going, but paying $50 for nosebleed seats to see half of the band didn’t appeal.
I went to see Joe Walsh last night. Amazing guitar playing. He did “Take It to the Limit” as a tribute to Glenn Frey. Wish you were there @lisaviolet. And the geezer crowd is much more polite than those youngsters.
@lisaviolet I think he did- I’m not sure. I was able to mouth the words for about half the songs he played. I have been studying the lyrics for the country music concerts ahead of time but didn’t need to with this one. The guitar playing just stunned me- he is a true artist.
Whoa nice! I saw him three years ago and I’m gonna be seeing him again this Sunday at Fenway! It’s a great show (well it was last time and I trust he won’t disappoint this tour), he’s unlike any other artist I’ve ever seen, you’re gonna have a great time!
@jbartus I did have a great time! Didn’t hurt that the girl in front of me looked like a slightly younger Olivia Munn with long tan legs, wearing tight white shorts. She spent the evening dancing non-stop. I believe there was also a concert.
@cinoclav LOL
In all seriousness, how great was he?
He’s a special artist, I will be crushed when we lose him.
@jbartus As an overall performer and person, totally great. I’m truly happy that I finally got to see him. But to be completely honest, concert-wise, I wouldn’t pay that much to see him again and again like so many there have done. There’s a fine line between appreciating the show because he’s a legend and doing so because it was musically entertaining. I enjoyed it way more simply because it was him.
I always wanted to see Van Morrison.
Finally, he came to town on September 13th, 2006 (wow, has it REALLY been ten years??). My girlfriend got me tickets for the show! I was SO excited!
I’m pretty sure he was smacked out of his head. He mumbled most of the lyrics, and at least a half dozen times he sort of trailed off in the middle of the song… like he FORGOT the words! It was the most uninspired concert I’ve ever attended. Huge disappointment to realize I sing Morrison better than Morrison sings Morrison!
TL;DR - he sucked.
Now I guess I’m looking forward to catching Neil Diamond some day.
@ruouttaurmind
I saw Van the man at the Berkeley Auditorium… he decided to start almost an hour early… the users were freaking out trying to seat people while explaining it. He played an hour and 20 minutes, walked off stage and that was that. One of my fav artists… and the least fav to see. Found out later that he is a bit of a hermit and hates appearing.
Now Neil Diamond… what a concert! Saw him at the Cow Palace in 85 or 86… drives all the women crazy and belts it out. Nice long concert but… no Porcupine Pie… just saying.
Seen Boston (x3) the Who, the Boss (4.5 hours!) James Taylor, Supertramp and LOTS of others but I haven’t seen Zeppelin… a true tragedy. With Jason Bonham all ready to stand in I would be ready to drop some ridiculous coin on it but NOOOOOOOOO… Robert Plant just will not let it go. DAMN!
Next in line… if possible? Bob Marley
@Veloslave Porcupine Pie! Don’t get it on your jeans! LOL! Two full minutes of glorious silliness.
Zeppelin… now there’s the one I wish I could add to my “seen it” list. Saw the Boss in the late 80’s. 3 1/2 hours of pure energy.
@ruouttaurmind So true on the Boss… was at the Coliseum in Oakland and right around two hours in he says… “We are going to take a break but don’t go anywhere because we are coming back”…
We were practically delirious looking at one another like… is he serious? as this has already been one of the most intense concerts EVER up to this point. They came back and played for another two and a half hours. The delirium was very real at that point… and was not caused by any products brought to the stadium by us.
There are a lot of bands I like better but NOBODY gives you a better concert experience than the Boss.
@Veloslave Ziggy Marley was here. Does that count? Not that I went.
@Veloslave Zeppelin was on my list of ones I missed, although I DID get to see Robert Plant last fall when he was on tour. Worth it, even though his register has dropped a bit with age, and I’d go again.
The Ramones
Soundgarden. Like 1993 Soundgarden though.
@spectra242 I saw Soundgarden in 1996. Lollapalooza tour. Also saw Screaming Trees, Metallica, and Devo.
@vanslaterco, The Ramones were there, but my buddy dragged me over to the Indie stage to watch some crappy Scottish act, so I missed them. Got back to the main stage in time to see the last half of Devo, then settled in for Soundgarden and Metallica.
@ruouttaurmind Devo is high up on my list, too.
@vanslaterco Ok, now you’re just pulling my leg. LOL!
Although Devo wasn’t what I would call a pinnacle of musical excellence, Mothersbaugh went on to find his niche scoring countless animated tv features.
@ruouttaurmind Definitely not kidding. DEVO changed the game. Early proto-punk pop band that got traction, and were able to write real music.
@vanslaterco Recognize! Despite the Whip It electronica, there was a band of true musicians.
@ruouttaurmind
@spectra242 I was in the front row at one of Soundgarden’s last shows before their breakup. It was one of the most uninspired boring-ass shows I’ve ever been to. They all just sort of stood there and gave the crowd the death stare. They were good. The music didn’t suck, but man… was their stage presence BOOOOORING.
@vanslaterco I’ve seen DEVO eight times. They put on a better show, even as old men, than most young bands I’ve seen.
I never get to go anywhere.
@lisaviolet If you lived here I would take you to a concert.
@sammydog01 Aw, thank you. My husband is not a concert kind of guy and I don’t have very many friends because introvert.
@lisaviolet I am probably going to see Joe Walsh by myself. I could use the company. Because, wait for it, introvert and almost no friends.
@sammydog01 Cool, I wish I had the nerve. I have gone to movies alone. I like Joe Walsh.
Desmond Dekker. Ska / Reggae legend. He died in 2006, and I had plans on seeing him in concert that year.
Got to see Paul last October. Most expensive concert I’ve ever seen, but still well worth it.
Someone I’ve never seen but would like to?
Jimmy Buffett, especially if they have the tailgating.
/image Jimmy Buffett tailgating
@2many2no I went to see Buffett. Definitely worth it if only to see the audience dressed up.
Operation Ivy - Ska / Punk band from late 80’s, early 90’s. Tim Armstrong from Rancid was in that band.
I want to see Moby live sometime. I’ve also read that Chuck Berry still does a show every month at St. Louis’s Blueberry Hill. I’d like to see that. The best concert experience I’ve ever had was Roger Waters performing The Wall in its entirety a few years back. Amazing show!
@jqubed Second favorite show of all time right there. I saw him do The Wall first inside at Wells Fargo Center, than the following summer at Citizens Bank Park. I preferred the inside show as the acoustics are much better but the extra large wall outside was pretty spectacular.
@jqubed I saw Chuck Berry in Seattle almost 30 years ago. Sadly, he appeared to be drunk, mumbled a lot, and stopped in the middle of a song to drunkenly yell at someone in the front row.
The Archies
Get it? THEY’RE A CARTOON.
I’ve been lucky enough to see a bunch of bands and artists that I never imagined I’d get to see in the last few years:
The bands and artists I want to see live and never will are ones that’ll never tour again because of too much bad blood (Talking Heads, Oingo Boingo), or because they’re dead (Bowie, Ramones)
@sanspoint The Ramones played at my college. They had the B-52s scheduled but they backed out. It was amazing. My little geek school was full of punk rockers.
@sammydog01 The Ramones and The B-52’s on the same bill kinda hurts my brain. They’re on such opposite sides of the spectrum to me. (I love both, though.)
First concert: Barry Manilow, Copacabana tour in the late 70s. Hey, I was 14, deal.
Since then: Eagles, Styx, Kansas, Little River Band, America, The Zombies(2 years ago at Bumbershoot, and they were great!), 3 Dog Night, Journey, Sammy Hagar (pre Van Halen), Joe Satriani, Concrete Blonde, and others I can’t remember.
I saw Pearl Jam a few years ago and Billy Joel in May, so I think I’m good (for bands that are still alive).
Oh, I wish I could have seen Blind Melon.
Pink Floyd was such an amazing concert. I’ve been to dozens of concerts, but they were all between 1970-1980.
I really wish I could really remember them all… lol…
The California Jam was the largest outdoor concert I’ve seen. That was 1974, I guess. Deep Purple, ELP & the Eagles were my favorites.
@daveinwarsh Did you see the '77 Animals tour and was it everything I imagine it would’ve been?
@denboy I was at the Dark side of the moon concert, '72. San Diego. I think that was the one we each brought a bota-bag filled with Southern Comfort. I still can’t stand the smell of that crap.
@daveinwarsh So you’re saying that show had an effect on the rest of your life. Sick tour to have seen. Dark Side certainly their most commercially accepted offering and a great collaboration with Alan Parsons.
Led Zepplin but doubt I ever will.
@StrangerDanger Could still see Plant at least, he performs lots of Zep tunes at his shows and gets great musicians to support him
@denboy If he makes his way back to buffalo I’ll be sure to check him out. It was fun to see the Foo Fighters dvd where Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones joins them for “Rock ‘n’ Roll” and “Ramble on”
@StrangerDanger I must check that out, thanks
I hear ZZTop puts on a great show.
@PocketBrain I’ve heard that too. Not sure I’d know more than 3 or 4 songs but it would be fun.
Funny how this became a mix of ‘bands you want to see’ and ‘best bands you’ve seen.’
I’m glad I finally got to see Paul. His voice isn’t what it used to be, but hell, he’s 74 freaking years old. I got to see a living legend! He’s incredibly personable and comes across as a guy you’d really like to sit down and have a pint with. Could’ve played more well known songs but he’s earned the right to play what pleases him. Here’s the Philly set list: http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/paul-mccartney/2016/citizens-bank-park-philadelphia-pa-bffcd56.html
Of all the concerts I’ve ever seen I’d put him up there just for the sake of status but as an overall show I wouldn’t quite put him in the top 5. As a ridiculously big fan of Rush, having seen them 20+ times, I won’t include them as they’re my obvious favorite. Top concerts include (mentioned above), Roger Waters - The Wall (saw it inside and outside), David Bowie - got to see him 3 times but my favorite was the Glass Spider tour. You can laugh at this one, but Cher was absolutely incredible. So much better than I could have ever expected. Didn’t hurt that Cyndi Lauper opened for her and she was also amazing. Billy Joel and Elton John (separately and together) are great shows, though neither really does anything very different from show to show. As a teenager I got to see the Beastie Boys, Run DMC, and Public Enemy together in one night. I think that speaks for itself. The Who were spectacular as were Pink Floyd (twice). The only band that I haven’t gotten around to seeing in person but really want to is Foo Fighters.
@cinoclav 38 songs? Holy shit.
@hems79 Yeah, but you have to remember that a lot of his songs (particularly the Beatles songs) are pretty short. Last Rush show, they played 27 songs and were on stage a similar 3 hours.
The heavenly choir, but I’ll see it one day.
I got to see the Beastie Boys Hello Nasty tour. That’s the only time I got to see them live.
I always try to check out Di Shadow when he is on tour.
I wish I could’ve attended a Pink Floyd show when they were in their prime! You know, when tix were like $8. Nowadays, I’d like to see John Mayer or maybe Clapton @ $200 per seat.
@koike I could see Clapton, he’s a legend. But Mayer?
/image bleh
@cinoclav starred for Clapton. Starred again for hedgehog.
I’m hoping to see Leonard Cohen
Tower of Song
Three more days… Paul just needs to last three more days so I can see him.
Sunday I am at Fenway watching him… woooo can’t wait!
@jbartus Looks to be great weather. Have fun!
@jbartus You should currently be home or on your way home from the show as I write this. How was it?
@cinoclav really great. @mfladd you should have gone, Gronk was up with Paul during the encore and danced to Helter Skelter.
@jbartus Just checked the playlists. Helter Skelter is the only thing he did differently between the two shows. I would’ve liked to hear that one.
@cinoclav I think they added it to give Gronk something to dance too. Birthday while energetic is a bit less dynamic for dancing to I’d think. It was cool to see Paul and Bob Weir performing together too!
Lillie Langtry
@cranky1950 She’s got the best gams West of the Pecos
Paul McCartney, but I couldn’t get tickets
Anyone living or dead? Frank Zappa, no contest.
@boinks I bought mine through the pre-sale link on his website. Keep it in mind for the future for what might be an easier way to get tix.
@cinoclav Thanks a bunch, I’ll keep that in mind for next time. I tried Ticket Master’s website 15 seconds after they went live, and they were all sold out…
@boinks I knew regular tix were going on sale that Friday and remembered pre-sales should be available Thursday morning. I happened to find it about 25 minutes before they went on sale. A little luck never hurts. Hope it helps you in the future!
System Of A Down, Rage Against The Machine, LCD Soundsystem, Crystal Castles, The Postal Service, Scott Weiland to name a few
@SUP3RMAN13 Well, it won’t be with Alice Glass, but Crystal Castles is touring this fall. And LCD Soundsystem reunited, and they’ll be touring after their new album drops.
I grew up in Houston. Back in the 60’s and 70’s; tickets were $ 3.50, $4.50 or $ 5.50 depending on where you sat. Scalping was rare, you might be able to get a ticket outside the venue, but it was just someone with an extra or two. The Stones tix were around $ 20, and they had a lottery system.
Now, I’m not bragging or one-upping, but this is my list of who I saw back then; at those prices:
Allman Bros w/Duane twice
ZZ Top (w/Allmans & Duane,) and at little clubs in town
Jethro Tull
Yes
Mountain
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Jefferson Airplane
Byrds
Grateful Dead
Poco
Ten Years After
Cream
James Gang
Santana
BB King
Dan Fogelberg
Dickey Betts
Little Feat
Led Zeppelin
Steve Miller Band
Mahavishnu Orchestra
Traffic
and some more I can’t remember…
These shows I know were at the prices stated above, or at least under $10.
Starting in the early 70’s, prices started rising, but still affordable, top price was maybe $25.
I’m not dissing the Eagles, I liked them and still do. But the first time they played, the tix were like $40 and up. After that, all the arena bands started raising their prices; almost like a bidding war. Then, the scalpers started buying big block of tix and that’s when I stopped going. I’m not against anyone making money, but it was going to lavish lifestyles and coke. “Life’s Been Good”
I live in Nashville now, and you can go out any night and see world class musicians and bands. Cover charge is usually $20 or so.
When Steely Dan came to town last year, tickets were outrageous, and you had to buy thru a scalper. Coincidentally, we saw an excellent Steely Dan cover band the same night. It wasn’t Walter and Donald, but worth the $20 cover.
Blame it on the “Rock On Tour” raconteurs.
@FranKeepy I’m younger than you, but yeah, ticket prices are insane these days. And then you get the fucking fees on top of it. Even for small shows, I’ll pay $10 to see a local band through something like Ticketfly, and get $3.75 in fees on top of it. That’s absurd!
Most I ever paid for a single show was $150, but that was a VIP ticket for DEVO’s last tour which was a fundraiser for the family of a member of the band who died earlier that year. I figured the VIP ticket meant more money for the guy’s family.
The last show I saw at a big venue was Jimmy Buffett, and the tix were gratis. A bit before that was Paul Simon’s tour for the album after Graceland. We took my mom & dad to their first and only rock concert that time. I can remember mom saying “that drummer is GOOD.” Steve Gadd…90’s
There’s degrees of separation between myself and Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo. My old friend Ken’s wife’s sister was married to Mark. She’s not anymore, and that’s all I know ;o) @sanspoint
@FranKeepy Her name wouldn’t happen to be Nancye Ferguson, would it?
(Why do I know this shit?)
@sanspoint I’ve never met the sister, and Ken’s wife Ellen only 2 or 3 times. Don’t know what Ellen’s maiden name is, but I can ask Ken. He’s in our group of College and HS buddies that get together every other year since the mid 90’s. He lives in LA, I’m a Texan transplanted to TN for 30 years now. I’ll get back to you, watch this space.
@FranKeepy Ok, I didn’t have it exactly right, here’s Ken’s reply:
" Ellen’s sister is Maria, mother of Bob (1) Mothersbaugh’s two oldest daughters and divorced from him about 15 years. Nancy is Mark Mothersbaugh’s ex-wife."
Right family, wrong sib. It’s on Wiki:
Sorry for hijacking the thread. The only shows I’ll buy tickets for at today’s prices would be The Beatles and the original Allman Bros lineup; and maybe Stevie Ray and Albert Collins if they were on the same bill.
I’ve been to plenty of great concerts, but my one regret is never seeing The Who, back in the day when they were awesome.
@pitamuffin The Who were playing literally a 30 minute walk from me recently. I considered going, but paying $50 for nosebleed seats to see half of the band didn’t appeal.
Console yourself, put on LIVE AT LEEDS. That will help. I missed seeing them too.
I just got back from a Jake Owen concert. That dude is hot. Check it out @oldcatlady.
His hair is short now which is even hotter.
I went to see Joe Walsh last night. Amazing guitar playing. He did “Take It to the Limit” as a tribute to Glenn Frey. Wish you were there @lisaviolet. And the geezer crowd is much more polite than those youngsters.
@sammydog01 Thank you for keeping me in your thoughts.
Joe Walsh. Did he play “Rocky Mountain Way”?
@lisaviolet I think he did- I’m not sure. I was able to mouth the words for about half the songs he played. I have been studying the lyrics for the country music concerts ahead of time but didn’t need to with this one. The guitar playing just stunned me- he is a true artist.