Extra Bonus “DoperHipnessPoints” if it was a lonnng time ago, reallyreally fun, an unknown-at-the-time artist, or someone you really didn’t like but you were blown away by their performance.
Seeing Hendrix open for the Monkees would recieve MaxDoperHipness.
Mine’s pretty tame. Milwaukee’s Summerfest is still full of music at multiple stages, but when it first started, it was just an uncovered stage at the edge of a field. They just ran bands back-to-back from morning to… well, the next morning. Camping out in a muddy field every day for a week was an experience, even braving downpours on the Poco(/Richie Furay)/ Mountain(/Leslie West)/ Melanie/ SomebodyElse/ John Sebastian* day. The cool part was that seeing Quicksilver/ George Carlin/ The Doors/ Edgar Winter/ Steve Miller/ WhoeverItsAllKindaRunningTogether was a whole $2.75.
But surely most of you can beat that.
*John Sebastian: “What a day for a (pause to towel off guitar) daydream…
YOU PEOPLE ARE NUTS!.. What a day for a (pause to towel off guitar) … daydreamin’ boy… I THOUGHT ONLY IN ENGLAND THEY STOOD OUT IN THE RAIN FOR ROCK N ROLL!”
Well, it’s got to be one of my many Allman Brothers experiences. I’d guess either August 5, 2001 (great show, Phil Lesh and Friends co-headlined), or March 21, 2003.
I’ve seen Aerosmith four times, No Doubt, Phil Collins, and Weird Al once.
Best experience was No Doubt, easily. They put on an energetic, clean performance, and they play good music live. It was also great because I got there about five minutes before ND started, missing the two openers, and as you can see, I managed to get pretty close, despite the lateness.
I have a feeling that if I were able to get up-front seats for Aerosmith, they’d give ND a run for their money, however.
I’d love to hear stories of people/bands that really worked. Stills playing for 3 hours (and inviting some guy Neil onstage)*, Springsteen trying to “prove it all night”**, etc.
*'71 **'77 - I’d never heard the guy (a friend dragged me across Florida to hear him), but he did break a sweat…
Last year’s Elvis Costello and the Imposters concerts 12 and 13 July were great. The first concert I can recall that was so I good I thought “Well, now I can die happy!” was Led Zeppelin 27 th February 1972
Every year there is a free outdoor concert in Times Square called “Broadway on Broadway.” Performers do one song from each musical. When it’s bad it’s good and when it’s good it’s great. The best one was 9/9/2001, when I went backstage and got to talk with Louise Pitre who was opening in Mamma Mia! and got a Mamma Mia! beach ball. And had a long conversation with Lawrence Street of Urinetown, who is hilarious (so you take this job in this little off-Broadway show that has a horrible name and is opening with no publicity and will probably go nowhere, but it pays and the next thing you know, you’re opening on Broadway).
Pink Floyd, Boston, Fall 1972. An amazing 2 1/2 hours of music, where they played nine songs (including encore). At one point, they left the stage for five minutes in the middle of a song and left a tape of everyday sounds – footsteps, etc. – running and it was fascinating. I told my roommate that they probably wouldn’t be playing “One of These Days” (because of the technical issues). They did. He told me they wouldn’t play “Atom Heart Mother” (again, because of the technical issues). They did. Their encore was a terrific blues jam, chosen because, though it was great music, it wasn’t Floyd. Otherwise, the audience wouldn’t have let them leave for days.
J. Geils Band, Union College, Schenectady, 1971.
Rock and Roll 9, some car racing track near Miami, December 1973(?). Acts included Allman Brothers, Edgar Winter (with an appearance by Johnny), Jo Jo Gunne, and Elvin Bishop.
Loudon Wainwright III, Union College Chapel, 1972(?). Best one-man show ever. I saw him thirty years later in the same venue and he was as great as ever.
Yes, during their “Masterworks” tour, June 2000. They played some of their longest, most complex compositions, including “The Gates of Delirium” and two songs from Tales from Topographic Oceans, which they hadn’t performed live in over 25 years. During “Ritual”, each member pulled out an individual drum kit, and it got LOUD. When I left the show I felt like when I’d gotten laid for the first time.
I, too, saw Roger Waters in 2000. I had seen Floyd during the Division Bell tour, and they had the pyrotechnics and the inflatable pigs and whatnot, but when I saw Roger I knew where all the talent of Pink Floyd really lay! Finally, the answer to the question, “which one’s Pink?”
The first time I saw Parliment Funkadelic I was completly blown away. Stone cold sober, I danced for about three hours.
Of course, the second time I saw them…was alot like the first…and the third time I saw them…so on and so forth. Still a great show, but not much differences between them.
First concert: Elvis Presley. I was like 11 and HATED it; went with my mom.
lifetime concert highlights:
[ul][li]The Police, Flock of Haircuts, Joan Jett, The Fixx, Ministry, maybe a couple more . . . daylong concert at Chicago’s Comiskey Park, c. 1983. There were over 50,000 people there. I was FIRST in line (camped out for three days).[/li][li]Lene Lovich at Cabaret Metro[/li][li]Diamanda Galas all four times I’ve seen her; especially the Sporting Life tour[/li][li]Peter Gabriel in London (Hammersmith Odeon!)[/li][li]Jane Siberry at the Bottom Line, NYC[/li][li]Victoria Williams at a small club in NYC; forget which one; Lou Reed came up out of the audience; so did Evan Dando. Cocktailing with Evan D at the afterparty; he liked my hat.[/li][li]Mary Margaret O’Hara at Fez, NYC; Victoria came up on stage.[/li][li]Being an invited member of the studio audience for a Christmas concert by Jane Siberry, Mary Margaret O’Hara, Holly Cole, Victoria Williams, and Rebecca Jenkins (portions of the show were later released as “Count Your Blessings”). Hanging out backstage during rehearsals. Having dinner with Victoria before the show (I locked my keys in the car; it was really embarrassing).[/li][li]Tricky opening for PJHarvey[/li][li]Laika opening for Trickey[/li][li]Backstage passes at the first WOMAD tour[/li][li]Nine Inch Nails and Bowie[/li][li]The Geraldine Fibbers at Lounge Axe[/li][li]All six times I saw Jeff Buckley[/li][/ul]
I just saw Nickel Creek last Thursday at House of Blues, Orlando. Great show! How many band do YOU know that have a standup bass player who can also stepdance?
