“Hi, you’ve reached Tom Waits. I’m not in my greedy fortess of fuckitude right now, but if you leave a message…”
hijack
Thank you for your post! I just pulled out my Empire* CD the other day, because sometimes life is shit and you need to listen to some Queensryche. And it made me wonder if they were still touring. And you say they are so I check the web and discover that they will be playing one date in Washington–on the day after my birthday. I could find the $20 (plus fees). I wonder if I can convince someone to go with me? Not mr.stretch–he’s not a fan. Maybe my aunt**, who has already been forced to attend a Def Leppard concert with me…
/hijack
*I couldn’t find Operation Mindcrime; the grandson mixed my CDs all up. I was lucky I found anything!
**she’s only two years older than me…we’re like sisters, except she was raised by semi-normal people and I was raised by wolves.
I saw U2 with the Pretenders and the BoDeans in '87 for, if I’m reading my worn old ticket correctly, $18.50. The price of a U2 ticket on their last tour (wouldn’t have wanted to see them nowadays anyway) was like a 1,000% increase. Looked at the prices for the recent Police/Elvis Costello concert, and it was $250. I’m with those upthread who say they’d never pay that kind of money for a concert. I’m not 18 anymore, so I rarely feel like I have to see a band live these days. Plus, there are tons of great indie bands whose concerts cost $15, so who needs to be in an arena with shitty sound surrounded by tens of thousands of drunken retards?
It’s been a long time since I paid more than $30 to see a concert, but then I like to go see obscure metal acts in tiny, dirty clubs that hold no more than 300 people (not like that’s ever stopped them from selling 350 tickets).
I paid $81 apiece for 2 tickets to see Waits in Birmingham, AL. It was almost enough to make me sty home. I hate hate HATE modern ticket prices, and have often said in the past that I will never, ever pay more than $35 for a concert ticket, no matter who it is.
Apparently, I’m a liar. I mean, it IS Tom Waits, who is my favorite artist in the world, and has been since I first heard him, 20 years ago. And I’ve never seen him.
But still. $81. Aaaaaaaaaalmost enough to make me say “Fuck off.”
Back in 1967/68 (don’t recall which) I saw Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, and Big Brother and the Holding Company at a love in in So Cal Tickets were IIRC $2.00 for the entire day.
Anyway, I sat against the fence maybe 10 feet from the stage to watch these groups play.
Last night I was looking for Jimmy Buffett tickets on line. Front row center tickets are over $1000 each. Fucking scalpers.
[refrains from saying what she spent for Def Leppard tickets recently]
And most fanclub presales, for the most part, SUCK MAJOR DONKEY BALLS. Except for Metallica and Nine Inch Nails. Everyone should treat their fan club members that way.
Stretch, you can hang with me any day of the week—you like Q-ryche and Lepp.
Oh, you’ll catch no disagreement from me there. I picked that number because these days it seems to be about the minimum that anyone’s willing to charge. Personally, I blame TicketBastard…but then, I blame them for AIDS, poverty and global warming, too, so take it for what you will.
Oh, shit. I may be the guy who sold you the brown acid. Sorry!
Heh. All of the talk about ticket prices from the 70s non-withstanding, it seems that even in the last 15 years prices have gotten astronomical. When I was in high school (mid-late 90s), $100 a ticket seemed an extreme amount (I paid $75 to see Springsteen in Hartford CT in 2000). Lately I’ve seen shows where the cheap tickets are $180.
However, I do admit to being interested in seeing bands who have a large fan base of boomers, and I’m sure that part of the excessive ticket price is that the organizations know that the average audience member is not some young 20-something or teen, but a financially stable 50 year old, and price accordingly.
Buddy, the day the Who stops being relevant is the day there is no more rock & roll.
I guess there’s no more rock & roll, then. And hasn’t been for 30 years, by your criteria.
Actually that was a bad example. I make no great claims for what you’d see if you went to see what’s left of the Who now. What I meant was those 30+ years ago shows we geezers are maundering on about are still as relevant now as they were at the time. Never mind. I would have edited that post out of existence if you hadn’t quoted it first.
It doesn’t apply at all to Waits. He hasn’t rested on his laurels for one minute. His music continues to develop, change, and move in new directions. If anything, he’s even more creative and relevant than he was 30 years ago.
http://www.coasttocoasttickets.com/buy/boston_ma.htm?pid=802457
Hmm, are seats on the floor in B4 worth $500? I’ve never seen him and he’s my all-time favorite…
Section B5 row 17 $494
Section B5 row 12 $226
What am I missing?
I like Tom pretty good, kinda on a similar level with Randy Newman. But rock and roll? Well, I guess, if you stretch the point a bit…
Sings like a horned toad that gargles with Drano. The piano gives me the note that he might have hit if he knew how, but thats about the only clue your gonna get.
My mother’s comment about Tom Waits:
“Man, I listen to him and I think: I want to lie drunk in a gutter screaming at people with that guy.”
Tom Waits makes me happy.
When an album like Quadrophenia speaks to YOU, at a certain time of your life…it’s pretty powerful stuff. People say it saved their lives, and I believe them.
Nowadays, Roger’s voice is pretty iffy, but Pete still kicks ass. Ringo’s son is a damn good drummer. People go to hear the CSI Theme and Teenage Wasteland.
I’m happy just to be there. It’s a religious experience. The closer the better, of course!
I hope you have a group that touches you the same way. You already know: it just feels good to spend a couple of hours with them.