# The Arlo Guthrie concert was great until... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 20, 2011, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035 "2011-04-20T02:05:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/61 "2011-04-22T11:42:07Z")
> [@Schoaff](#): > > I saw Elvis Costello in concert back in the 80’s and he had a fun way of handling this. For his encore set he had a giant wheel on stage with the names of his hit songs written on it and had an audience member spin the wheel. Whatever song ended up on top they played. We got to hear 4 or 5 of his hit songs and he didn’t have to play the same ones night after night. He’s doing this again on his current tour. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/62 "2011-04-22T12:30:30Z")
About 10 years ago I saw a John Williams Conducts John Williams concert. 2 hours of John Williams music, not even 1 number from Star Wars. No Superman either. WTF. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/63 "2011-04-22T12:31:23Z")
He probably couldn’t remember the words. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/64 "2011-04-22T15:27:17Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > Arlo didn’t play “Alice’s Restaurant”? Friends, I think it’s a movement. > > 😃 The Anti-Alice’s Restaurant Anti-Massacre Movement? ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/65 "2011-04-22T15:35:58Z")
I saw him 30 years ago. The crowd was chanting “Alice! Alice!” Guthrie responded, “Do you want to hear Alice’s Restaurant?” The crowd went wild. Then he said, “Then buy the fucking album!” I was disappointed to say the least. ---
**Author:** ![stanger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@stanger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stanger)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/66 "2011-04-22T15:59:58Z")
I can undrestand why some artists are not fond of playing certain songs, even when the audience is expecting them. I went to an Eagles concert some years ago during their Hell Freezes Over Tour. They started with a rather rushed and pat version of Hotel California. At first I was disappointed in the formula performance, but I understaood why they started with their biggest hit - they simply wanted to get it out of the way. They knew that every break would be filled with shouts of “Hotel California!”, and that the crowd was expecting those famous chords to start up each time, so it made sense to start out hard with their most anticipated song, and then settle down to their planned performance. I went with friends, and am not a big Eagles fan, but it was a great concert. ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/67 "2011-04-22T16:39:46Z")
The Americana series I used to volunteer for had a rule that you couldn’t come in the main doors of the theater for the first three songs. The ushers had to stand outside and direct people to the side doors until the third song was over. Then we had Arlo, and he opened up with “Alice’s Restaurant”. From then on, the rule was “three songs or fifteen minutes”. This came to be known as the Alice Rule. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/68 "2011-04-22T17:53:18Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > I’m sure he has a love/hate relationship with that song. I can’t fault him for not playing it on tour these days. He played it when I saw him 20+ years ago, but you could tell his heart wasn’t in it even back then. The same thing happened with John Mayall being constantly hounded to play “Room To Move”. I saw him in ‘79 and he was trying to tune between songs and the request got loud, and he finally walked up to the mike: "Wha’? Whadja, come here t’hear an ol’ record?" And launched into a new record… ---
**Author:** ![Docta\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Docta\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Docta_G)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2011, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035/69 "2011-04-24T02:40:44Z")
Get over it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-arlo-guthrie-concert-was-great-until/579035.md?page=3)