Bob Dylan and Ani Difranco, Wolftrap VA Summer '98
Dylan/Phil Lesh last November at Barton Hall, Ithaca NY (the best of the shows I got to from last fall’s tour)
BB King, also in Ithaca
Fugazi (any one of them)
David Byrne, GW University, Summer '95
They change constantly, but these are five that really stick out.
John - You saw Rush live at Merriweather? I hate you now. grumble Like Coldy, I love them, but have never seen them live. The one chance I had, I was in college and decided not to make the drive. Biggest concert regret ever.
Anyway…my favorite concerts, in no particular order:
They Might Be Giants, Wolf Trap, summer 1994 - great show. Had just been introduced to the band by a friend, and went with her. Sang our LUNGS out, and had 7th row seats.
Mary Chapin Carpenter, Wolf Trap, May 1999 - Second time I went to see her. This concert was after her greatest hits CD was released. Seeing her in DC rocks…she grew up there, so it’s a homecoming for her. (Her first hit song was about a bar in Bethesda, Maryland.) Played EVERY ONE of my favorite songs…and it was a beautiful night on the lawn.
Indigo Girls, Wolf Trap, June 1997 - This one goes on the list for one reason alone. Standing with my two best friends from college on the lawn at Wolf Trap a month after graduation, SCREAMING along with the line “Spent 4 years prostrate to the higher mind, got my paper and I was FREE!”
Lilith Fair, Merriweather Post Pavilion, July? 1999 - got SOAKED at this one because I was sitting on the lawn, but the show made up for it. The Pretenders were AWESOME during their set, and so were Sheryl Crow and Sarah McLachlan. Got lucky that I liked all the bands on my stop. 
And as a final show…
Dave Matthews Band, somewhere in Roanoke, April 1998 - picking one show for DMB was hard, but I think this one was one of the better ones I’ve been to. Won tickets from a local radio station. It was the first show of the Before These Crowded Streets tour - it was before the album was even available. Once again, got soaked because it was general admission. Bruce Hornsby also performed, which was great…and then Dave put on a HELL of a show. Got to hear my two favorite live songs: “Halloween” and “All Along the Watchtower.”
Never seen a good outdoor stadium show.
Best arena show I ever saw was Neil Young on the Ragged Glory tour in '92, documented on Weld.
Best Summer pavillion show I ever saw was NIN and Bowie in '95, with the highlight being Bowie and Trent duetting on Scary Monsters and Hurt.
Best Package deal I ever saw was Horde '97. Neil Young, Beck, Primus, Toad The Wet Sprocked right before they imploded, and on the second stage, Morphine(RIP, Mark) and a little known band from North Carolina called Ben Folds Five who kicked the asses of all the pre-Toad main stage acts.
Best small club shows I’ve seen, all at a place called Toad’s Place: Warren Zevon, Banned from Utopia(A Zappa tribute featuring his band members), Bruce Cockburn, and as surprised as I am to say this, I also really enjoyed Weird Al.
Rush sucks live. If I want to see Rush live, I’ll just play my albums and have someone blow pot smoke in my face and spill beer on me while screaming “Play TOM SAWYER!”
My taste in music usually centers around bands like Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Nirvana, Blind Melon, Smashing Pumpkins, Zebra head, KMFDM, Rancid. I also love Pink Floyd, Billy Idol, and even Prince.
I have seen most in concert as well as all the old bands while growing up, Blue Oyster Cult, Uriah Heep, Nazareth, Ted Nuggent, Sammy Hagar, Foghat, Deep Purple, Bad Company, Rolling Stone (just saw them again in 1999).
I have even been so lucky to get backstage at a few (Bob Dylan (what a burnout), Van Halen (was forcibly kissed by a member of the band and got pissed), Sammy Hagar before VH, Cheap Trick, and UFO).
However, by far my all time favorites have been:
KISS 1976(?) - When Destroyer came out, back when they had the fire and blood and makeup. I think a lot of it had to do with me only being 13 or 14 years old. I was in awe.
Chet Atkins with the Utah Symphony 1997 (or was it 98?) This guy was totally amazing and his guitar skills would blow any rock and roller off the stage.
Moody Blues 1998 (or maybe 97, I loose track of time). I have to say that out of every rock concert I have been to, this one, by far put them all to shame, without exception.
I attended Chet Atkins and The Moody Blues with the same friend I mentioned in the Rolling Stones thread. He was my concert buddy, he died last March. 
post some more details about the Crowes show…
I don’t think I can add much to this since I’ve been to maybe 5 or 6 concerts in total. (all within the last 3 years btw) but the ones that I really liked were Matthew Good Band and Great Big Sea. (Two Canadian bands so if you haven’t heard of them thats okay with me. But find some MP3’s of MGB they are good)
So for me (going by all the concerts I’ve been to)
I know I’m a little late, but here goes.
Spoke! I can’t believe there’s another BR5-49 fan out there! Saw them when they opened for Brian Setzer last year at the Greek Theatre in L.A., and finally convinced my boyfriend that this was a great band.
Other fantastic shows I’ve seen, in no particular order:
Royal Crown Revue at The Derby. The Derby holds in its front room, maybe about 200-250 SRO. They put on a remarkable testosterone-driven swing show.
The Pogues, John Anson Ford Theatre, 1989. I was a 17 year old pup at this time, so I survived the pit. They were a perfect combination of punk and Irish drinking music–it was music for moving, and I swear, they were the only band that ever made the accordian COOL.
Charlotte Church, Hollywood Bowl, 1999. What can I say about her–she is an earth-bound angel, whose voice can make me a pile of jello every time I hear her sing.
Buddy Guy & John Lee Hooker, Long Beach Blues Festival, 1997. I volunteered to work this festival (it’s a yearly festival in which the profits go to run the L.B. University Jazz & Blues Radio station, to keep it commercial-free). Since I had the almighty all-access pass, I figured to get in to the Press Pit since it was the closest to the stage possible when Buddy Guy came on. I’m glad I did it–I was transcended to another plane of existence when I heard him. I don’t think I felt my body for the 40 minutes he was on. And–about John Lee Hooker-- He’s the man.
Queensryche, for sure! I saw them during the Hysteria tour, where they opened for Def Leppard. I had never heard anything by them before. By the time they got to I Don’t Believe In Love, I was sold.
And, the very best one was Barry Manilow, at Fiddler’s Green in Colorado. A wonderful show. It was a beautiful night, I had awesome seats, and the music was perfect. People around me were crying at some of his songs. Wonderful.
I’ve been to a ton of shows, as I used to work for a radio station. But the end-all of musical experiances was standing 50 feet from the mainstage at Woodstock '99, before it burned down, listening to Elvis Costello sing “What’s So Funny About Peace, Love, and Understanding?” Everyone started swaying and holding the peace sign, and for the first time in three days of dehydration, hunger, heat exhaustion, and pent up rage that exploded that night, I felt like I was at WOODSTOCK. It was pure beauty. Dave Matthew’s set the night before was pretty great, too. The stage area was packed, I’d say way over 100,000, and during “Ants are Marching” the entire audience screamed “PEOPLE IN EVERY DIRECTION,” and Dave giggled. While I will curse the promoters of Woodstock '99 until I die, the music I saw, the energy of the performers, and the synergy of audience members was nothing short of amazing.
As far as smaller shows go, I really liked the Barenaked Ladies. And while I’m not a huge fan of pop-rock, (give me a good quirky King Missle track any day,) The Barenaked Ladies were the kindest band I have ever seen. They kept coming back for encores, and Ed said “When you jump around, please make sure you’re doing it vertically. Watch out for each other out there, OK?” And they did a cover of “Memories” from CATS, which amused the shit out of me. Without being sugary, they apprechiated the audience, which is a band really should be doing.
Guster, a three man outfit from Boston, is lots of fun live, too.
JavaMaven1-
Hmm, let’s see…
You like BR5-49. You like The Pogues. You like Buddy Guy and John Lee Hooker.
If it weren’t for the fact that you live all the way out in California, I’d tell you to dump that loser boyfriend of yours (you had to convince him to like BR5-49???) and let’s go see a show!
If you also liked a little Opera & Symphony music now & again, I’d have to convince you to move to L.A. (sorry, not going to GA… that means I’d have to move away from the Hollywood Bowl, and summer is nothing to me without a few Saturday nights at the Bowl)
JavaMaven1-
Let me tell you 'bout a little something called Chastain Park… (We do believe in outdoor shows here as well, you know…)
Dunno about the opera, but I’m in on the symphonies!
Hmm. Five. You’d think this’d be easier since I haven’t been to a live music performance in at least five years. I haven’t tried to put these in any order.
[ul]
[li]They Might Be Giants, Cotton Club, Atlanta, summer 1988. Besides being a great show, previewing material that later turned up on both Lincoln and Flood, including “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)”, among the crew I went with I met a nice Jewish girl who later became my wife.[/li][li]Elvis Costello, Atlanta Civic Center, spring(?) 1988. Part of the solo acoustic tour he did with Nick Lowe opening (also doing a solo set). Sponsored by the Emory University social committee, tickets for Emory students were three dollars (they were only about $10, IIRC, for non-students). Really interesting, fun set. Open seating, and we ended up about four or five rows back on the right-hand side of the auditorium.[/li][li]Joe “King” Carrasco and Alex Chilton, The Dugout, Atlanta, 1987 or 1988. These actually were two different shows about a week apart, but in the interest of cramming more stuff into my quota of five shows, I’m combining them into one entry. Both were great, high-energy shows in a small storefront club directly across the street from Emory U. The stage, a platform raised about 18 inches above the floor level and maybe thirty feet wide by fifteen feet deep, was backed up against the windows at the front of the room, so that the performers had to walk through the crowd to get on or off the stage. Standing on the floor facing the stage, you could literally reach out and wrap your arms around the waist of the performers if you were inclined to do so. I spent all of both shows standing right there in front of the mike. Chilton actually did several Big Star numbers and, amazingly, “The Letter” as part of the encore.[/li][li]The Cramps with Flat Duo Jets opening, The Roxy, Atlanta, 19??. One of the last shows I went to, probably in 1992 or 1993. Dexter was having a bad night, so Flat Duo Jets weren’t up to their usual standard, but The Cramps were amazing. It was well worth the price of admission just to watch Nick Knox on drums. Lux climbing the stage gear was just gravy, and Poison Ivy of course was well worth watching. My watch stopped at the stroke of midnight – all three hands lined up on the twelve – and I always thought that should have been an omen but was never sure of what. Ended the evening (as usual) at the Majestic (an all-night diner on Ponce de Leon), where we were treated to the spectacle of Dexter slumped into a booth with the rest of the band.[/li][li]k.d. lang, Center Stage, Atlanta, September 1988. First “official date” with my wife. After meeting at the TMBG show in the summer mentioned above, she’d gone back to North Carolina, moved down to Atlanta in August, then gone out on the Friday before Labor Day with the same crew that had been at the TMBG show. She flirted and didn’t discourage my attention to her that night, then turned down every suggestion I made about getting together again for nearly a month. She finally agreed to go with me to this show, after which she informed me she was “sort of” engaged to a guy living in Charlotte. She continued to come up with reasons why we shouldn’t date each other until early November. We both came up with lots of reasons we shouldn’t get married, and continued to until 1995. Oh yeah, the k.d. lang show (just after Shadowland was released) was pretty good too.[/li][/ul]
That’s five; here’s the honorable mention list:
[ul]
[li]Flat Duo Jets, The Forty-Watt, Athens, GA, 1987-8. Drove over with some friends, the first time I’d been to Athens. Dexter was on that night. Boy was he on.[/li][li]Translator, SOB’s, Little Rock, AR, summer 1986. Probably stands out for me mostly because after being a fan for several years, I’d never expected to see them live in Arkansas. Unfortunately, it also turned out to be their farewell tour.[/li][li]Tav Falco and Panther Burns, Cotton Club, Atlanta, sometime around 1990-1991, possibly earlier.[/li][li]The Connells, SOB’s, Little Rock, AR, summer 1986. Very good show, with my ex-roommate’s band opening.[/li][li]The Connells, The Rollick (nee the 688, Atlanta, GA, early 1987. I’m pretty sure this one happened after the 688 shut down and was re-opened under new management as the Rollick a few months later, though it may have still been the 688 then. Anyway, the show was added at the last minute (about 10 days in advance) as a place to stop and make a few extra bucks as the band headed out west for a tour, and Creative Loafing (the local “what’s happening” weekly tabloid) screwed up the band name in the ad. I showed up on a hunch that it might be them, having really enjoyed myself at the Little Rock show mentioned above. At the posted start time, there were four people in the club besides the band. George Huntley wandered over to the bar where I was sitting and we had a very pleasant conversation for a about an hour, by which time another seven people had walked in, mostly friends or friends-of-friends of band memebers who they’d called after realizing no one else was going to show up. They went on stage and did a very respectable and professional set.[/li][li]The Meat Puppets, an abandoned commercial nursery warehouse, Little Rock, AR, 1987. While visiting during a break from graduate school, happened to catch this show, which apparently had to be relocated after the original venue fell through. Even the electrical service was temporary, provided by generators outside the metal shed. Good show though.[/li][li]Elvis Costello and the Attractions, with Aztec Camera opening, Mud Island Amphitheatre, Memphis, 1983 or 1984 (Punch the Clock! tour). Good show, highlighted by the cover of the OJays’ “Backstabbers”, and a really cool moment during “Shipbuilding” as a riverboat passed through the narrow channel between the island and downtown Memphis, behind the stage and thus in full view of the audience, as if on cue.[/li][/ul]
hey, are you going to see John Lee Hooker
or Buddy Guy with BB King this summer?
im going!! :))
spoke-
Yeah… well… has Chastain Park ever been featured in a Bugs Bunny Cartoon?
Unfortunately, no, I’m not able to go. Considering my status of “unemployed student” there’s no funds to do it. <sigh> Wish I could!!!
Well, OK, you got me there. Can you have a candlelight dinner during the show at the Hollywood Bowl?
Also, how do you feel about bluegrass? (‘Cause we get some kickin’ bluegrass shows at a couple of venues here.) (Hey, if I have to put up with opera…)
On another subject, I feel a new kinship with my buddy Rackensack after looking over his list. (I respect anybody who mentions the 40 Watt Club and 688 in one post.) I was right there with you for some of the same shows myself. Also saw a really good Connells performance at Center Stage once. Did you catch that one?
I didn’t see either of the two you mentioned, but I saw Timbuck3 at SOB.
Did you catch Jason D. in any of his endless number of appearences at Cajuns? He did 3 nights at Cajuns about a month ago.
Or how 'bout Joe Savage and his chain saw at the Wine Cellar?
God, now I’m starting to have flashbacks.
[QUOTE]
**
Didn’t seem them at Center Stage. In Atlanta, I saw them once at 688 Spring (whichever name it had at the time) and once at the Cotton Club a few years later. My wife hates bars, loud music, and smoke, so my attendance at live music performances has been dramatically curtailed in the last several years – plus I’ve turned into an old fart who can’t be bothered. In fact, I think that Connells show at the Cotton Club was the last time I managed to talk her into going with me; she had friends who had lived in the Research Triangle area who were fans and helped talk her into it. Makes it especially ironic that it was on an expedition with common acquaintances to see TMBG at the Cotton Club that we met.
I’m really glad that I moved to Atlanta in time to catch the last few months of the 688, and to have spent time in places like the Dugout, the White Dot, the Point, etc.