Best Live Shows

[pedaling squares]

Hmmm, hard to beat that last post.

I've seen a few British old men bands that were still good (Stones, Pink Floyd) and one that was still great - The Who post Keith Moon. After the Super Bowl I'm no longer sure about The Who. Whoever mentioned Entwhistle, he was one player who really stood out as a musician. I've seen a few crappy shows (ACDC stands out) but Metallica has always been good live. Aerosmith circa 1990 were still fit and their sobriety helped them put on a good show. One band that surprised me was Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. You could tell they'd played about 1000 shows together - very tight. Oh, and BB King - very good. I'm a little jealous of Oldman.

 

[Anonymous]

The best one that I didn't see, but wish I had was the show a friend of mine caught in New Orleans LA, Stevie Ray Vaughn in bar. He said that it was beyond words.

It was like the guitar was a physical part of his body: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsr7R09vbJc

 

[pedaling squares]

... and I still have to see The Tragically Hip before the gov't revokes my citizenship.

 

[buckwheat]

Oh, live music........why was I thinking along the lines of the donkey show in Tijuana.

Fonda Peters in Times Square.

Steve Winwood at Sunfest, followed by Bob Dylan.

 

[Fourier]

The Misfits (with Marky Ramone, in Costa Rica of all places!)
Green Day several times
Eric Clapton

 

[Susan Westemeyer]

I saw LInda Ronstadt at the Cellar Door in Georgetown (Washington,DC), a very small club, just before she hit the big time. Did "Desperado" pretty much unplugged and without the orchestral accompaniment. Still the best version of that song I have ever heard.

Also saw Emmylou Harris at another club in DC. Fantastic.

Both of those must be roughly mid-1970s.

Susan

 

[nvpacchi]

Yonder Mountain String Band is easily the best live show I've seen. For three good hours they are non-stop, full of energy. Even if you don't like bluegrass seeing YMSB live is a real treat.

Their noted for beginning a song, stopping halfway through, then starting and finishing a few different songs, than 30 minutes later finishing the song they started with. Absolutely epic!

 

[Hugh Januss]

Best live show I didn't see was Woodstock. I was gonna go until my ride fell through, and then the parents found out, since I was 15 at the time that effectively put an end to that.
Maybe it was a blessing in disguise, what with the weather and bad drugs.

 

[benpounder]

I was reading the What are you listening to now thread and it got me thinking about some of the great concerts I've been lucky enough to see.

Carlos Santana, hands down, puts on the cleanest show. I've seen him in crappy venues, mediocre venues, and great venues, even an outdoor stadium in Sweden with howling winds headlining the bill with Bob Dylan (???). The sound has always been impeccable, the show always flawless (even when he broke a string halfway through his smokin' solo in Europa - band picked up, Carlos changed the string, then continued. I was close enough to watch - and was blown away).

Bar band back in the late 70's, Washington/Baltimore area called Skip Castro. They did all original stuff.

Original US festival - venue akin to Woodstock, but Jobs tried some cutting edge stuff that worked well as long as you were not focusing on the DiamondVision. Hell of a lineup - U2, the Clash, and Van Halen to name a few.

Bad Company in Portland Coliseum - perhaps it was the acid.

Stevie Ray Vaugh.

Emerson Lake and Palmer in Frankfurt am. First concert I attended.

Social D/Offspring at Red Rocks; Collective Soul in Vail.

In retrospect, all were good, for a myriad of reasons, and many not relating to the music. Obviously, live shows are more than just the music.

 

[marinoni]

... and I still have to see The Tragically Hip before the gov't revokes my citizenship.

Jeez, you gotta get on that. If the govt finds out you get a fine and are forced to attend an Avril Levigne concert.

 

[Not Riding Enough]

Best ever would have to have been Nirvana at the Australian National Universtity bar just before Smells Like Teen Spirit made it big. Didn't matter that the windows all got smashed in and I thought I was going to be crushed in the mosh.

Queens of the Stoneage and The Eagles of Death Metal concert in Berlin was notable, along with Muse in Dubai.

The Cure at a big stadium gig was rubbish until we moved to near the mixing desk.

I don't like the massive shows and mostly localish bands in smaller venues are the best in general.

 

[L'arriviste]

Some years ago, I went to see Cake play a tiny former brickworks in Roubaix (yes, "Roubaix" as in that dark, post-industrial town with a velodrome ).

The band wasn't exactly on fire, but I was amazed to discover that all these geeky French kids - who'd filled a desolate factory street with a long snaking queue - they all knew every ruddy word.

I suddenly understood that globalisation was real.

 

[pedaling squares]

Jeez, you gotta get on that. If the govt finds out you get a fine and are forced to attend an Avril Levigne concert.

I know! Unless I'm in Quebec, then it's Celine. Yikes! Had a chance to see the Hip at Western Speedway in '93 but couldn't get it done. Still p1ssed about that.

 

[marinoni]

I Hate You

Best ever would have to have been Nirvana at the Australian National Universtity bar just before Smells Like Teen Spirit made it big. Didn't matter that the windows all got smashed in and I thought I was going to be crushed in the mosh.

Around the same pre-explosion era a friend called me up one evening and asked if I wanted to go with him and a couple other buddies to a club to see " some band from Seattle". And I said " Nah, I'm kind of tired I'm going to go to bed early." Well, Nirvana played for around 4hrs, Cobain put his mike stand through the bass drum and my friend still says it was the greatest musical event of his life. This was in a club that fit less than 500 people and six months later they were the biggest band in the world.

 

[Not Riding Enough]

Best ever would have to have been Nirvana at the Australian National Universtity bar just before Smells Like Teen Spirit made it big. Didn't matter that the windows all got smashed in and I thought I was going to be crushed in the mosh.

Around the same pre-explosion era a friend called me up one evening and asked if I wanted to go with him and a couple other buddies to a club to see " some band from Seattle". And I said " Nah, I'm kind of tired I'm going to go to bed early." Well, Nirvana played for around 4hrs, Cobain put his mike stand through the bass drum and my friend still says it was the greatest musical event of his life. This was in a club that fit less than 500 people and six months later they were the biggest band in the world.

Bummer. I can't feel too sorry for you though given you live in BC with all the great riding and snow opportunities. I think I hate thought for food though given his first post in this thread.

 

[Not Riding Enough]

Jesus Lizard/Jon Spencer Blues Explosion- 40 Watt, Athens GA (by far the best show I ever saw.)
Parliament Funkadellic- Atlanta GA (cant remember the club)
Mudhoney- 40 Watt, Athens GA
Fugazi- 40 Watt, Athens GA
fIREHOSE- 40 Watt, Athens GA
Mule- 40 Watt, Athens GA
REM- 40 Watt, Athens GA
Sugar's first show- 40 watt
Foo Fighters- 4th or 5th show- 40 watt, Athens GA
The Replacements- Raleigh NC
Paul Westerberg- Atlanta GA
The Feelies- Boone NC
Steve Earle- Visulite Theater Charlotte NC
Lebrea Stompers- Claremont Longue (the nastiest strip club in Atlanta) The lead singer singing singing Hunk a Burnin' Love in a jacket that had Christmas lights that faded from blue to red while Blondie (an African American stripper with blond hair...all of it) danced next to him wearing an enormous VooDoo mask.
First Dead Show- Greensboro Colosseum 1989.

and of course, Nickelback....

Oh to be in Athens GA then. Only heard of the place when an ex US echange student friend sent a tape of Life's Rich Pageant and was blown away on first listening.

First ever show of Sugar? No Husker Du on your list though even you had both Replacements and Paul W.

What size is 40 watt?

 

[D Avoid]

Ry Cooder in Zurich in the 80's . He blew the roof off. Tightest rock and roll band I ever saw.

In the 70's , Van Morrison at the Rainbow and the Hammersmith Odeon in London, Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert ( you could get the best seats in the house for under 10 bucks ! ) , Freddy King and Leon Russel at the O'Keefe centre Toronto, Keith Jarrett in Place des Arts Montreal .

I had tickets for Martha Argerich with the MSO at Place des Arts
but she never made it ...

Man the Van
Get the engine goin'
If you can

He takes me places I've never been
When I get there, it's reality's dream

 

[Anonymous]

Best ever would have to have been Nirvana at the Australian National Universtity bar just before Smells Like Teen Spirit made it big. Didn't matter that the windows all got smashed in and I thought I was going to be crushed in the mosh.

Around the same pre-explosion era a friend called me up one evening and asked if I wanted to go with him and a couple other buddies to a club to see " some band from Seattle". And I said " Nah, I'm kind of tired I'm going to go to bed early." Well, Nirvana played for around 4hrs, Cobain put his mike stand through the bass drum and my friend still says it was the greatest musical event of his life. This was in a club that fit less than 500 people and six months later they were the biggest band in the world.

I have the exact same story. They played the 40 Watt in Athens GA 2 weeks before Teen Spirit hit MTV. A friend asked me to go, and I declined as I hadn't heard them and I was tired. Oh well.

 

[Anonymous]

Oh to be in Athens GA then. Only heard of the place when an ex US echange student friend sent a tape of Life's Rich Pageant and was blown away on first listening.

First ever show of Sugar? No Husker Du on your list though even you had both Replacements and Paul W.

What size is 40 watt?

It could hold maybe 400, but was packed to the rafters if that full. That was part of what made the Jesus Lizard shows so great. It was probably the biggest show of the year every year in the early to mid 90's and was packed. It was always a pretty dangerous show, and I remember seeing Michael Stipe stage dive at one of the shows. Just a great hole in the wall.

No Husker because I was a Replacements fan. I shied away from them until later, and they never played in Athens when I was in GA. I loved Sugar, but one thing about a Bob Mould show is that after awhile, your ears are so over taxed from the enormous amount of sonic assault that you can get kind of tired of it. The first show was so loud that I couldn't discern lyrics or anything else but his Les Paul after about 40 minutes.

 

[mr. tibbs]

The Goxxip. Beth Ditto, ftw.

 

[Christian]

Mostly German stuff:

Die Ärzte

Farin Urlaub Racing Team

Sportfreunde Stiller

American bands:

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes

Bloodhound Gang


Best live band would have to be Die Ärzte though. Check out their "sitting-laola" at Rock am Ring 2007 (biggest festival in Europe):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5HCGvq0sbk (starting at around 2:45)

 

[Avoriaz]

Mostly German stuff:


Best live band would have to be Die Ärzte though. Check out their "sitting-laola" at Rock am Ring 2007 (biggest festival in Europe):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5HCGvq0sbk (starting at around 2:45)

Loved die Ärzte when I was at Uni there.

Best shows have been:

Roger Waters performing Dark Side of the Moon on a beautiful day in Hyde Park

Muse (supported by Coldplay and Cooper Temple Clause) at the Astoria before any of them were famous and before Chris Martin vanished up Bono's backside. Miss the Astoria - demolished to build a rail line that will never be built

Depeche Mode at Wembley, showing younger bands how to do it

The Parlotones in a pub

St Etienne at Summer Sundae last year. Sarah Cracknell had been a real crush during my youth, and still is now.....

 

[Sydney Sider]

I seen The Who a few years ago at the Sydney Entertainment Centre and they were supported by Aussie band YOU AM I and both bands went off , Roger and Pete sure look and perform sensational for their age and Zac Starky puts his dad to shame on the drum kit

 

[Pookie]

I saw George Thorogood open up for the Allmans the day after Stevie Ray Vaughn died. He played a vicious blues set and was probably the only opening act to come back out for encores. Fantastic show! The Allmans were rather boring. I saw Blues Traveler in a college social hall and they were very good. I saw The Who at Veteran's Stadium back in 1989(?) and was in about the 20th row. It was amazing to turn around and see all those people behind me shouting out every single word.

 

[Black-Balled]

...No Husker because I was a Replacements fan. I shied away from them until later, and they never played in Athens when I was in GA. I loved Sugar, but one thing about a Bob Mould show is that after awhile, your ears are so over taxed from the enormous amount of sonic assault that you can get kind of tired of it. The first show was so loud that I couldn't discern lyrics or anything else but his Les Paul after about 40 minutes.

Big Mould fan, though I have never seen him live...borders on interesting, your take.