Favorite Concert?

[tchudson]

I've been to a lot of good ones.

John Hiatt solo in Tucson about 5 years back - just him and his guitar. banjo and keyboard.
Nanci Griffith - Ryman Auditorium, twice - once with The Crickets.
Rush - all three shows
Robin Trower - he opened for Foreigner. I had bought a Foreigner t-shirt before the show started. Went back after seeing Trower and swapped shirts.
Gin Blossoms and Dead Hot Workshop - used to go see them all the time at the Sun Club and Long Wongs in Tempe before the Blossoms got famous.

 

[WesternModern]

Sam Phillips, 2008, Old Town School, Chicago. My favorite singer, in a great little concert hall.
Brian Wilson, 2004, Auditorium theater, Chicago. The SMiLE tour!
Midnight Oil, 1988, Metro, Chicago. Just for "Dreamworld " alone!
Smithereens, 1987, Metro, Chicago. Still my all-time favorite show. The perfect power-pop/garage band, on tour for their first album. They did so many encores they ran out of songs! I so want a bootleg of this!

 

[tchudson]

Sam Phillips, 2008, Old Town School, Chicago. My favorite singer, in a great little concert hall.

Sam Phillips is incredible! Very underrated!

 

[lakechuck]

Jimi Hendrix with Band of Gypsys, Fillmore East, New Years Eve 1969, Second Show.

Really?! I bet that was amazing.

Mine would probably be Dylan at the Saltair outside Salt Lake City a few years ago. I'm too young.

 

[Rhon]

Buddy Miles Express at Lake Hills Roller rink '69

 

[CyberJCM]

My most memorable concert was one that never happened.

I was 17 I think, circa 1996. I had moved down to Southern Ca but still had friends and family up north in Fresno. On a few occasions I'd ride the train all day to stay up there and attend a concert with my best friend.

This time we had went through alot of trouble to get Ozzy Osbourne tickets for the Ozzmosis tour I think which he'd play at Fresno's Selland Arena. Made the trip, we got all stoked and started driving down to the concert... news on the local rock station says Ozzy has cancelled the show. Dammit! Drove down anyway to confirm and sure enough, cancelled. However, it would be rescheduled so the tickets would be good at a later date.

Fast forward several months, concerts back on and I made the trip again. This time the concert was sure to be on, because Ozzy talked with the radio station earlier in the day from his hotel room and was fired up for the show. Pre show standing in line, police gently close in around the area, the chopper overhead, as a guy on a bull horn announces the concert is cancelled, again! Crowd rushes forward, minor riot ensues, we get out before anything bad happens. Turns out it's cancelled for good this time, refunds available at Ticketmaster. Went immediately over and cashed that useless ticket in.

My friends and I, as well as pretty much every rock fan in Fresno lost serious respect for Ozzy that night. He's still never gained it back from me. They even did a radio parody of "Mama I'm Coming Home" changed to "Fresno Keeps Getting Boned".

So that's my most memorable concert, one that never happened!

 

[ouch]

The Who and Led Zep were pretty good when their drummers were alive.

 

[breadstick]

The biggest and most extravagant show I've seen is Rob Zombie. There was fire, explosions, giant monitors, dancing girls, a giant robot, everything I would want to see. It was amazing.

One of the most fun shows I've seen was probably Pennywise. They genuinely seemed to appreciate their fans. I like that in a band.

As far as favorite, I would have to say the Warped Tour a few years ago. I got to FINALLY see Bad Religion, The Vandals, and a lot of my other favorite bands.

 

[YetiDave]

Evergrey at Bloodstock festival, Derby Assembly Rooms in 2004. Out of the hundreds of live sets I've seen that still holds the crown. Unbelievable.

 

[Hair apparent]

Hmmm, maybe my first concert, Frank Zappa with Tom Waits as opening act? Seeing SRV in bar for $2.98 cover charge? Mink Deville and Rockpile opening for Elvis Costello? The Boomtown Rats? Genesis with Peter Gabriel for the Lamb lies Down on Broadway? Grateful Dead in Montego bay?Little Feat at Monteux jazz festival? Neville Brothers at private party in New Orleans? Then there's the jazz and blues shows. This could take a while.

 

[The Knize]

In order:

The Who--Capital Center, Washington,DC, 1976

Springsteen--Cap Center, 1981, The River Tour

Led Zepplin--Cap Center, 1977 (my ears rang for over a week! that part is not a good thing at all!)

Gillian Welch (and David Rawlings)--Strathmore, Bethesda, Maryland, 2011

 

[yung puck]

SADE,2011 Oakland Arena
Just to see her fine self move was awesome she still got it what a beautiful women

 

[Amzimbo]

Tie: Springsteen at the Stone Pony, Asbury Park, on the 4th of July, 1976 (the Bicentennial) or The Boss again, Capitol Theater, Passaic, NJ, September 1978, legendary shows.

 

[Arcadies]

Difficult choice, I guess I'd have to say Lollapallooza '96 with Metallica, Soundgarden, The Ramones (final tour), Rage Against the Machine, Psychotica, Violent Femmes, Cheap Trick and about 20 other various bands. It was 12 hours long (we were actually there for about 15 hours total) and most of the day was 98 degrees, it rained like hell the night before and it was near a river so the humidity was 100% and there was ankle deep mud and millions of mosquitoes everywhere. It was pure hell but the performances were out of this world and I had a blast despite the hellish conditions...I'd never do it again though.

 

[Vickers]

REM, Camper Van Beethoven opened, October 1986, Boulder, CO.

Two encores. Great crowd, phenomenal sound, two bands at their peak.

LOTS OF GIRLS!!!

 

[nickn]

Simple Minds - Croke park Dublin 86'
REM - Wembley Arena -89'
David Bowie - Dublin - Aug'90
Neil Young - Slane Castle 93'
U2 Croke Park Dublin 2005
David Bowie - Dublin 2003 (This concert was filmed live.)

 

[T-Dog]

James Taylor and Carole King at the Hollywood Bowl with my mother and sister (it was a Mother's Day present).

 

[ChiefWahoo]

I can't choose, but it's generally the first time I see an artist.
Peter Gabriel - 1993 Richfield (Cleveland) Coloseum
Genesis - 1992 - Ohio Stadium
Bruce Hornsby - 1999? - Lakewood (Cleveland suburb) auditorium

As a bonus, tonight I just saw the Blind Boys of Alabama, and they still got it for a few guys in their 70s and 80s! Damn near brought the house down. Literally. I thought the old place was going to crumble when the college kids started dancing!

 

[scottish steve]

....Robin Trower....

I had a couple of jams with Jack Casey, who was Robin's drummer for 8 years. He was scarily good.
I've been to a few good ones. I saw Paul McCartney just after he split with Wings, Rush a couple of times, Motorhead, who are a phenomenon, I saw Orbital play from a campervan in a ditch in the late '80s, Hawkwind, even Nazareth once, Bill Frisell with Paul Motian, Pat Metheny, Jo, Michael Brooks, Horse, Robert Fripp with David Sylian, Jeff Beck, Kiss, Dio, Meatloaf, Iron Maiden and a host of others. But the most wonderful gig I ever went to was the second time I saw Trilok Gurtu. That man is bordering on holy.

 

[TheVez2]

2 Very memorable concerts for me. The first was 1994, Phoenix, AZ. Headliner: Nine Inch Nails. Opening: Marilyn Manson and Jim Rose Circus. This was when MM's first album came out and he was relatively unknown. He rocked and the whole show was good.

Second was 1999, Santa Barabara, CA. Insane Clown Posse and Twiztid. It was my second time seeing them, but this time I got up on stage with them at the end. What a rush.