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Worst concert you ever saw

The worst concert I saw was Pantera (with Sepultura and Prong), it must have been 1994/1995. I didn't even really care for their music, but I went with my brother who wanted to see them. Aside from the not enjoying the music at all, there was this very intense negative energy in the crowd that made me extremely uncomfortable. I saw three fist fights break out right by me and I was convinced that a full-on riot was going to start. Fortunately, it didn't. At least I can say that I was able to see Diamond (Dimebag) Darrell live before he was killed onstage in 2004 http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1494653/20041209/damageplan.jhtml. He was one heck of a guitarist!
 
would loved to have seen The Cure in 1992!

Have to have some reason to have expectations, I suppose, before calling a concert bad.

I thought the Stones at RFK Stadium in 1972 with Stevie Wonder opening was pretty lame. Blink 182 about six years ago, not so great, except Travis. I think Green Day is pretty overrated.

Black Sabbath in 1972 or so was pretty rough. The Band and Little Feat in '73 or '74, separate shows, were hugely disappointing, and I was and remain a big Band and Feat fan.

Most disappointing ever? Perhaps the Simon and Garfunckle first reunion show in the mid 80s in Laurel or some place.
 
Lit in 2006 (Thanks to my university for spending money on THAT). There were about 25 people there. After they played that song that made them a one hit wonder, everyone left.

Or a band consisting of middle/high schoolers at a Sweet 16. *Shiver*
 
Got tickets to Nickelback for my (now ex) wife a few years back. They had decent stage presence, but listening to Nickelback for 2 hours pretty much killed any good time I might have had.
 
Van Halen in 83. Cacophony of noise - Roth was both out of tune and out of step with nearly every song and Eddie's guitaring wore thin after a while as it was mostly a-tonal nonsense. Roth didn't sound wasted when he spoke, so I can't say that was the reason - never the less I felt really jipped.

By far most shows I see have bad sound - way over amplified and poorly EQ'd. It's a rare treat to get good sound out of a live performance nowadays. A multi-act show I saw last year at Mechanics Hall (a small, acoustically lovely venue) in Worcester really comes to mind: one act (the one I never heard of) played two songs with no mikes - it was magic - a real contrast to the rest of the acts who played through the over sized array speakers and as a result were nearly unlistenable.
 
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Meatloaf, quite a few years ago, i just didnt enjoy it one bit, best for a very long time was Queens of the Stone Age at a small venue in Nottingham, it was a birthday present from my son. Absolutely brilliant gig i never rocked out so much in my life, i'm such a big fan, i still have bottled water i bought whilst i was recovering outside afterwards :)

ian
 
Tie between the Black Crowes (so drunk/high they couldn't stand up) and Blues Traveler (saw them twice and both times they were horrible).

Second place goes to John Mellencamp - poor guy was stooped over and shuffling around on stage like an 80 year old, would have to sit down to rest every few minutes. It was like watching Abe Vigoda try to do a concert.
 
The Dan Band (band from Old School and The Hangover). All they do is cover of mostly female-voiced pop songs. I knew that going in.

The problem was they just got up and pretty much did their set straight through with almost no audience interaction and none of their other covers came nearly as close to being as entertaining of their rendition of Total Eclipse of the Heart.
 
I saw Billy Joel & Elton John at the Meadowlands when they toured together in the '90's. It was at about the time that Billy was breaking up with Christy Brinkley. Billy was drunk, singing badly and about 1 drink away from falling down. Thank goodness that there was a segement where Elton would come on for a duet. If not for Sir Elton, Billy's part of the show would have, like the artist, bombed completely.
 
Tie between Dylan at Kingswood Music Theatre in August '87 and (I hate to say it) Jeff Healy at the Windsor Blues Festival in 2003 or 2004.

Dylan just was plain awful and didn't sing one song I recognized, and what he did sing turned me off from him.

Healy had just gone Jazz and was not what I was expecting. Someone who enjoys Jazz may have liked it, but I didn't.
 
Worst ever was Michael Jackson in Gothenburg in 85 or 86. And to make matters worse, Kim Wilde opened for him, and the sound was horrific.
 
I'm sorry to say that the worst concert I ever saw was by one of my favorite bands....U2.

It was the 360 tour 9/24/2009. Tickets were way overpriced, Bono forgot the lyrics to one of his own songs and mutilated the performance ,and even though his politics never bothered me before, at this particular show it was way over the top - almost spoon feeding his political views down your throat.

That was probably my 5th or 6th time seeing U2 live, and I doubt I'll go again. Maybe if I win the tickets or get them for free somehow.
 
Aerosmith on their Get a Grip tour in '94. Absolutely horrendous. I don't know if they were all wasted or what. But they couldn't sing, play, or keep a straight beat to save their lives.

Best concert? Def Leppard, both times I saw them.(on 2 separate tours) Sounded like the albums both times, and they worked the crowd really well.
 
Jethro Tull at the Mann Music Center in Philly in 1988. Ian Anderson could have used a walker to get around, but that would have gotten in the way of the flute playing....maybe not such a bad thing on that tour.
 
I was stationed in Germany and visiting friends in Stuttgart in early 2008 and we stumble upon a free Scorpions Concert. They were playing in the town square so we said what the heck. My friends were German so they were much more into the Scorpions that I was, I was just along for the ride.

It didn't take more than 5 minutes for me to hate that concert. The singing was horrible, the band was horrible and the crowd was horrible. I understand that Europeans have a much different definition of "personal space" than an average American but I have been stationed in Germany twice and traveled all over Europe and never was anywhere that bad. People were literally squished together (horrible BO typical of Europe) and made no effort in politeness or etiquette. After 20 minutes and almost getting into multiple fist fights I had to leave.

By far my worst concert. The best concert I ever went to was Counting Crows/Dishwalla in Los Angeles around 1999.....awesome concert.
 
Van halen supporting the stones with sammy hager on vocals at the arms park stadium in cardiff, what a noise, and jeff beck supporting sting at cardiff castle, 1 long guitar solo which lasted an hour:cursing:
 
Jethro Tull at the Mann Music Center in Philly in 1988. Ian Anderson could have used a walker to get around, but that would have gotten in the way of the flute playing....maybe not such a bad thing on that tour.

I was at that concert too !! I believe Procal Harem opened up for them.
 
Jethro Tull at the Mann Music Center in Philly in 1988. Ian Anderson could have used a walker to get around, but that would have gotten in the way of the flute playing....maybe not such a bad thing on that tour.

Ian Anderson is 63 today.

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