Concerts thread: Best/Worst/Next/Last one you attended?

Van Halen, 2005 in Greensboro.

 

Busted my 9:30 Club cherry last night. Place was awesome. The bands were damn good. Very cool place. We got there right as the doors were opening and stood in a line about 150 deep, but we got in within 15 minutes. Still got pretty close to the stage, about 10 deep maybe. Wanted to go upstairs against the railing, but that was long gone by the time we got there.

Anyway, it's a lock I go back to that place.

 

Yeah, right? Bwaha. They're all letdowns from there. I don't long over "long lost" bands anymore except for a few, including Guns and Roses. Wasn't old enough to see the 92 tour (and yes GNR fans I do enjoy the Illusion years) and Faith No More-Metallica-GNR at the Silverdome would have been the show to end all shows. Except for a riot in Montreal or St. Louis.

 

The Montreal riot happened a couple of weeks after the Pontiac show.

http://metpage.org/index.php?option=com_concert&Itemid=65&act=concert&filter_search=&filter_type=0&filter_year=1992&limit=50&limitstart=100

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guns_N%27_Roses/Metallica_Stadium_Tour

And the tour was pretty good.

 

I was at the GNR-Metallica show at the Superdome. Axl got pissy and the GNR boys played barely an hour before walking off stage. They were booed. Metallica came out and apologized with a three hour show that culminated with James Hetfield taking requests from the crowd. They closed the show with "Hit the Lights."
Awesome.

Last show I went to was Ryan Bingham. Great stuff. Between him and Wilco, country music has a nice, new direction to proceed that doesn't sound overproduced or like redneck cock rock.

 

Wilco hasn't made a "country" album in 15 years. Although I hear there are some country tunes on the upcoming album.

 

Last concert: Iron Maiden a month ago for their second-to-last show of this leg of the tour. It was my first Maiden concert and it ROCKED!!! Ranks as my best as well because I got to hang backstage with drummer Nicko McBrain before the show. As the Maiden fan club president sitting next to me and my wife so aptly described it, this was rock theater at its best. For guys in their late 50s their energy level is incredible.

Next concert: U2 next month at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. Rescheduled from last year.

Worst: Hmmm. Van Halen three years ago at the BAC with David Lee Roth and Wolfgang on the bass. The sound was horrible and the blame for that was placed on the arena, but having seen other shows there before and after, I'm willing to let the arena off the hook.

One caveat. Every Rush concert I've been to could easily rank as the best as well, going all the way back to the first one I attended in 1984. And the greatest and most memorable (or forgettable if you factor in how wasted we were) road trip revolved around a Rush show in Pensacola back in '85. The city's proximity to New Orleans gave us an excuse to hit Bourbon Street for the first time.

 

Last one — Neil Young at the Fabulous Fox Theatre in Atlanta. Simply sublime.
Best — Rolling Stones with Living Colour at the Gator Bowl. Followed closely by The Allman Brothers, Johnny Mercer Theatre, Savannah and David Bowie in Jacksonville on Sound and Vision Tour and U2 in Charlotte.

 

First - Steve Miller Band at Oak Mt. Ampitheatre in Bham.

Best - JoDee Messina on the sidewalk outside Nashville Arena after a Preds game. It was a 5:30 game on Earth Hour day, and she performed for about an hour before the lights went out, which was cool for a freebie concert. I happened to be one of the first ones out and stood about 20 feet away.

Worst - Tom Petty at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa. Was on a double date for homecoming and the other girl had aj asthma attack and had to go to the ER. Missed the last 2/3 of the show.

Last: Cover band called Yacht Rock before July 4 fireworks at Turner Field last year.

Next: James Taylor at Chastain in Atlanta tomorrow night.

 

Mmmm. Jo Dee Messina. She put out an album in the last 5 years?

 

The Onion does concert reviews. Nice.

http://www.metallica.com/tour/aug-29-1992-new-orleans.asp

Metallica opened on just about every show on the tour.

They did, indeed, crush.

http://www.gnrontour.com/setlistalm92.htm

Maiden's the only show I've ever left disappointed.

Saw them (Motorhead and Dio opened) on the Brave New World Tour (Give Me Ed, 'Til I'm Dead, I think they called it). At Long Beach Arena, where their seminal live album Live After Death was recorded. As in, "Scream for me, LOOONNGGG BEEEAAACCCHHH!!!!!"

I guess I had high expectations, especially after a show at the same arena two years prior (Static X, Slayer, Pantera) featured all the bands driving "Scream for me, LOOONNGGG BEEEAAACCCHHH!!!!!" into the ground. That's because of Live After Death.

Nope. 13 songs, 75-80 minutes or so, then "Good night!"

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/iron-maiden/2003/long-beach-arena-long-beach-ca-4bd4affa.html

Contrast that with a Rush, who play 75-80 minutes, then say "We're taking a break!" then come back for 90 more minutes.

I guess that was standard for that tour, but I still haven't seen Maiden - probably my favorite NWOBHM band - since. Glad to know they're still touring; I should give them another shot.

 

Best: LedZep. Worst: Asia. Next: ? Last: McCartney.