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

St. Louis, actually, with friends who live down that way (St. Louis and Springfield).

 

Ah. Thought maybe we were at the same show.

My buddy is a huge fan. I had never seen them before, and had never really gotten into them. Very good. Would go again.

 

I'm a hard-core fanboi, so I'm biased, but truly one of the most underrated bands in American rock history. I think that they get lost in the shuffle a little bit because they came out right around the time the Seattle sound swept the country, and they ended up being kind of the last bastion of the gritty Stones/Faces/Traffic sound of the early '70s, and sometimes they get written off a little as being derivative hit makers. But Chris Robinson's voice is amazing, still. They put out outstanding albums, still. Their hits are pretty timeless, and "Southern Harmony and Musical Companion," their second album, is flat-out one of the most front-to-back, smoking straight-ahead rock 'n' roll albums ever made.

Other things that might not matter to others, but matter to me:

1) The Black Crowes have a million instantly recognizable songs. But you'll never hear one of them on a television commercial. Never. Never ever. I promise.
2) Chris Robinson, with that voice, could have easily sold out at some point in the Rod Stewart vein. He could easily be sitting in a chair on "The Voice" or "American idol," particularly because he achieved some fame by marrying a starlet for a while. But you'll never see him doing that. Never. Never ever. I promise.

My friends and I were talking the other night, and it's coming up on 25 years since "Shake Your Money Maker" dropped. They should get serious, serious Rock Hall of Fame consideration. I suspect that it'll take a movement of some sort, but I think eventually, there will be a re-evaluation of their legacy and they'll get in.

Not that they'd give a shit.

 

I'd probably like that. My buddy isn't a huge fan of their slower, more mellow stuff, but it was what I liked the best.

I also liked their set list. Hits. Couple of fun covers. Gave each of their musicians a chance to shine.

Maybe the best part was how small a venue they played. Most surprising aspect was that they hit the stage at exactly 8:00PM. We walked in at 8:02, and they were halfway through their first number.

 

P-Funk in Chicago this Sunday. I've never been to the venue -- The Shrine -- but hear good things.

 

3 Doors Down

 

I saw them almost 20 years ago at a music festival. They opened with a 30-minute version of "Flashlight," during which a different band member would strut on stage every five minutes or so.

I'm sure they were great in 1978, or if you're stoned out of your mind.

 

Shoot, they've been great every time I've seen them. I'm a huge fan of the music, of course, so it'd have to be an absolutely awful show for me to not enjoy it. Sunday will be my 13th show, all since 2001.

 

Saw Paul McCartney last night at FedEx Forum in Memphis. Three-hour set, 35 or so songs (about 3/4 Beatles stuff, the rest Wings/later solo catalog).

One of the best shows I've ever seen. He shifted back and forth between bass/guitar and piano several times (and remember, he's almost 71 years old), cracked jokes, told great stories, including one about Jimi Hendrix I'd never heard.

McCartney saw Hendrix play a club show in London in 1967, two days after the "Sgt. Pepper's" album came out. Hendrix started his show with "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."

So worth the money (roughly $200 for a pair of balcony seats) and the 6-hour drive.

 

Seeing Shania Twain on Saturday night at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. I'm pumped.

 

Had lawn seating at Saratoga Springs for Dave Matthews on Saturday night. Problem was it was 40-something degrees and windy with a steady rain falling. While freezing my ass off, I also had the epiphany that getting jostled, pushed and shoved by college kids trying work their way closer to stage is no way for a 54-year-old guy to watch a concert, anymore. It was my fourth or fifth DMB show and easily my least favorite. Wasn't thrilled with the setlist, either.

 

Cheap Trick tonight. Unbelievable. Waited 30 years to see them and it didn't disappoint.