Favorite concert

The thread about first concert had me thinking, what was the best concert experience you’ve had? Feel free to add a runner up.

Mine was Paramore, runner up would be a tie between P!nk and Kelly Clarkson.

 

Barenaked Ladies. They're not necessarily my favorite band music-wise (though I do love them), but I've never seen a band having as much fun on-stage. On the other end of the spectrum, I saw The Naked and Famous (which probably is my favorite band) in the crowded back room at Piano's on the Lower East Side, which was a friends-and-family show after they played at a much bigger venue. I got a high-five from Thom and a hug from Alisa.

 

Grateful Dead MSG 9-10-91 Branford Marsalis showed up and played every single song with them on the sax. Best show I ever saw.

 

Toss up , there have been so many excellent shows
Overall experience, Grateful Dead Autzen Stadium 1993 , fell in love with Oregon and a girl.
Best stage performance, Roger Waters ,The Wall live 2012 Portland
Hopefully this upcoming Halloween Phish run is right up there too

 

Murphy's Law opening for the Mighty Might Bosstones in Ithaca, NY in the mid 90's. Jimmy G from Murphy's Law jumped into the crowd to surf and I got his boot right to my head. Later on I was crowdsurfing up to the stage (wearing a whole lot of plaid) and Dicky Barrett reached out to pull me up on stage. Unfortunately, it was the same time that security reached out to put me on the ground, hard. My buddy I was with also ended up with a bloody lip from the mosh pit. But all of this just added to it being a GREAT show.

Other great shows: BB King in a small venue, Dr. John (a couple of times, both of them were great), and REM at Great Woods (or whatever it's called now).

Worst show is a tie: Lisa Loeb (hey, it was the 90's and I was trying to get... to know a young lady better ) and the Spin Doctors (the only reason that's not the absolute worst were the opening acts, the Screaming Trees and Soul Asylum, who I don't really like, but they put on a great show as well).

 

Springsteen 1984 - 4 1/2 hours, 'nough said

I was hooked

 

Best concert was the Eagles in San Bernardino for their Hell Freezes Over Tour in the 90s. I was so mad at my idiot boyfriend for making me leave early “to beat traffic.”

Runner up concert is Fleetwood Mac when they came to my town in 2015. It was pretty awesome because McVie was on tour with them and Mick did an amazing drum solo at the end.

 

My absolute fave of all times has to be the Scorps and Tesla in 2004 at what was the Aladdin.

I flew out solo and a couple from Arizona met me and we all did the show which was absolutely fantastic!

These are "hail mary" over-the-head slop shots (yeah yeah, I know you're not supposed to take them!) of the one I think I most enjoyed ever.

 

welp - #1 is easy, and also kind of unfair. Night 2 of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert at MSG. I'll let the setlist speak for itself.

• Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls Of Fire
• Aretha Franklin - Baby I Love You
• Aretha Franklin - Don't Play That Song
• Aretha Franklin - Make Them Hear You
• Aretha Franklin f/ Annie Lennox - Chain Of Fools
• Aretha Franklin - New York, New York
• Aretha Franklin f/ Lenny Kravitz - Think
• Aretha Franklin - Respect
• Jeff Beck - Drown In My Own Tears
• Jeff Beck f/ Sting - People Get Ready
• Jeff Beck - Freeway Jam
• Jeff Beck f/ Buddy Guy - Let Me Love You Baby
• Jeff Beck - Big Block
• Jeff Beck - Rice Pudding
• Jeff Beck f/ Billy Gibbons - Foxy Lady
• Jeff Beck f/ Billy Gibbons - Rough Boy
• Jeff Beck - A Day In The Life
• Metallica - For Whom The Bell Tolls
• Metallica - One
• Metallica - Turn The Page
• Metallica f/ Lou Reed - Sweet Jane
• Metallica f/ Lou Reed - White Light/White Heat
• Metallica f/ Ozzy Osbourne - Iron Man
• Metallica f/ Ozzy Osbourne - Paranoid
• Metallica f/ Ray Davies - You Really Got Me
• Metallica f/ Ray Davies - All Day and All of the Night
• Metallica - Stone Cold Crazy
• Metallica - Enter Sandman
• U2 - Verigo
• U2 - Magnificent
• U2 f/ Bruce Springsteen & Patti Smith - Because The Night
• U2 f/ Bruce Springsteen - I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking FOr
• U2 - Mysterious Ways
• U2 f/ Black Eyed Peas - Where Is The Love / One
• U2 f/ Mick Jagger, Fergie - Gimmie Shelter
• U2 f/ Mick Jagger - Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
• U2 - Beautiful Day

 

My favorite concert(s) were absolutely the Day On The Green concerts at Oakland Coliseum in the '75-'79 years. Partly, due to the acts/bands I saw, such as Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Peter Frampton, Eagles, Bob Seger, Boz Skaggs, Tower of Power, Sammy Hagar, Judas Priest, Steve Miller, Pat Travers, Outlaws, Ted Nugent, Foreigner, Aerosmith, Van Halen, AC/DC, Eddie Money, Boston and so many more (yes, I used Wikipedia to refresh my memory). But probably more so due to my age of 17-21 and the new friends I made when we moved from Akron, Ohio out to Pleasanton, CA (Bay Area).

Day on the Green concerts continued thru the 80's, but I was off to college and life by then. Those years and those concerts were just magical for me. That stage of my life seemed to last forever!

Most memorable concert for sure was Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow and Dickey Betts at the Winterland venue in San Francisco. This would've been in the 1977 neighborhood and I went with 3 other friends. The venue was so filled with marijuana smoke... in fact, I think of it when I hear many of you describe walking around in Vegas now! Ha! No seriously, it was one giant, thick cloud! I recall going to use the bathroom and there was like a stainless steel trough along the wall and a couple inches of sawdust all over the floor. I sidle-up and the guy next to me was old, like 40's (HA!), ponytail, old hippie type... he was weaving back n forth while urinating and fell straight over backwards still peeing... straight up in the air!!! Impressive pressure for an older dude, defying gravity! He was completely out. A couple other fellas rendered aid and I returned to the concert. Biggest mistake we made there was getting high again once we got back to our vehicle, before the 35/40 mile or so drive home. Thankfully, I wasn't behind the wheel, but we must've driven 300 miles around the City trying to find the right freeway to get back over to the East Bay. That was in the days when our age suppressed any stress... I don't think I ever laughed so hard!

 

I was lucky enough to catch BB King before he passed at the Stir Cove (outdoor concert venue) at our local Harrah's. They moved the Groupie Section to stage right and shoo-ed standees out of the High Roller seating area in front of the stage, so these shots are as close as I could get.

 

I've been to hundreds of concerts. That said the best for visual reasons would be either U2 Zoo TV Tour or Peter Gabriel Secret World Tour. Now the best for music is an easy one and you'll be stunned to know the lineup. It's Lollapalooza 2 back when they used to actual tour the lineup versus parking in Chicago for four days. Here's the lineup.

Main Stage: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ministry, Ice Cube, Soundgarden, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Pearl Jam, Lush.

Side Stage: Rage Against the Machine, Tool, Jim Rose Circus Sideshow, Sharkbait, Archie Bell dancers, Porno for Pyros, Basehead, Cypress Hill, House of Pain, Sweaty Nipples, Arson Garden, Seaweed, Seam, Green Magnet School, Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E., The Look People, Stone Temple Pilots, The Vulgar Boatmen, Skrew, Tribe, The Authority, Samba Hell, Café Tacuba, Groovement, Gary Heffern with Ivan Kral, Treponem Pal, Luscious Jackson, Shrunken Head, Sometime Sweet Susan, Temple of the Dog, Gun Cult Prophets, Doo Rag, Billyclub, Sweet Lizard Illtet and Orlando band Blackcats and Bottlerockets

The main stage was sick enough but look at that side stage: Rage, Tool, Porno for Pyros, Cypress Hill, House of Pain, Stone Temple Pilots, Lucious Jackson and Temple of the Dog all on a side stage. Just insane.

 

I'm going to say Paul McCartney at Bonnaroo in 2013..... Being in a field with 90,000 people singing along to Hey Jude was pretty fun.

Prince in 2011 was up there too.

 

wow.

 

Absolutely! I was there in 76 for Peter Frampton and Fleetwood Mac and in 77 for Frampton and Lynyrd Skynyrd. I also loved the Stones at the LA Coliseum in 81. However, my all time favorite show was Andrea Bocelli at the Hollywood Bowl in 2014—such a voice from heaven.

 

Pink Floyd twice, love the stadium tours

 

Alice Cooper Pearl Theater at the Palms I think is was 4 years ago.

 

In this very particular order:
1. Simple Minds, PDX 2018
2. I Muvrini, Santa Reparata di Balagne, Corsica, 1997
3. Ultravox, CGN, 1981
4. Johnny Clegg, YEG, 2011
5. Simple Minds, LAS, 2018
in close contention: BB King; Kraftwerk, Stones, Paulie Mac, Sir Reg

 

I wasn't a big concert goer, but I really liked an Elton John concert around the time Goodbye Yellow Brick Road came out. Also Billy Joel way back in the Piano Man days.

 

Rod Stewart at Caesar’s, September 2019. I had tickets as part of my CET offer. Hubby doesn’t go to concerts so I tipped the guy at the door $100 and he took me front row center! Best $100 I’ve ever spent in Vegas.