Your 5 Fav Rock Concerts


There are certainly more than a few geetar fanciers among us judging by all the threads on guitar bands and best guitarist. This thread is about the best rock shows you saw. Let's limit it to the rock shows. Not Blues or Jazz or solo performers. The concerts that raised the hairs on your neck or made you want to take up an instrument or raised your pulse through their sheer energy or just moved you through their performance on stage. The only ones that count are the ones you've seen. After making a list in my mind of the many rock concerts I attended, most from the late 1960's through early 80's, I have come up with mine. It was tough, I’ve seen well over 200 rock concerts over the years and it is really hard coming up with a top 5 but we have to limit this so here go mine. "Yes" - This group stands out as the 2nd best concert I ever saw with Steve Howe and Chris Wakeman. They opened for Emerson, Lake and Palmer and after their set I do feel that EL&P were disheartened and knew they couldn't match it; they didn't. Funny thing is like most, I was there to see EL&P. They were forced to have another concert the following night by popular demand. Virtuoso musicianship, “Poco” - This group could put on a show. I saw them 4 different times in the many various stages of their evolution. They never had the commercial recognition of some of the other great bands of their era but they sure made up for it in their live performances. No one stayed seated during a Poco concert. “Rod Stewart and Faces” - Ron Wood on guitar and Rod Stewart strutting all over the stage. Rod was probably the greatest natural Rock showman I ever saw, including Mick Jagger. His uninhibited manner and constant movement and soulful vocals brought the house down. The crowd wouldn't let him go after the 5th encore so he invited everyone ("especially the pretty young ladies") to his hotel to “party on”, and so they came; Led Zeppelin I had to include them because next to the Doors and of course Jimi Hendrix they were my favorites of that era and I never did get to see either of the other two. The acoustics were bad and they played so loud you couldn’t really hear the music. But they were great none the less and it was special to me. The best should be kept for last. "The Who" was acknowledged as the best concert band at the time. Getting tickets meant getting in line and waiting. I imagine at the time the only tougher ticket would be the “Beatles” and they weren’t even together then. They didn’t disappoint. The reaction of the audience was beyond anything I ever saw at a live concert before or since. The band was so cohesive and the energy they put out put them into a different realm. They just have to be on a very short list of the best live bands ever.
tubegroover
1. Pink Floyd-Dark Side of rhe Moon Tour 2. Jethro Tull-Thick as a Brick tour 3.Rolling Stones- 1965 American tour 4.The Who- 1968 American tour 5. Bob Seger-Night Moves tour.
Frank Zappa was the best I've seen (8 times), The Tragically Hip (6 times and counting), Stevie Ray Vaughn (5 times), Dire Straits (Money for Nothing tour), Jethro Tull (7 times), Talking Heads (Stop Making Sense tour). Hmmm, only allowed 5 eh? Damn!
I've got the answer, post twice! Steely Dan, Roger Waters, Van Halen, Rush, and Shania Twain (I can't stand her music, but that woman is worth the price of admission to gawk at, thank God for quality binoculars)
Great thread, Will. 1. Lynyrd Skynyrd. Four months before the Free Bird went down and Street Survivors came out, Ronnie Van Zandt and company were incredible, Columbus, Georgia 1975. 2. Rush, 2112 tour. First concert attended. Neil Peart on drums was the best I have ever seen. They “warmed up” Blue Oyster Cult and their laser light show all right! Columbus, GA 1975. 3. Rolling Stones, Some Girls tour. 83,000 fans in Cleveland Stadium 1978. Felt like a survivor. 4. Jethro Tull. Lexington, Kentucky at Rupp Arena, 1978. Got lucky and bought 3rd row seats from a scalper for $35 each and had Ian Anderson get on one knee right next to me and play his fanny off, (the stage was designed with two peninsulas on either end that encompassed the first 3 rows and I had the edge seats!) 5. All five of the David Allan Coe shows I have been to! Venues ranging from a bar at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina to a riverboat in New Orleans. If you ever get a chance to see him, you HAVE TO GO! As part of the lyrics to one of his hits says of his audience, “where bikers stare at cowboys who are laughing at the hippies who are praying they’ll get out of here alive!” Always long sets and the sound system is set up perfectly. Very Honorable Mention to a) YES In The Round b) Allman Brothers c) Atlanta Rhythm Section d) Wet Willie e) Sammy Hagar (as the Red Rocker.)PLEASE, can somebody tell me if the ZZ TOP Fandango tour was as great as I imagined I missed? Charlie
The Who in an open air theater in Florida performing Quaudrophenia (mid 70's). The Rolling Stones in Kansas City (mid 70's). Santana near Honolulu in a dormant volcanic crater (1972). Derek and the Dominoes with Elton John somewhere in Illinois I think (mid 70's). The original Fleetwood Mac and Savoy Brown St. Paul or Omaha, can't remember (early 70's). The music as well as the accouterments were top notch:-) I would have liked to include the Allman Brothers, but I can't remember any of the concerts except the Iowa City one just after Duane passed on. Maybe they should be number one?