Worst Concerts You Have Attended ??


I just left a remark about a favorite band of mine back in the day - April Wine - that I saw in concert and was disappointed. Could have been that it was an off night for them, or maybe they were never good in concert. Maybe the lead guitarist had too much to drink? April Wine was not the worst, however. I remember Neil Young in the 1990's who was on his one-man acoustic show type of tour that many artists were taking advantage of (perhaps for financial reasons) during that time. While a friend of I had near front row seats at Desert Sky Pavilion (now Ak-Chin) in Pheonix, the crowd was just roused up into a frenzy by the warm-up band (James) and here comes Neil and his guitar/harmonica. Wow, what a sonic letdown. I remember getting up and leaving and feeling Neil's glaring eyes on us as we ushered out. I think, to this day, he probably still remembers me. We all can remember the great live concerts we attended, but what were the worst and why?
goodlistening64
Allman Brothers. Not the music, but the venue. Made the mistake of getting lawn tickets instead of pavilion. Could not see the band, only an endless parade of drunk bikers blindly following the person in front of them, loosely circling the perimeter of the lawn, staggering over peoples blankets with muddy boots, spilling beer, shouting, and staring around with stunned gormless expressions leading me to believe it wasn't just beer.
James Brown in the mid 60’s came on stage and started singing.  Ladies in the first rows started screaming.  “Mr. Brown” started screaming through the mike, “Stop the music.  Stop the music.”  Music stopped.  

“Mr. Brown” said, if you all want to hear me sing, “sit down and shut up.”  He started singing again, ladies in the first row started creaming again.  He walked off stage and did not return. 

No concert and no refunds!

Without a doubt the worst concert I ever attended was about 12 yrs ago in Atlanta at Chastain Park. This is an expensive outdoor amphitheater and the typical problem with concerts there is the audience who’d rather talk about work, tell jokes, and be inattentive to the music period. Women feel it imperative to stand and dance right in front of you, obscuring your view and looking around to make sure they’re getting other peoples’ attention. Selfish! But regarding the artists themselves, they almost all do their best to entertain even with a rude or disengaged audience, however, I had the misfortune of paying for tickets to hear Aretha Franklin. The concert lasted exactly 46 minutes start to finish. 46 minutes for $100 a piece tickets. The crowd seemed stunned as no explanations or excuses were made, no claims of illness, technical problems...Forty Six minutes! It was pure highway robbery. The only redeeming factor was that the typical inattentive audience, the selfish women dancers, and the people who go to the shows to discuss work, the weather, and whatever finally got the same rude treatment they usually give lol !
"Chicago" at my college in 1969.  Off key horns and flat, dull vocals.  Terrible.