OT: May 20, 1983
it was a Friday and I saw U2 at the Grand Circus Theatre which is now the Detroit Opera House. It was outstanding, the crowd and the energy was off the charts. War album. Bono pulled a girl on stage and took a picture with her. Fans were jumping on the stage and jumping into the crowd. Bono cut off the band mid way through a song to ask them to stop. Bono running through the crowd. I was a senior in high school with my girlfriend. I’ll never forget that concert.
Feeling nostalgic on May 20, hope you don’t mind.
Been to any memorable concerts?
I went to a U2 concert in '82 in Dallas when I was a junior in high school -- graduated same year as you. I had floor seats but in the last row. I made it all the way up to the front row. Bono was running by grabbing people's hands, and just when he was about to grab my hand, a security guy grabbed him and made him go back onstage. So close! It was a great concert.
Saw them at Soldier Field on the Zooropa tour.
They were phenomenal live, and sometimes I forget how good their early stuff was. Heard Party Girl this morning and just froze listening.
U2 and Led Zep are my all-timers. Sirius XM normally has a channel dedicated to a particular band, which is pretty cool. They have interviews with the band members, background on songs, and stories about the members as they were growing up. And they play odd songs you've never heard of from them alongside the mega-hits, including both live and studio recordings. When they featured U2, I listened for the entire two months (it was extended due to popularity) - every day on the drive to/from work. Couldn't get enough of it! Only one song I was impressed by, and I forget what obscure track it was... I'm currently enthralled with the Led Zep channel - my love for their music and talent is just growing deeper...
Thanks for sharing, we were lucky to see them in their early days.
Beale St. Music Festival in Memphis in 2004, one of the best weekends of my life. Watch good bands(Robert Earle Keen, Charlie Musselwhite, Buddy Guy, Fuel, The Offspring was the capper and the best show I have ever seen) and eat bad food and drink all day and then hit the bars on Beale St. All night. Fantastic Weekend.
2Chainz at Hill Auditorium, February 2014
Midnight Oil at the Masonic Temple in the late 1980s. First time I'd been to a show in the D, got offered weed and pills by dealers standing within five feet of a uniformed Detroit cop. Didn't need them to enjoy a great show.
I was there too. Great show. My first concert.
Who opened?
Yothu Yindi
I'll have to look that up!
U2 @ Fountain Street Church in Dec 1981. Long friggin' time ago, but I still have the concert Tee.
Todd Rundgren 1980, my all time favorite concert memory.
Watched Red Hot Chili Peppers do a sound check in GR around 1984 before they hit it big. Still kicking myself for leaving before their show.
Holy smokes. Crazy to think of U2 at Fountain Street Church. Would they even do the Van Ándel today?
Fountain St Church in 1981 sounds amazing. Thinking Grand Circus capacity 1,000 or so. Is Fountain St. Church still around? Pretty sure U2 played at Dooley’s in EL around the same time as Grand Rapids.
And I’ll never forget March 4, 2016.
Keep it clean; remember, your "spartie crush" was underage back then.
Honestly, back then, me and her were both seniors in HS.
Sinatra in 1992 and 1994. Front row for the 94 concert.
User name checks out
sticking with just college, the boss, willie nelson, buffet a few times. saw earth, wind and fire at cobo with a big group. had to borrow a buddy's car to get from AA to cobo. probably the best show in college was the big 'who, eddie money, clash' concert at the silverdome. was wild. the clash got booed off the stage because everyone wanted to see the who.
link to a write up that's in line with my memory of it:http://www.thewholive.net/concert/index.php?id=474
one guy was passed out on the floor, rallied and got awake before the lights went down. he was from england. he had a great line (in an english accent) when we were talking with him and he told us that he was supposed to be home in april (concert was in october). we said 'great, lots of time still to look around'. he says, 'last april....i'm going to tell my mum that my watch stopped'.
For some reason, I didn't picture you as a fan of The Who, XM.
I've "only" seen them 11 times beginning in December '75 at the Pontiac SilverDome. I've since seen The Who 2 other times at the SilverDome, 3 times at The Joe, once at LCA, twice in GR at VanAndel Arena, and twice in Chicago (The Horizon and the United Center). And if concert tours ever resume, I'd probably go again.
(P.S. : I also saw Roger Daltry a few years ago at Oakland University's outdoor pavilion)
edit: 12 times, as I have seen The Who 3 times at VanAndel in GR.
Only saw The Who once but it was memorable!! A buddy won a contest on one of the rock stations in GR. Limo ride and excellent seats to see The Who @ Alpine Valley in Wisconsin. Limo left GR around 1 pm and we finally rolled into the VIP parking lot at 7:45 pm WI time. We were hammered from the loooong ride there. Security took us through a side entrance and we found our seats near the stage. Alpine Valley is just like Pine Knob and the place was packed. Literally 2 minutes after sitting down, Pete, Roger, and John came out to the theme song from the TV show Bonanza. We never sat down for the next 3.5 hours as they jammed late into the night. When we got back to GR, the sun was coming up. Unforgettable!!!?
XM, I was at that triple-header in 1982. I just looked at the write-up.
Yes, very warm day. I skipped school (thanks, Mom, for calling in with "needed at home" that day) with a friend and we were driven there by one of our town's versions of Wooderson from Dazed and Confused.
He had one of those cool '70s vans with bubble windows, etc. I remember some very enjoyable pre-gaming in the parking lot.
Eddie Money charted a couple of times that summer, so he was still on the map. I was looking foward to the Clash part of the show, but they stuck to recent stuff and the crowd wasn't having any of it (or them). Too bad.
I wound up taking the next day off, too. :)
actually, the one thing i didn't remember from that write up was the heat, at least, not bad. i was there with some other jocks and folks weren't crowding us, so maybe that made a difference. we didn't hit the sauce very hard either, so no need to skip classes or practice (a real no-no) the next day.
I was at The Who show in 1982....a senior in high school at the time. I still have the t-shirt (it doesn't fit).
My memories are a little vague but I remember beer bottles being thrown over our heads as we waited to get inside. Eddie Money was......Eddie Money. I was excited to see The Clash but it was hard to pick up on the energy from so far away. The Who put on a great show! They were rock royalty at the time. I missed The Rolling Stones shows at The Dome in 1981 so it was great to see The Who.
I also saw George Thorogood at a small theater in Detroit later that fall. It was the Bad To The Bone tour. Had seats in the second row but stood for the whole show. The balcony behind us was literally shaking. I thought it might come down. Another great show. My ears were ringing the whole next day in school.
That's was U2's 5th show in Michigan, 2nd in Detroit. I'm super jealous. I have a buddy who saw their first show in Detroit at Harpo's back in '81. He said the ticket was $5.
Three shows immediately jump to my mind as pretty cool for me:
I saw Ed Sheeran's first ever U.S. show at the Mercy Lounge in NY 8 years ago. I was already a fan. Show was sold out. My buddy got me on the list because he worked for the opener Elle King. Ed was the real deal. Everybody walked out of that show with their jaws on the ground. It was that good. I think that place holds just under 200 people.
I saw System of a Down at the Whisky in LA about 6 months before their first album came out. I was already a fan and knew they had something in the works - but when I got to the Whisky and saw Rick Rubin was there - I knew this show was going to be pretty special - and it was amazing. They are my favorite band of all time and I've seen them about 20 times since.
The other cool show that pops in my head was seeing Prince at City Winery in NY. It was a surprise show and there was no guarantee that he was going to be there. I got in line just before midnight - tickets were $100. As soon as the bouncers said no cameras allowed - I knew he was going to be there. Alice Smith, Larry Graham, and Doug E. Fresh all opened. Prince came on at about 2:30AM and played until about 5:30AM. It was unreal. The place only holds about 300 people and Prince was on fire. I ended up grabbing a setlist from one of the horn players. Prince had practically improvised half of the set. It was amazing. I won't ever forget that.
Great topic!
Ed Sheeran, System of a Down, and Prince? Props on the diverse musical tastes! All sound like cool experiences.
For my part I'll say Page/Plant at the Palace in 1998, John Scofield at the Ark in 2002, and Beck>Black Keys>LCD Soundsystem>Pixies>Radiohead at Coachella in 2004.
Damn, that Coachella run is niiiiice.
I still haven't forgiven myself for skipping the Page/Plant show. I thought, oh if they're doing this surely a Led Zeppelin reunion tour will happen soon. I'll just wait and go to that instead.
Still fucking waiting.
On the bright side, the Page/Plant live album CD my girlfriend bought me in 1994 still plays! Listened to it today in fact.
That Page/Plant show was great. Also saw Black Sabbath reunion, with Pantera opening for them. Was on the floor, that was a crazy, crazy show.
More recently, the Lumineers put on a really good show in Detroit a few years ago. Also saw Modest Mouse a year or two ago at the Filmore. Very good, but not quite what they used to be.
Wu-Tang/Rage Against the Machine at The Palace in '98. It was summer time proceeding my senior year of high school.
Went with 5 or so of my closest friends.
No crazy drugs....just Milller Lite ICE (Remember the Blue and Silver Cans) and bad 90's weed.
The good ole days.
I saw Rage Against the Machine open for House of Pain at the State Theater downtown Detroit April 2, 1993. To say Rage ruled the evening would be an understatement and then some. Rage absolutely brought the house down. In my life I have never seen any opening act completely dominate the night the way they did. The next day my friends and I drove to several music shops to try and buy their debut self titled album. I think we were finally successful in Royal Oak somewhere (probably a shop no longer there). I will never forget being 18 in the pit with my middle finger in the air screaming "FU** YOU I WON'T DO WHAT YOU TELL ME!" even though I had never heard that song before. It was incredible. This summary I found online says it all...
https://technotarek.com/shows/house-of-pain-rage-against-the-machine
Rage against the machine still fills my workout playlist. Some kick ass rips. f You I won't do whatcha tell me is motivation. Live I can only imagine how much better they were.
NIN at Pine Knob with Hole as an opening act was a great show. So was the one they played with David Bowie.
Saw Tony Bennett at the Fox about 10 years ago and he sounded remarkable for a man his age.
Phil Collins at LCA last year was great, even though he's a cripple now. Probably the last show I'll have seen for quite some time.
Marilyn Manson went on before Hole! I was at that show. That was probably my favorite NIN show I've ever seen and I've seen a bunch of them. They were magical that night. I still remember that surreal backdrop during "Hurt".
Did he? I have absolutely no memory of that. But we did get there late. There was a weed dealer related delay.
I've seen NIN a bunch of times too and that is still my favorite show. Even better than the one at the State just before they got huge.
Last time was over 10 years ago. And it just made me sad. Dude really should take up heroin as a hobby again.
2 things:
1) Marilyn Manson opened up that State Theater show too! Actually - an all female band were the very openers - but I forget their name.
2) I saw NIN last summer and they were the best I've seen in decades. Literally decades. It was awesome!
I remember MM at that show, but not the girl band.
If concerts are ever allowed I'll go see them again. I trust your judgment.
That girl band was Fem2Fem. I don't think anything happened to them after that year.
Also - I went to that NIN show last year on a whim and was shocked how great it was. I was not expecting that at all.
What happened that crippled Phil Collins?
A back surgery that went wrong. He was really messed up from drumming during the Genesis reunion tour a while back.
He has no feeling in one of his feet and performs sitting down for most of the show. He still sounded great though. It was just sad to see him like that.
And his once stunningly beautiful wife looks like she got raped in the face by a swarm of botox and dermal filler needles.
His 18ish year old son was the drummer for the show and that apple did not fall far from the tree. Kid was outstanding.
beauty is skin deep and charm is deceitful, but a woman with too much botox is a total loss. or something like that.
Botox, fillers, boob jobs, or generally any plastic surgery that isn't to repair a serious defect are complete disqualifiers. Natural, only.
Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival 2007 and 2010 Chicago
B.B. King & Jeff Beck 2003
B.B. King & Buddy Guy 2009
Buddy Guy & Jeff Beck 2016
Metallica, Ted Nugent, Kid Rock New Years Eve 1999
First time seeing Garth Brooks 1996
First time seeing The Who 1996
First time seeing Van Halen 1998 Gary Cherone vocals
First time seeing AC/DC 2000
I was at that BB King/Jeff Beck show (I’m assuming you mean Pine Knob).
Unfortunately, I was there with my girlfriend with whom I had tried (unsuccessfully) to break up with earlier that week. Otherwise, good times.
Yes, the Rolling Stones Tattoo You tour in 1981 at the Silverdome. We had main floor general admission "seats", got there early at like 3:30 for some reason when doors opened only to sit on the concrete floor (no seats). We were about 17 yrs old, so not too smart, we waited about 3 hours until the first act.
Iggy Pop was the first act, the acoustics were bad, he sounded bad, punk rock wasn't the vibe the crowd wanted, and he was wearing a tight black "sweater dress" which he never pulled down. It worked it's way up slowly as he danced until you could see his rather large Johnson just helicoptering around for all to see. So people began to boo loudly, threw things at him, he was not deterred for about 3 songs, dodging flying objects but finally gave up and walked off, probably after being hit. They hilariously itemized everything they collected off the stage and announced it. Batteries, lighters, coins, perfume bottles, you name it.
After like an hour or more Santana came out for the 2nd act and were fantastic, they played about 2.5 hours and sounded great. Just awesome.
Still on main floor I tried to go up to the concourse to take a leak, made it to the first row area off field level and there was a crush of people there and all up the aisles planning to storm the security at field level and rush to get to main floor. I was packed in there like a sardine, picked up off of my feet about a foot, moved a few feet, then set back down. Then again, and again. Terrifying. Finally I gave up on the piss and went back to main floor. After a while the dam broke and all you could see was a wave of people jumping over the wall - security guards had no chance. I thought for sure I'd get trampled but we moved to the middle of the floor and were fine. (Note: there was a tragic event where many were trampled at the Who concert in Cincinnati, so that was fresh in mind).
When the Stones came on it was good but not great. The whole event seemed like it took about 5 hours, but I'll never forget it
I was there, too, had 2nd row seats to the left of the stage (from Mick Jagger's point of view) in the stands, probably around the 30 yard line at the stage end of the playing field. It was a nice stage setup that had runways for them to get closer to the paying fans, both Mick and Keith were within 15 yards of us at times.
Your description was 100% spot-on, Iggy never had a chance with that crowd---batteries, food, bottles, any kind of debris heavy enough to reach the stage was heaved in his direction.
Santana was soooo good, so tight, one of the best shows I'd ever seen...and they weren't even the headliners.
I thought that though The Stones sounded good, compared to Santana? Not so much.
Were there actually chairs/seats on the field (concrete)? I don't recall that, I know we were sitting/standing on the concrete. We were at about the 50 yd line or so as I recall. Things are foggy, it was 39 yrs ago! And yes, Santana outdid the Stones by a large margin, and I was a huge fan (still am).
TBH, I had been partying all day of that concert and really didn't notice if there was or wasn't seats down on the concrete floor, we had seats in the 2nd row of the stands. It wouldn't surprise me though if it was festival "seating" on the floor, as back then it was still quite common. I probably went to 3 or 4 dozen concerts at Wings Stadium in Kalamazoo back in the mid70s thru mid80s and many of them were festival seating....
...which brings up a quick story: I've seen YES 3 times and one of the two Yes concerts (probably around summer of '75 or '76) at Wings was festival seating. Yes was at their peak popularity around that time, and I was part of a group of about 8, partying early in the stadium parking lot with my gf and 3 buddies and their gfs. One of the guys was a bar bouncer, another a reserve offensive lineman at WMU. When the gates opened, the rush and crush began, but we surged thru the crowd thanks to our muscle up front.
Armed with blankets we staked out our space on the middle of the floor ---no seats, of course---50 feet from the stage, and no one dared infringe on our blankets or our women!