Wouldn t waste my money on live shows

[M138]

My mate see Hawkwind last week, “They were atrocious” were his words, clips of Bruce Springsteen from recent shows and his voice has long gone, Elton John who’s retired from touring now, should’ve retired from touring 45 years ago imho.
Lots of these artists are charging a fortune to see them and they’re well past their sell-by date as their voice has gone.
So is it just to say “I’ve seen the Rolling Stones” etc rather than the quality of vocals on offer?

[SaulGoodman]

Definitely about saying you have seen them live, but it is a lottery. I was debating whether to see Dylan in Geneva - his gigs have apparently always been either the best ever or terrible, depending on his mood. I didn't go and it turned out to be the latter. Videos of Axl and Guns n Roses look terrible this year. We did go to see Tom Petty in Hyde Park and he was good, but that turned out to be his last gig...

That said, I've had a great time seeing the anniversary shows of bands that were around when I was growing up - Ash, Embrace, Sleeper and Pulp have all been great.

[Jamescrs]

Reminds me of my parents going to see Meatloaf probably 18 months- 2 years before he died and they said he couldn't sing half the songs anymore and the crowd were doing the work for him.

It's sad because they took me to see him when I was young at Sheffield when the Bat Out Of Hell 2 album was released and as I remember he was brilliant.

[Chubbyross]

SaulGoodman said:

Definitely about saying you have seen them live, but it is a lottery. I was debating whether to see Dylan in Geneva - his gigs have apparently always been either the best ever or terrible, depending on his mood. I didn't go and it turned out to be the latter. Videos of Axl and Guns n Roses look terrible this year. We did go to see Tom Petty in Hyde Park and he was good, but that turned out to be his last gig...

That said, I've had a great time seeing the anniversary shows of bands that were around when I was growing up - Ash, Embrace, Sleeper and Pulp have all been great.

Bob Dylan is the only person I’ve seen live where I fell asleep. It was at Wembley (the arena, which is a terrible venue anyway) and he was truly awful. Completely dialing it in and was clearly as bored as I was. Still, at least he got paid for being there.

[Alex Z]

It is at least easy to see videos of all of these artists and make an informed choice before booking.

Looks like lots are doing this for Guns N Roses as they still haven’t sold out at Birmingham.

[AB]

Went to see Bryan Adams last week, I kind of see where you are coming from but it was still a decent experience. Sounded nowhere near as good as putting it on in the living room with decent speakers.

[droopsnoot]

There's a lot more atmosphere at a live gig than there is sitting at home watching it on the TV. I don't go to many - we haven't got any local venues, so everything includes a trip of some sort and I can't usually be bothered - and I forget quite what it's like to actually be there, in the audience, listening to it at proper volume, feeling it through the floor as well as hearing it. That said, I can't tell if someone isn't singing quite right, the kind of music I normally see live isn't noted for perfect-pitch vocalists. I'll probably notice if there are bum notes played, but audio clarity isn't always good enough to make them out and it's part of the live experience for me - if I wanted to hear the songs played perfectly, I can play the album.

I do periodically look at "big name" acts when I get an email from Ticketmaster or whoever to see whether it's worth going to see one of them to see what the fuss is about, but once you get up to this kind of artist and venue size, tickets seem to start way above a price I'm prepared to pay. I suppose there's a lot more to set up for that kind of gig - light displays, dancers, moving stages, all that sort of thing, as opposed to four blokes with instruments, amps and a few lights. More of a show, a performance, than a gig. Probably a great experience if you can stomach the cost, though with the lead times maybe most people have forgotten about that by the time they actually get there. Or aren't as tight frugal as I am - for £100+ for a ticket, I want to be sure I'll enjoy it.

[Pitre]

Back in the day I saw Zeppelin three times and Robert Plant was consistently unable to replicate his incredible recorded vocals. Still a great show, but a bit disappointing.

[NDA]

M138 said:

So is it just to say I've seen the Rolling Stones etc rather than the quality of vocals on offer?

A bit of both, in my case at least.

I am a fan of Dylan and saw him in '78 as a teenager. His voice was great, the live 'twist' on songs was superb. But now? He's a croaky old thing who would only be worth seeing for your point highlighted.

I've seen Steely Dan a dozen times - Fagen's voice is still good and the musicianship is always superb.

My rule these days is to only see the bands I really want to see and I will pay top Dollar for front row seats - sitting at the back at some random concert is a waste of time. But I am there for the music - I saw Stanley Clarke at Ronnie Scott's... yikes he was good, same with Steve Gadd at the same venue.

[Fitz666]

Chubbyross said:

Bob Dylan is the only person I ve seen live where I fell asleep. It was at Wembley (the arena, which is a terrible venue anyway) and he was truly awful. Completely dialing it in and was clearly as bored as I was. Still, at least he got paid for being there.

I feel asleep at Slipknot last year. It had been a very long day and they were only doing the really old stuff, well before I got into them.

[Peter911]

A long time ago, I decided not to go to the big events You end up watching the TV screens whilst a tiny performer in the distance is barely visible.

However, Kylie was on at the NEC last week and I noticed somebody went to see her and said she was brilliant.

She is on again this week and secondhand overpriced tivkets are still available at £170 each.

I’m tempted. I know I’ll regret it.

[Lotobear]

M138 said:

My mate see Hawkwind last week, They were atrocious were his words, clips of Bruce Springsteen from recent shows and his voice has long gone, Elton John who s retired from touring now, should ve retired from touring 45 years ago imho.
Lots of these artists are charging a fortune to see them and they re well past their sell-by date as their voice has gone.
So is it just to say I ve seen the Rolling Stones etc rather than the quality of vocals on offer?

That's interesting - I saw Hawkwind at Gateshead Sage back in April and, yes, they were utter garbage - a chaotic (in a bad way) and disjointed performance.

But for every Hawkwind there are some superb bands doing the rounds. I saw Ozric Tentacles in March - half the price of Hawkwind and a mesmerising, professional, performance. Wishbone Ash still do an excellent show too.

[Skyedriver]

Lotobear said:

Wishbone Ash still do an excellent show too.

Saw Andy Powell's WA a couple of years ago on a ferry in Glasgow and they were very good. It was the Argus revisited tour.
Want to see the Martin Turner WA but haven't got around to it.

Haven't seen Osric, but Big Big Train are an excellent band to see live. Musically superb, they enjoy the whole show themselves and do a meet with the audience (passengers) later.

[AdeTuono]

Lotobear said:

M138 said:

My mate see Hawkwind last week, They were atrocious were his words, clips of Bruce Springsteen from recent shows and his voice has long gone, Elton John who s retired from touring now, should ve retired from touring 45 years ago imho.
Lots of these artists are charging a fortune to see them and they re well past their sell-by date as their voice has gone.
So is it just to say I ve seen the Rolling Stones etc rather than the quality of vocals on offer?

That's interesting - I saw Hawkwind at Gateshead Sage back in April and, yes, they were utter garbage - a chaotic (in a bad way) and disjointed performance.

But for every Hawkwind there are some superb bands doing the rounds. I saw Ozric Tentacles in March - half the price of Hawkwind and a mesmerising, professional, performance. Wishbone Ash still do an excellent show too.

It seems to be a lottery with the older bands. They've either honed their set into a faultless performance after years on the road, or a complete shambles where they've got back together to cash in on nostalgia. I saw Ozrics on a double-bill with Gong last year, and it was one of my all-time favourite gigs. Same with The Tubes and Richard Hawley. But, having seen some (televised) performances by the likes of Diana Ross, Blondie, EJ, they really are trading on past glories.

[98elise]

Every time I see Level 42 they are just as good as when I first saw them live in the 80's.

Their live performances are better than their studio recordings.

[Peterpetrole]

As usual this sort of thread degenerates into who can name the most obscure 70s prog rock bands.......

[Lotobear]

98elise said:

Every time I see Level 42 they are just as good as when I first saw them live in the 80's.

Their live performances are better than their studio recordings.

Couldn't agree more - off to see them at Gateshead Sage in September and I just know they won't disappoint

[Lotobear]

Skyedriver said:

Lotobear said:

Wishbone Ash still do an excellent show too.

Saw Andy Powell's WA a couple of years ago on a ferry in Glasgow and they were very good. It was the Argus revisited tour.
Want to see the Martin Turner WA but haven't got around to it.

Haven't seen Osric, but Big Big Train are an excellent band to see live. Musically superb, they enjoy the whole show themselves and do a meet with the audience (passengers) later.

Got tickets for the Andy Powell 'version' (well the official WA to be legally correct) at the Sage in September. They are very polished but I still prefer the Turner version who for me are more authentic though Martin's voice has not aged well.

[vixen1700]

Last time I saw Hawkwind it sounded like they were playing Brainstorm on a continuous loop.

The techno dj in the foyer of the Brixton Acadamy was far more entertaining that night. Dancing like mad looking like this--->


Walked out of The Brian Jonestown Massacre in Newcastle back in February, they were duller than the dullest dishwater. Haven't played anything by them since, talk about a massive disappointment.

Edited by vixen1700 on Tuesday 3rd June 10:38

[BoomerPride]

Pitre said:

Back in the day I saw Zeppelin three times and Robert Plant was consistently unable to replicate his incredible recorded vocals. Still a great show, but a bit disappointing.

I'd bet that Jimmy Page didn't bother to replicate the Stairway lead either. I would find it really annoying.