[SHOW THREAD] Greatest/Worst Concert Experiences, Biggest Concert Regret

[QuiteFrankly]

This one is going to be simple: Best/Worst Concert Experiences you have ever had, and what is one artist/festival/show you had a chance to go see, ultimately didn't, and regret it every time you think about it.

***AND When I say concert experience I mean, aside from the musical performances, include memories of the venue (i.e. Breezy Amphitheatre by the beach, a muddy shithole, an Arena, or even small sweaty clubs).

The crowd, the mood; did something incredible happen to you personally that night? Did you meet the love of your life? Were you robbed?

[Cavetoad]

Oh Lord, I'm going to have to ponder on this one, but I'll have answers!

[bobistheoleman]

i'm from the older crowd.. i saw a lot of shows from the 70's through the 80's, and it's hard to remember them all, but a few do stick out. let's start with the worst concert experience. have to say led zepplin outdoors at tampa stadium , i believe 1982. they came on stage smokin with 'the song remains the same'. 5 mins into the song a thunderstorm hit with lots of rain and lightning. not good for an outdoor venue. the crowd upfront got rowdy, and started to riot when robert plant announced they wouldn't return to finish the show. then the real riot started. 65.000 pissed off fans. not good! have to say the best concert experience was aerosmith, jeff beck, and rod stewart in, i believe, 1980 . fantastic show, but saw so many cannot remember all. rolling stones, police, eagles, zz top, outlaws, pink floyd, yes, moody blues, steve miller, van halen. blue oyster cult, ted nugent, mahogany rush, santana, jethro tul,foghat, black oak arkansas, ten years after, johnny winter to name just a few shows i saw.. they were all great considering i'm still alive to remember...

[bobistheoleman]

forgot to mention back then the most i ever paid for a show was $40 to see the rolling stones

[Violetflower]

Great thread topic. First concert - Supertramp, front row, high school, Great. I live in Wisconsin so grew up with Summerfest - a (used to be) great 10 day long fest, with many stages & an amphitheater. Best - Three Dog Night, REO, Santanna, Sting, Marcia Ball, Cowboy Mouth - too many to name as I was there every year, all the time. -worst BB King.He just sat there & his family spoke. We left. Saw Jon Stewart on comedy stage in early years -he was great then.
Great story that still gives me chills - Sister Hazel was on a small stage (still at least a few 100 of people maybe more), as they had just released 'All For You' . (1994) When they got to the chorus, the entire audience started singing along. The band about froze & stopped playing. The lead singer started talking, and explained that this was the first time that this was happening for them - this huge audience knowing the words - they were shocked, as this song hadn't been on the radio very long. They were stunned in such a good & amazing way. They started the song again from the beginning - and played it with us really - reveling in the fact that all of us, knew all of the words. Typing this I can still feel the amazing energy that was generated at that moment. Almost overwhelmingly so.

[RemnantFarm]

That’s a great song!

[JohnnyNada]

Awesome Thread. I don't have very many bad concert experiences. The epic ones: U2 at Red Rocks 1983, Metallica (Ride the Lightning) on their promo tour, caught them in some dumpy little 3.2 beer bar called DJ's Nightclub back in the late 80's (don't know how, but this guy always had stellar bookings).

The most memorable, best and worst/weirdest together was: In 2008, my wife Melissa and I went to an Etta James concert. At the end of the show, Melissa had realized that she had forgotten her purse in the venue. The front security guys were being total dicks and wouldn't let us back in, so we decided to check the back. As I was trying the side exits, the wife headed to the stage doors. By the time I caught up, she, Etta and a security guard were in conversation. After she explained the situation, Etta calmly said, 'Honey, don't you worry about a thing, we'll go get your purse'. She grabbed my wife by the arm and escorted her back into the venue. We ended up hanging out on the bus, chatting with the band for about a half hour. Amazing woman. Afterwards, the wife and I ended up in some dive econo-lodge close to the venue. About 3am we were woken by a couple of guys screaming at each other in the room next door. I remember hearing one of them threaten to shove the other guys 'head in the fucking toilet'. I'm pretty sure there were hammers involved. It turned into a drunken soy fight on the balcony right in front of our room. We ended up bailing after the cops and ambulance left.

[MariaE]

My favorite concert we went to see was Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds at the Constitution Hall in DC. It was my favorite because I am thankful I got to see him perform because he is a powerful performer and Warren Ellis was part of the band at that concert. It also was after the release of the album Push The Sky Away which has some of my favorites songs on it. We were up on the balcony first row middle of the Hall, so it was a moving experience without being in the crowd. That being said my only regret is we didn’t see him at a different venue that was more intimate and better set up. He even complained about the seats in the main section being bolted to the floor because they were in the way and his style is very connected with the crowds. Even with the larger venue and being further away it was still a very powerful performance and I am glad I was able to experience it.

[Vesper]

Funny you should ask. I was just thinking this would be a great topic as the County Fair topic brought back memories of a concert held during the fair, which I will comment on under that thread.

First concert was Ted Nugent/Aerosmith/Rush. Still have the ticket stub for a whopping $5.50. If that doesn't date me, nothing will.

Went to see Pink Floyd in Milwaukee. Highway was full of construction, and we had driven there in a large RV camper. We literally could not find our way to Miller Park (now called American Family Field), due to the construction. We finally parked and ended up walking. Found ourselves in a huge graveyard. The path we were on led us to an open area where 4 or 5 paths branched off. There, we saw an older gentleman just standing on the path. We asked him how to get to the stadium. He motioned down one of the paths and said "Just go down this path. Go down this path." Being the last to walk in the direction that he indicated, I turned to look at him, and he was gone. To this day, I swear he was a ghost. Not being able to find the concert, but able to hear it, we knew it was hopelessly late. We made our way back to the camper, and stopped to gas up for the sad trip home. At the gas station we met the very friendly driver of a white stretch limo who, after telling him our sad story, offered to escort us into the stadium. He did just that, and we made it in with just enough time to buy a t-shirt and hear the last song of the playlist: "Welcome to the Machine". I remember looking down and seeing needles all over in the grass. We were all straight as arrows, but definitely in the Twilight Zone. Craziest concert night, ever.

Best concerts by far have been TOOL. Especially September 7, 2001, which was their Lateralus Tour. I didn't like where we were standing, so we went to a far side of the stage where we found rows of empty seats. I was dancing up a storm while my fellow concert-goers were seated near me. Maynard ventured to our side of the stage and stayed there for the rest of the concert. I remember the naked painted acrobats on hoops a la Cirque du Soleil. Crazy good show. Of course 4 days later they were forced to cancel their tour.

[captainwiggles]

Biggest concert regret… still haunts me to this day 😂

I used to do stuff for a local radio station and competed in a “___ ___babe of the day “ this sounds extremely cringy and rightfully so it is…

Anyway, it granted me the opportunity to interview my favorite singer Corey Taylor before a Stone Sour show…

Well, my cousin was going to go with me and the radio station would not allow her to be on stage with me. That was a no go. As, I was not going to let her be alone at this giant concert…

Thus, I picked family over the interview. But I wish I could have had both.

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A quick funny concert story was when 10 Years came to a small local venue. Jesse Hasek had to use the bathroom and didn’t know where they were. So, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to talk to him. I walked him over to them. Well my now husband and I just had started dating so he thought I was going to leave him for Jesse 😂 Nope, I’m a big fan of my husband!

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It’s hard to narrow down the best concert experience as I have been to so many of them. It is one of my favorite things to do. Some awesome shows I have been to include (plus more because I’ve been to so many I can’t remember them all) Stone Sour, Slipknot, Corey Taylor Acoustic Show, Ozzy, Avatar, Amon Amarth, Kid Rock, Gojira, Volbeat, Papa Roach, Shinedown, Theory of a Deadman, Pop Evil, Seether, Asking Alexandria , Warped Tour(s) and the final one (too many bands to list and private acoustic shows at warped tour) many country shows like Tim McGraw, Chase Rice, Brantley Gilbert- where my group broke out the FJB chant , Lee Brice, Chris Young (and many more), can’t forget 90s boy bands like Backstreet Boys and 98°.

I’ve almost been trampled to death at a Lamb of God concert which was terrifying. Ive been in many of pits with the best of them .I’ve worked my way into almost every front row of shows I’ve been in even when that is not where my tickets were for. I’ve even pretended to know how to line dance to see George Strait first row…and I CANNOT dance ! I’ve stayed at concert camp grounds for days and I’ve crossed state lines for shows.



Concerts are so exhilarating and I miss how the crowds were pre covid / the mindset pre covid.I think my mindset has changed too because I don’t want to deal with the crazy people lol.

[Compulsive Crocheter]

Worst concert: The one that was cancelled, and that we had tickets for. Van Halen, Early 80's.
Best concert: Nazareth.I remember the lead singer smiled at me during a song. We'd been smoking earlier and I'd overdone it and was feeling kind of "waaaaaaa", and he caught the look on my face and looked down at me and --smiled. He passed away recently.
Others I've been to are The Police, Cheap Trick, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Willie Nelson, and Robert Plant.
How I wish I'd lived in Seattle during the 90's.

[Cousin_Sheri]

Tough one! I cant just list one!

Best:

Duran Duran, 1984; Hartford Civic Center, CT

Went with my Dad to see my favorite band (13 years old). Nosebleed seating, but I was so darn happy. Right before the encore, Dad insisted we leave to avoid traffic on the way out. I've never gone from so happy to unhinged so quickly.

Metallica, August 1991: Phoenix Theater, Petaluma, CA

I've seen Metallica many times but this one was special, as they were rehearsing for their "Wherever we may Roam" tour. I was in the right place at the right time and scored some tickets to this 300 seat venue, a movie theater, I think. They even gave us all shirts that say "Rehearsing with Metallica" on the back. So memorable because it was so intimate. The volume of the music wasn't overwhelming and sounded fantastic.

Guns and Roses, Aerosmith & Deep Purple, August 1988, Giants Stadium

The day they filmed Paradise City video. Dislocated my elbow jumping from the first level down to the ground level but did not care, was having too much fun. Un-phased by the fires that were lit in the stands during "Smoke on the water".


Warrant 1989 - This was one of a whole series of shows I went to with my friend “Mary the Groupie” (real name withheld). We got a room in the hotel attached to the venue the band was playing at. There was a party on every floor, everyone was drinking and drugging with the doors to their rooms wide open. There were beautiful people everywhere. I don’t know what was more fun, the concert or the party at the hotel. I followed Mary around until she found her roadie friend who gave us some backstage passes and we ultimately ended up on the tour bus where Mary was summoned by Bret Michaels to a room at the back of the bus. I knew that hanging around could only end one way, so I ditched Mary and met some friends at the hotel. Warrant was not very good but they threw a hell of a party. (Mary would later go on to accompany Pantera and Van Hagar on their tours).


Worst:

Slayer, Cow Palace, San Francisco 1991

Reluctantly agreed to go to this general admission nightmare because boyfriend had an extra ticket. Mosh pits everywhere, so I sought refuge in the tippy top of the nosebleed section where crazy people do drugs and have sex. Calmed down a bit and then some asshole grabbed the fire extinguisher and started spraying it everywhere. Started choking, slipped down the steep steps and made my way out to the parking lot in a big hurry, where I spent the rest of the concert.

[captainwiggles]

This is the best thread so far!

[WhatsupHeavyD]

I'm from CO...so yeah...the best place to see a show is Red Rocks...it kicks ass!!

Worst concert: Big Head Todd and the Monsters - Paramount Theater - Denver, CO New Years Eve early 90's. The show was actually great, but someone in the audience, within a 10 foot radius of myself and girlfriend/now wife had the worst gas I'd ever had to endure. Holy Fuck...something dead was trying to get out of that person. It got so bad that people behind us started yelling "STOP FARTING"!! All I could do was hold my nose, raise my arm and point my fingers forward as to general direction of the stench bombs.

Best Concert: Growing up in Evergreen CO, a small mountain town just 30 minutes west of Denver in the late 80's, we had a very famous mountain bar called The Little Bear. One of the regular acts and big local draws was a band called Timothy P and Rural Route 3. Their act was a typical mix of country, soul, r&b and some older Rock n Roll...FUN. About three quarters of the way through their set, Timothy would start talking about his "free" collectors t-shirts challenge for the ladies. He'd tell the ladies in the crowd that the only way to get a "free collectors t-shirt was to come up on stage, turn your back to the crowd, take off their current shirt and bra and he'd give them a free collectors t-shirt. The catch...you had to forfeit the bra which would be donated to the bar and become a decoration in rafters/beams of the Little Bear. By this time everyone in the bar was pretty loaded, so the challenge wasn't hard as there were usually 3-4 women willing to take the challenge. Now, picture the stage in this rustic mountain town bar that was originally built in the 1890's, an older wooden building, small, cozy, wooden floors, beams and the ceiling was 10-12 feet high and the stage had mirrors on the wall directly behind it so when the ladies took off their shirts and bras...they exposed themselves to the crowd behind them!! Classic shenanigan's!!

Missed it: In June of 1983 I had just finished my sophomore year in HS and my girlfriend's brother had an extra ticket to the now famous U2 concert at Red Rocks. On that day we had a late spring cold front come through the area drooping the temperature below 40 degrees with fog and a cold misty rain...not ideal concert weather for June in CO. Anyway, I pussied out and did not go and to this day I kick myself every time I think about it. Watching the videos from that concert reminds me of how importantly historical that show was for U2 and I...fucking...missed it!!

[JohnnyNada]

The Little Bear, man what a great venue. The 83 U2 concert was my first stadium concert, not counting a Jimmy Buffet post game show, Denver Bears (remember them?). It was frigging cold, all I had was a jean jacket and a trash bag. Lots of people bailed, including most of my friends. They ended up catching the make up concert at Folsom Field the next day. I had to work.

[Mandy Rae]

Hi Frank. My best concert still to this day was my very first concert. It was 1988 and I was 11 when my dad too me to see The King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson on his "Bad" tour. He was so amazing and put on one hell of a show. I'll never forget how cool it was when he would disappear through a trap door on one end of the stage and pop out on the other side. That blew my 11-year-old mind. I've been to many concerts since as an adult, but none will ever compare to that magical night. I guess it's something about being a kid and everything seeming larger than life back then.

[Lerxst]

2015 Rush R40 Tour (40th Anniversary tour) and the final time I would see my favorite band. My brother and our best friend Randy attended. Randy was in late stages of glioblastoma (brain cancer) therefore required constant attention. This hearty trio had been to every Rush concert tour in Texas for the past 15 years. We held this out as a pilgrimage to our Mecca. This time was to be special. We knew it would be the final tour and we knew that our buddy Randy was not long for this world. Austin, Texas at the Circuit of the Americas racetrack and concert venue was the site. We attended the magical night and enjoyed the show immensely. After 40 years of constant touring the band was performing in flawless excellence! I could talk for hours about the set list and how they started the show with the newest songs and progressively went back in time to their beginnings. The set backdrop was switched out to match the time frame for the musical journey back in time. All the way to a simple set with 3 guys with amps on school chairs like a high school auditorium. Genius concept for a final farewell concert. By show's end Randy was very tired and running on adrenaline, he was a bit loopy from the cancer treatments, surgeries and other ravages inflicted on his poor body. The crowd was pouring out of the venue in search of their cars in the lot. Randy wandered off and got separated from us in the bustling crowd. We panicked and searched feverishly! Randy had boarded a bus bound for a lot way off from our car. By chance I saw him sitting in a seat through the window of the bus as it was starting to leave. We pounded on the side of the bus and startled the driver to a stop. We boarded the bus and pulled Randy off with us. Almost lost him for good that time. Randy passed about 6 months later (RIP Randy) Tragically ironic post script to the story. Neil Peart the legendary drummer for Rush passed in 2020 (RIP Professor) from none other than Glioblastoma (Brain Cancer). A concert my brother and I will never forget and constantly reminisce about. ~ Lerxst



I thought of another experience that was really memorable. Sometime in the late 70's, when I was in high school, we went the local tin shed venue for a Black Oak Arkansas concert. There was supposed to be an opening act. A local band from Corpus Christi, Texas. Well the show time came and went with no opening act. The promoter came on stage about 45 minutes late and explained that the opening act was having van problems and was running late. Van problems? Go figure. LOL Anyways after about an 1 1/2 hours went by a band took the stage. In street clothes (Jeans and Tees) and announced themselves as "Eddie and the Trouts" or something stupid like that. They played 5 or 6 songs that no one had ever heard before then left the stage. 15 minutes later Black Oak took the stage. It became obvious that the guys in Black Oak had just came out in street clothes and played a set as their own opening act!! The original opening band never showed. I always thought that was a really cool thing to do. Those guys in Black Oak Arkansas did not have to do that and are a class act in my book. Interesting show.