A companion to my other post.
Here we list bands that we never thought we would get to see, but we DID get to see. How? Reunion? A one-off tour of your country? Who cares! You fucking SAW THEM!!!

1. Tom Zé (has toured the US once and, most likely is never coming back. Quite possibley the best show I have ever seen.)

2. Big Star (1994 reunion tour. So much better than I expected. And I even found a boot of the show I was at. Memory was accurate. It was a hell of a show.)

3. Television (1992 tour. "This is NOT a reunion,. We never really broke up," Richard Lloyd emphasized to me when I interviewed him before the show. Jaw-dropping intensity and virtuosity.

4. Joe Strummer (1990, or so... Earthquake Weather tour. He didn't really tour much after The Clash, did he? A very good show. I'm just glad I got to see him.)

I'll try to think of another one, if I can.

The Staples Singers while Pops was still alive
Tom Waits
Stone Roses (eat it, Z)


There might be more, but this is just off the top of my head.

1. New York Dolls
3. The Stooges
5. Nick Lowe
2. The Church
4. Wreckless Eric

1. Cheap Trick (Y100 Feztival 1997, Philly... well... Camden NJ)
2. The Church (1998-ish, Bluebird Theater, Denver)
3. Tom Waits (1999, Mule Variations)
4. The Pretenders (Lilith Fair 1999, Rose Bowl)
5. George Duke (2004, Jazz Cafe, London)

Ah, yes... my last one:
Neutral Milk Hotel... twice: once at an in-store at Reckless Records on Broadway.

some of these are bills, & i apologise but i think some bills are too asskicking to mention only one band

*roy orbison [i was a kid, but god damn, it's roy orbison]
*tool [at cb's, opening for rollins band circa 'opiate']
*flaming lips/eugenius/mudhoney at roseland [lips' satellite transmissions tour...mark arm blew out one of the speaker stacks during the mudhoney set with his vox]
*boredoms
*sonic youth/pussy galore [i think this was at roseland, between time of daydream nation & goo]

sonic youth/wilco
sleater kinney
phish
the other ones
audioslave

Howabout:
Blur, with opening band Pulp?

so, is this thread more like "i saw them in a certain setting" or "i saw them, period"? cause i saw the wrens in a pizza shop when they toured in support of silver, but seeing the wrens is not a big deal at all anymore. seeing them then with 30 people? pretty cool.


but my comeback, as always, is that i saw and heard your favorite song ever played live at a show that you were late to. the stone roses never played near me, but you were right down the street and you missed it because you assumed the wrong lineup order.

- nirvana
- jeff tweedy solo
- p funk in a little ass club
- daniel johnston
- half japanese

Grateful Dead (only once & Garcia died not long after) I had no idea at the time I would never see them again

Tom Waits

Neil Young & Sonic Youth (Still today seems like such a unique double bill)

Nirvana in small clubs

Pixies in a huge outdoor arena (because 5 years ago that idea was pretty surreal)

uncle tupelo
johnny cash
ween's golden country tour
morphine
public enemy
pere ubu
lounge lizards

Leonard Cohen
Johnny Cash
Bob Dylan

These three were most surprising because they played fucking Thunder Bay and all were excellent shows.

Sonic Youth
Pavement

Two of my favourite bands and I got to catch them at Lollapalooza '95 in Barrie. Couldn't believe I'd ever actually get the chance.

how i interpreted the title:

1. radiohead (2000, i think) - i FINALLY was able to attend a concert circa Kid A. Magnificent, breathtaking, awe-inspiring... all these words fit. Wonderful night. i'd been waiting since The Bends to see 'em. Beautiful night in red rocks too.

2. the proclaimers (2002, i think)- they opened for barenaked ladies of which my friend had free tickets for being a bnf-official-fan, or whatever. WORST, EXCRUCIATING PERFORMANCE EVER! can't believe i survived. just plain awful. only redeeming quality was the drummer because he looked like trent reznor.

3. david lee roth (2005) - he's a joke now yelping "wow!" and doing a helicopter leg kick during EVERY DAMN SONG. you can easily tell he's so living off his past with greed and gloating relish. but he's certainly entertaining. he likes to demean big-breasted women via sexual entendres. (guess it beats rocket surgery.)

4. cheap trick (1990) - my first concert ever. Never thought that'd be my first. i like 'em 'n' all, but definitely never been one of my favs. They put on a darn good show though, esp. given it was a college gymnasium. (Too bad i had to survive the spandex, aka spanic, boys first.)

5. the ramones (c.1995) - part of milwaukee's new rock fest. i've never liked the ramones, i think they're one of the most idiotically-simplistic, straight-ahead-dumb-ass rock bands ever. but i thought i'd give 'em a shot w/ friend fans. BO. RING. they lived down to my expectations with their "1-2-3-4" and move-seperate-member-groups-back-and-forth-on-stage-in-unison and flat vocal delivery. it was quick at least.

yeah, but were you one of the lucky few to see 'em before Mani left?

i wasn't...caught 'em in '95 in philly...but it was still a fucking religious experience for me.

edit: oh and good call on the Morphine...awesome live show.

1. gang of four - up in the front at a decently sized venue (wouldn't think that i'd be able to see gof4 that close).

2. radiohead - standing 30 feet away from them at this point in time at the sd show a couple of wks ago. fucking SURREAL for me.

3. daft punk - at coachella this past year. i have been waiting YEARS for them to come to la. and it finally happened. and it was one of the best musicial moments in my life.

4. lou reed. 'nuff said.

5. massive attack - first show in 8 yrs - you really can't go wrong with that.

there are more, but those are my top 5 for now.

among many:

Faust at Lounge Ax (1997 or 1998)
Television at the Metro (2001)
Archers of Loaf at Thurstons and at Shanley Pavilion (1993)
Sludgeworth at McGregor's (1993)
Brian Wilson performing SMiLE at Auditorium Theatre (2004)
Guided by Voices/Strokes at Empty Bottle (2001)

I can't BELIEVE I saw the spin doctors once
or that I saw the grateful dead several times.
I can't believe I saw House of Pain
rage against the machine
I can't fucking BELIEVE I went and saw U.S. Maple.

james brown
sunny day real estate
phish
sebadoh
pavement
sonic youth
the amps
a tribe called quest
jurassic 5
the other ones
the dead
phil and friends
ratdog
spearhead
pfunk

replacements - 84
NMH - 98 (twice)
clash - 80
xtc - 86 (in the studio while recording Skylarking)
gbv - 95-96 and so on & so on
ramones - mid 80's
dylan - numerous times

& on the jurassic side of things-

elton john - 74
stones - 75-78-81
zeppelin -77 (twice)
pink floyd - 77
black sabbath - 78
Kiss - 76
AC-DC w/Bon Scott - 78
van halen - 78

I knew you were gonna mention this one.
And you know how goddamn jealous I am of you for it.
It's something I think about alot when listening to my favorite albums... "What was it like in the studio when this was being recorded?"

But it's always just a fantasty. You freakin' BEEN THERE!


so jealous.

Caputo wins.

Thanks TLW- twas definitely a thrill/learning experience and something I'll always remember.

1. Morphine: The fact that Mark Sandman died a year later or later that summer was quite depressing.
2. Johnny Cash: He played an Orphan Grain Train benefit at my high school after we built our new theatre.
3. Colour Me Badd: More or less posted due to how awful they are and the fact that it was my first concert sans parents. I think the only reason I went was because my sisters were going and I didn't want to hang out with my Aunt and Uncle.
4. Fugazi: The fact that they are essentially defunct and rarely toured once I really got into them is amazing, yet sad
5. Azure Ray: I'm not the biggest fan, but since they broke up a year after I saw them with Crooked Fingers, it is sort of a big deal to me.

Ray Charles
James Brown
Jimmy Cliff
Desmond Dekker
Sex Pistols
PIL
Ramones (many times including their last show)
Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil and Daniela Mercury playing together
Bootsy Collins
Eddie Bo
Arthur Lee/Love (4 or 5 times)

I dunno I'm sure there's more but those are the ones that come to mind

at The Tower?