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Been lucky to see loads of indie bands live during the 90s though.
There aren't too many bands I wish I'd seen - Boston around 1980 perhaps, Ozzy Osbourne with Randy Rhoads...... but there are certainly a few bands that I actually have seen but I didn't realise the magnitude of what I was seeing at the time!
Cowboy Junkies several times, including last year, they played Bristol; had a chat with Margo outside the venue and she was delightful.
If you tell me Townes Van Zandt supported I'll be very jealous!!!
Saw JR Cash at Glastonbury that was great!
Would have liked to see Bob Dylan
He play A(berdeen)ECC and he was actually really good (I went definitely fearing the worst). I missed the first couple of songs because he came on at 7.30 sharp!
He played at the Pheonix festival one year, I couldnt stand up though due to some acid.
Saw Rage against the machine at Reading.
Would like to have seen The Waterboys at their peak, This is the sea etc...saw them when it was pretty much just Mike Scott and it was ok and saw him do an acoustic show at Glastonbury which was awesome.... but.......
The Birthday Party.
Fugazi.
Joy Division.
Beastie Boys.
David Bowie & The Spiders From Mars.
Scraoing Foteus Off The Wheel.
Original line up misfits with glen danzig
In 1970, the day before an exam (O levels, probably) I went to see Hawkwind with the future Mrs BigJohn at Stafford Art College. This was when bands always went on late. My dad was going to pick us up at 11pm. And the consequences of not leaving when he was waiting were unthinkable.
At the time, Hawkwind had an Amazonian dancer, Stacia, who had a pretty relaxed attitude towards keeping her clothes on. We waited in pitch dark for seemingly hours, occasionally seeing shapes walking in front of the lights on the amplifiers. It got to 11, then 10 past, then quarter past and I could stay no longer. As the double doors swung closed behind us we heard the distinctive bass and drums kicking off the first number, and saw a disgruntled dad standing in front of us.
I went home.
I've seen everyone I ever wish to see multiple time.
probably 1500 gigs in my lifetime
cos I like going to gigs to see a band play
Audioslave
Not a band but an artist.
Miles Davis,
A new friend had bought me a ticket but couldn't remember which flat I lived in. [days before mobile phones obviously and I hadn't yet got a landline connected]
AC/DC with Mr Scott on the mike.
The Redskins, split up a few weeks before we were due to see them.
Saw PWEI a lot when they were doing the support rounds for various indie bands - absolutely terrible.
Guns n Roses, Marquee, 1987. Met about a 1000 people who claimed to have gone...but I didn't. They can stuff their 150 quid a ticket nowadays...
The one I’m glad I got to see is James Brown, a few years before he died. I can tell you that at that point he was still the hardest working man in show business.
I saw him in Cardiff a couple of years before he died supporting RHCP, he was awful, totally reliant on his "backing singers". Really wish I could have seen him in his prime, but I would have preferred to have never seen him at all than to have seen him like that.
I always regretted having never seen the specials, and because of the James Brown experience, I gave them a miss when they did their run out of money tour a few years ago. A lot of music is about the energy of the time in which it happened, watching them as middle age dads (both on stage and in the audience) just seems largely unsatisfying.
Saw INXS in 1997 when headlined 'Music In The Bay' in Cardiff Bay. Other supporting acts were The Brand New Heavies, Echobelly, My Life Story, Alisha's Attic, Supernaturals, Heaven 17, Stereophonics, Santa Cruz, Oasish, The Mutton Birds.
Amazing day out, and INXS were outstanding - Hutchence had the most compelling stage presence. Paula Yates was stood at the edge of the stage with their baby Tiger Lily for much of the gig.
As the designated driver I watched all the bands whilst my friends spent much of the day in the bar. There was hardly anyone watching the Stereophonics apart from a small hardcore of fans, and I remember thinking they were going to be massive - a few weeks later they became stars in their own right. Also remember being really impressed by Echobelly.
Bands I wish I'd seen when I could have done include the Rolling Stones at Roundhay Park, Leeds in 1982.
Dance Hall Crashers. Biiig regret.
Can't believe I'll go to my grave without having seen that.
Slint in 1989.
Nirvana 1991 at the Mayfair, somedays your friends are onto something and you just don't know it.
Prince & Pavarotti
Botch. They played with Dillinger Escape Plan in London shortly before I'd heard of them. If I could go back in time and see any gig that would be it. DEP are incredible live as well so that would be a perfect show.
I'd like to have seen Guns n Roses back in their heyday as well, maybe on the tour with Metallica and Faith no More.
My first gig should have been Sugar at the Newcastle Mayfair but my mate Jamie didn’t show with the tickets.
I’ve seen Bob many times since but would love to have seen Sugar at their brief height.
Saw PWEI a lot when they were doing the support rounds for various indie bands – absolutely terrible.
No accounting for taste!!!
^^^ +1
They're England's finest.
The Grateful Dead.
Even at there most preposterously pretentious 30 minute freek out jam stage
Just to let you know Philby, Stones were good that day. Even our eldest son remembers hearing them and he wasn't born till August that year.
The Grateful Dead.
Even at there most preposterously pretentious 30 minute freek out jam stage
Saw them at the Newcastle Underlyme Festival 1970ish?
It was their first ever uk appearance and should have been a triumph.
Unfortunately it was blazing hot and we were all off our faces and Mungo Jerry had caught the fun factor so Greatful Dead got polite applause for a twenty minute version of Ray Charles Tell me what'd I say followed by we want Mungo Jerry chant.
Happy days.
Additions to list:
Tom Waits, Judy Tzuke, original Fairport, Pentangle and Incredible String Band.
Just wanted to have been at Woodstock.
Pink Floyd for me. I did get to see Queen though so happy about that one.
I was at that INXS gig at Wembley stadium (A Day of XS) and remember it being amazing.
I've been to quite a few gigs over the years with a few notable exceptions..
I had a ticket to see Nirvana in the early 90's, i had already been out a couple of times that week, knew they were due to tour again and couldn't be bothered with it so gave the ticket to a mate.. you can probably guess the sad end to this story.
Pretty similar story with Iron Maiden - blew it out and for various reasons it has never happened since.
Wish i'd seen Queen, AC-DC, ZZ-Top, Prince and Madonna in their heyday.
The Byrds circa 68-69
Minor threat
Butthole Surfers around 1989
Smashing pumpkins circa Siamese Dream
edit Double post
Mentioned in an earlier post the band's I wished I'd seen, the one I have seen that a number of people have mentioned is Pink Floyd, on the Division Bell tour, obviously missing Roger Waters, who I have seen separately.
Glad I got to see them live, wish buying tickets was as easy now, bought them about 6 months after they went on sale from Earls Court, as wasn't sure about going as I was a skint student. Nowadays they would be sold out in 30mins!
The early Van Morrison, Cream, Charlie Mingus, Captain Beefheart
One of the few benefits of age is that I did see some of those listed above.
Talking Heads in MU union
Toots and the Maytals in London somewhere
Clash in Victoria Park (RAR event)
Loads of punk bands in 76
Stones in Hyde Park (a group of us went from school including two of the original members of Iron Maiden)
Blind Faith in Hyde Park
The Redskins , I was planning to go to see them in Newcastle I chose to stay in and revise instead. My rationale was I could always see them another time. They split up a few days later!
Currently due to miss seeing Nick Cave ,and also the Lovely Eggs.
Nirvana, I was 16 when he died so never got the chance
The live stuff from Paramount on YouTube is in 16mm and is amazing quality though
I was born in the wrong decade and would’ve loved to have seen The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Creedence, Janis Joplin, Traffic, Bob Marley and the Wailers, James Brown and about 90% of the Stax, Atlantic and Muscle Shoals singers from the heyday.
Quite lucky to have seen a lot of the bands and acts I liked in my formative years (90’s) and regularly attended gigs until about six years ago.
Zeppelin at Earls Court, but I'd have been 11,so never going to happen.
One real regret was not taking it friends offer up of seeing Floyd live on the Pulse tour.
I saw INXS at Brighton Conference Center , would have been 90 or 91. Also Wembly Conference center in 95 . They were really good , but very loud.
Always regret not seeing Simple Minds in the 80's , when they were good .
Led Zeppelin
Talk Talk from Spirit of Eden onwards (did they tour then, don't think so, so big ask?)
John Martyn
Beta Band
Probably in that order.
Fugazi