Foxbat

I was at Earls Court in 1980 to see the first UK performance of 'The Wall' by Pink Floyd. There was an art gallery (Gerald Scarfe's album art) and a jazz band in the foyer.

The gig started and as the songs were played, the wall was slowly built. Half-way through it changed into something akin to a facist rally with cross-hammer banners, a huge black pig and gigantic puppets. At the end, the wall came tumbling down - and the first few rows of the audience had to scatter. Marvelous stuff.
So what's your favourite live musical moment?
Do tell

I, Brian

Favourite musical moment wasn't a gig (not been to many, I'm afraid) - but at a party at someone's house in Manchester, when a bunch of people suddenly pulled out instruments over their drinks and started playing irish folk instrumentals. Must've been a travelling band because they all knew exactly what they were playing.

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McMurphy

My favorite concert was an Ani DiFranco concert held in a theatre at Santa Barbara, California. It was a birthday present from my girlfriend, and DiFranco's single guitar performance of the song "Serpentine" was utterly breathtaking.

Brian's response reminded me of a time in Superior, Wisconsin when I was seeing an ex-wife of my friend play in this small, hole-in-the-wall bar. At the end of the night, the bartender jumped over the bar with guitar in hand and he with the folk band all sat around with the rest of us and played "oldies."

Foxbat

My home town (many years ago) used to be full of musicians and we used to just go around jamming in various places. It's amazing when everything just falls into place and you get a moment of perfect musical unity. Unfortunately it doesn't last long and then the whole thing starts to fall apart - that's the problem with ad-lib.

Maybe it was the alcohol and illicit substances being consumed at the time....or maybe the Angel Hendrix came down and tapped us on the shoulder....I'll never know

Arwynn

i just saw david francey, one of my favorite folk musicians play with kierna kane and 2 other fantastic guys..everytime i see him play its the best gig ive ever been to.. if you havn't heard him and like folk, you MUST check him out. everyone ive ever played his tunes for has fallen in love..

ive also been to lots of festivals where ive just wanted to stay and have the music go on and on..there is just so much good music in the world.

littlemissattitude

I'm impressed, Foxbat.

I've seen some very good shows.

U2 at the Oakland Coliseum, during the Zoo TV tour. Opening acts were Sugarcubes and Public Enemy. Amazing show. Too bad we had to give up our places on the field just about fifteen feet from the stage, because I almost got squished during Public Enemy's performance. Still, I got to see my favorite band, so how can I complain? Even the cold I got from that night (it was outside, in November, in the San Francisco Bay area, where it can get very, very cold), that turned into bronchitis that lasted until after New Year's, was worth it.

Prince in San Francisco (about 1992 or 1993) at the Bill Graham Memorial Auditorium, a fairly small venue. Think what you want of Prince and his little mini-dramas, but he is a fantastic musician. He's definitely studied his Hendrix.

Crosby, Stills, and Nash at the Fresno County Fair (early 1990s), from the third row. They were really on that night. When they are all in good voice, as they were that night, I don't think anybody can beat their harmonies.

Neil Young at the Forum in L.A. (1973). Opening act was Linda Ronstadt, in between the first and second times she was popular, and Young's guests were David Crosby and Graham Nash. Seats in the third row, on the side, right next to the stage - wonderful in a venue that size. In the middle of the show some idiot in the audience started shouting out requests, to which Young replied, "It's my show, and I'll sing whatever I damn well please." Classic. By the end of the show, everyone in the arena was in the front half of the building.

But...I think the best show I ever saw had to be Elton John at Dodger Stadium on October 26, 1975. It was the last show on that tour, and rumor had it that he was considering not touring again, so all the stops were pulled out. It was an all-day show. The opening acts, Joe Walsh and Emmylou Harris, each played a full set (as opposed to a shorter opening set). Then it was just Elton and his piano for a bit over two hours. After a break, he came back with band, full choir behind him (the were borrowed from some local African-American church and were absolutely great), and an array of back-up singers, including tennis player Billie Jean King (that was a hoot). They all performed for at least two and a half hours more. I understand that half of Hollywood was there (including, as I mentioned in the Legends thread, John Lennon) - none of whom I ever saw, but it's just interesting knowing that they were there. It was such a special occasion that they even got Bernie Taupin out on the stage to take a bow. I understand that doesn't happen all that often.

All the performances were great, but there were a couple of highlights. One was just funny. When he performed "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting", the entire audience - all 66,000 or so of us - shouted out the chorus. Can you imagine, that many voices yelling "Saturday...Saturday...Saturday. Saturday night's alright", all at the top of our lungs? I'm sure they heard us at least a couple of miles away. The other highlight that I always remember from this show was the performance of "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". It was still full daylight when the song began, but it was a very, very long version of the song, so by the time it ended it was pitch dark in the stadium. Then, just as the last chord was fading out, all the stadium lights flicked on, flooding the place with light. It was quite amazing; just beautiful. I think of that every time I hear that song.

The funny thing about all of this is that I've just recently discovered that that show is considered legendary by certain very loyal Elton John fans. I was looking around the internet the other night, trying to find a set list for that show. (Such collections of set lists do exist; I found one a couple of months ago for the Neil Young show mentioned above, quite by accident, while I was looking for something else.) Well, I didn't find the set list, but I did find a comment on one site that called that show and the one the day before it, also at Dodger Stadium, the two shows that every true Elton John fan wishes they could have been at, if they weren't. I also saw an interview once with Elton John, where he was asked which shows he's done in his career were the ones that were most memorable for him, and the show I attended was one of the four or five he mentioned. And to think...the ticket only cost me ten dollars.

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Foxbat

Crosby Stills & Nash, Neil Young, Joe Walsh - Fantastic musicians.
You've got me all envious now.

angrybuddhist

I guess the best concert I attended was the 1986 Conspiracy of Hope tour for Amnesty International. I think the lineup was this: Joan Baez, The Neville Brothers, Lou Reed, Brian Adams, Peter Gabriel, U2, and The Police. The Police had broken up, but came back together for this 6 concert tour. Bono came out and sang Invisible Sun with the Police, but the highlight for me was Peter Gabriel's Biko. Between sets, Robin Williams came out and did some comedy, also. I attended this concert at the Rosemont Horizon in Chicago. There was a much longer concert a few days later at Giant Stadium which was shown live on MTV. I recorded about two hours of that all day event on vhs, so I kind of have a record of the concert I attended.

littlemissattitude

Oh, angrybuddhist. You got to see Robin Williams?! I sometimes tend to annoy people greatly by declaring my belief that Robin Williams is, in fact, God. I'm so jealous. And also, from my perspective seeing Bono and Sting together on stage would be, oh, just about perfect.

Speaking of stand-up, while I've never gotten to see Robin Williams perform, I have seen both Steve Martin and Jay Leno.

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angrybuddhist

It was definitely a bonus seeing Robin Williams, since he wasn't even on the ticket. I used to love Jay Leno. In fact I've recorded just about every appearance he made on David Letterman's show, before the Tonight Show wars. That's when Jay was at his best, imo. Also, I wish Steve Martin would make more talk show appearances. I miss his comedy.

knivesout

The best concert I've seen was Jethro Tull performing at Bangalore as part of their 25th Anniversary Tour. Immaculate musicanship and the usual Anderson stage patter. Awesome! The best musical moment I've personally participated in was my very last concert to date, when we played a quick 3-song set, Iron Maiden's Wrathchild, Pearl Jam's Rearviewmirror and a song I'd composed, Zero. Everything came together perfectly, with the original song serving as a perfect bridge between the differing moods of the other two songs.

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Foxbat

Aah! That feeling! In one of my last gigs in the band before we packed it all in, we were lucky enough to be approached by a harmonica player who asked if he could jam with us. The guy was fantastic, the music was pumping and the beer flowed....Sometimes it just doesn't get any better. A nice way to end it all.