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Worst Concerts You Have Attended ??

I just left a remark about a favorite band of mine back in the day - April Wine - that I saw in concert and was disappointed. Could have been that it was an off night for them, or maybe they were never good in concert. Maybe the lead guitarist had too much to drink? April Wine was not the worst, however. I remember Neil Young in the 1990's who was on his one-man acoustic show type of tour that many artists were taking advantage of (perhaps for financial reasons) during that time. While a friend of I had near front row seats at Desert Sky Pavilion (now Ak-Chin) in Pheonix, the crowd was just roused up into a frenzy by the warm-up band (James) and here comes Neil and his guitar/harmonica. Wow, what a sonic letdown. I remember getting up and leaving and feeling Neil's glaring eyes on us as we ushered out. I think, to this day, he probably still remembers me. We all can remember the great live concerts we attended, but what were the worst and why?
goodlistening64
ross6860's avatar
ross6860
103 posts
 
 ZZ Top.  One of my favorite bands, but they need a new sound man.  I've seen them multiple times in multiple venues over 40+ years and the sound is always bad.  Too loud, can't hear the vocals.  

Best concert?  Pink Floyd at the old Cleveland Stadium.  The sound was fantastic for a huge outdoor stadium.
jnovak's avatar
jnovak
425 posts
 
More than I can remember. One show was Mason Williams at the Valley Forge Music Fair. I hung out with the band after the show and shared a joint with Mason. Pretty cool. Stan Rogers at The Cherry Tree in Philadelphia. The line to get in was crazy. Stan hadn't been there for a couple of years so people were hungry to hear him. That was the single best show I've ever been to. One month later he died on a plane of smoke inhalation. It still saddens me. Joe 
dodgealum's avatar
dodgealum
1,405 posts
 
Saw Lucinda Williams at the Wellmont Theater in Montclair NJ maybe 10 years ago. Before the concert she was boasting about having "Neil Young's sound guy" at the board. She started playing and the sound was terrible, slowly driving people out of the venue. I spent most of the concert at the crowded bar listening to the same complaints. At one point she ridiculed members of the audience for leaving--all of us big fans (up till then). Funny thing is one of the best concerts I ever attended was probably 10-15 years before that when she had just released "Passionate Kisses". She played at Maxwell's in Hoboken NJ. Just her and Gurf Morlix (her then producer) on guitar and about 20 people in the room. The sound was amazing and it was an incredible opportunity to see an emerging artist in such an intimate setting.
mtbiker29's avatar
mtbiker29
174 posts
 
Bob Mould sounds nothing like his studio work.  It was awful.  
facten
2,882 posts
 
Ginger Baker , 1972 Central Park Amphitheater in NYC. Not exactly sure what you'd call the genre of music he was playing that night but it was African influenced. Remember the crowd calling for him to play Toad and his response " Toad is Dead". It was concert best forgotten, but since you asked. 
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