This is an attempt to document my live music history. After investing about three hours in this (last night and this morning), it may become an ongoing project with its own “page” here at PDB.
I started this list because I kept getting tagged in that Facebook note “50 Bands/Concerts,” list note thingy.* When I noticed some people were calling it “99 Bands/Concerts,” and extending the original number, I knew it was time for me to jump in and go for the overkill. I’m hesitant to post, because this must be evidence of mental illness, lack of a real life, or having missed my calling as a librarian.
It’s far from complete. And in evidence is just what a lousy concertgoer I am. All the shows I’ve missed. All the bands I wish I’d seen. (There’s another list to work on.) I know there were plenty of nights where I could have been out seeing something memorable and the only thing that kept me from going was a failure to check the listings. Now I’m old and married and have kids and a mortgage—the full catastrophe. I don’t get out much. I know, some of my friends in a similar position still manage to make the scene. I guess I’m just lazy and my feet hurt.
Thanks to my friends whose Facebook lists were invaluable in jogging my middle-aged memory: Lisa, Carl, Walter.
I excluded bands I played in: Twig, Mayfirst, Hex 49, ExVegas, Prosolar Mechanics, The Evolutionaries. Some of these bands I was on bills with, but I’m going to pretend to be less conceited and not name them out of false modesty. But I’m calling myself out here. So maybe I should just go and do it. No, it may make me look even lamer when you see that list. Nothing personal, bands I’ve shared bills with. Shit, this hole is getting really deep.
A great many of these bands I saw multiple times, especially in the 1990s when I was active in bands and on bills or out at a show to support friends at least one night a week, if not three or four. I’ve forgotten more bands off those bills than make up this list. If I saw you and you’re not here, it’s because you weren’t memorable. If you were, then my memory must suck, as you can tell from all the bands I don’t list.
I’m posting this nightmare now so I can go do something worthwhile. I may come back later and work on it some more.
If you like the idea of anally keeping track of this sort of trivia, check out the concert history tool at: http://songkick.com
Also, this is barely in any kind of order. Chronological only by decade. Sort of. I’ll work on it. And you don’t really care, so piss off.
The List
1970s
- Bruce Springsteen – Jadwin Gymnasium, 1 November 1978 tour for Darkness on the Edge of Town. My first real concert, and though I’m not a huge Springsteen fan, this was an amazing show. Still ranks as one of the best concerts I’ve seen. Top 10 for certain. Thanks to my friend Peter for inviting me to to go along for his 14th birthday.
- Regressive Aid
- King Crimson Saturday 06 March 1982 Alexander Hall, Princeton NJ
- The Groceries
- Stanley Jordan
- Lui Collins, Bath Maine, 1981
- David Mallet Bath Maine, 1981
- The “English” Beat Finney Chapel, Oberlin College, Saturday 09 April 1983
- REM – several times, first Finney Chapel, Oberlin College, Saturday 09 April 1983
- Talking Heads, 1983, Mann Music Center, Philadelphia, Speaking in Tongues tour
- Billy Bragg – 1984, Boston
- The Alley Cats 1984, Boston
- Echo and the Bunnymen, 1984, Boston
- Genesis – Duke tour. 1981 or 82. Awful. Last row seats at the Spectrum but it still would have sucked if we’d had front row seats. This leads me to think of other bad stadium shows I saw in the 1980s:
- Aerosmith: omgwtfbbq Love in an elevator? Dude looks like a lady? Dude, where’s my car?
- Elvis Costello – I love this man, but I saw one of his worst performances ever at Madison Square Garden
- Phil Collins – oh my god. Someone had a free ticket, seriously. I have no excuse. Sucked even worse than Genesis. Su-su-ssudio! However, the experience does make the reading of American Psycho even more fucked.
- U2 – Giants Stadium, Unforgettable Fire, Forgettable Concert. So full of themselves and they sucked. “The Edge” plays worse than I do.
- Frank Zappa 1986 Tower Theater, Philadelphia. Fourth Row. Guitar god.
- Sonic Youth – countless times over three decades. All-time favorite live act. Best show 1988 CBGB for Daydream Nation. (w/ B.a.l.l. and Barbetomagus)
- Black Flag
- Circle Jerks
- Blood on the Saddle – Scott Hall, Rutgers University
- Jackson Browne
- Smashing Pumpkins (Gish tour at Maxwell’s)
- Squirrelbait
- Adrenaline O.D.
- Agnostic Front
- Agent Orange
- Killing Joke
- The Stranglers
- The Replacements
- Lemonheads (1989, at CBGB Cantina! Touring on their first record, playing to about 10 people including the bartender.)
- Suzanne Vega (Busch Student Center, Rutgers University)
- Siouxsie and the Banshees
- Peter Murphy
- The Dead Kennedys
- Rollins Band
- Echo and The Bunnymen
- 999
- Steel Pole Bathtub – The Knitting Factory, 1989
- The Fall
- The Descendents – City Gardens, Trenton
- They Might Be Giants – City Gardens, Trenton
- 7 Seconds
- The Dead Milkmen
- The Dickies
- The Ramones
- Husker Du
- Living Color
- The Butthole Surfers
- Dream Syndicate - Boston 1984
- Richard Lloyd
- Gwar
- Dag Nasty
- Destroy All Bands
- Null Set
- Das Damen
- Die Kreuzen
- Lone Justice
- Pay the Man
- Love and Rockets
- Meat Puppets
- Stiff Little Fingers
- Violent Femmes
- Lunachicks
- Spy Gods
- Dumptruck
- Front 242
- Psychedelic Furs
- John Cale
- The Alley Cats
- John Zorn
- Naked Raygun
- The Sugar Cubes
- Leather Studded Diaphram
- Opium Vala (Matt Pinfield)
- The Ex w/ Tom Cora
- Ministry
- Slint
- The Cure
- Spiral Jetty
- All God’s Children
- Third Party
- The Buzzcocks – first US show when they got back together, The Ritz, 1991
- Depeche Mode
- Low
- Luscious Jackson
- The Jesus Lizard
- Shonen Knife
- The Boredoms
- Ff
- Flu Thirteen (CBGB)
- Superchunk
- Monster Magnet
- Ween
- Boss Hog
- Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
- Dinosaur Jr.
- Pavement
- NIN
- Neil Young
- The Pixies
- Gang of Four
- Radiohead
- Yo La Tengo
- Kelly Deal 6000
- Juliana Hatfield
- Primus
- Faith No More
- Yo La Tengo
- Interpol
- The Wrens
- Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Fishbone
- Bouncing Souls
- White Zombie
- Fugazi
- Fear
- The Mentors
- Helmet
- Tool
- Failure
- Bailter Space
- Deborah Harry, The Stone Pony
- The Poster Children
- The Mekons
- Madder Rose
- Cobra Verde
- Cocteau Twins Tuesday 02 April 1991 Roseland Ballroom, NY
- Meat Beat Manifesto (may have been 2000)
- Curve
- George Clinton and the P. Funk All-Stars (Funkadelic + the JBs—James Brown’s horn section—with Eddie “Maggot Brain” Hazel on guitar) City Gardens
- The Stuntcocks
- Remote Control Yeti
- Bionic Rhoda
- The Gravel Pit
- Instant Death
- Ray Davies
- WE Fest 1998, 1999
- Kristin Hersh
- Les Savy Fav
- Letters to Cleo
- Sigur Ros
- SteepleTop
- Stereobate
- Stereolab
- Sweet Diesel
- Swirlies
- Seam
- Teenage Fanclub
- Toadies
- Urge Overkill
- Cop Shoot Cop
- Lunachicks
- L7
- Unsane
- Unrest
- Christmas
- Hum
- Therapy?
- Afghan Whigs
- Laughing Hyenas
- The Mooney Suzuki
- The Grifters
- The Wallmen
- The Negatones
- Joan Jett
- Boss Jim Gettys
- Kise
- Tar
- Come
- Girls Against Boys
- Jawbox
- Cheap Trick
- Bjorn Again (Abba Tribute)
- Shonen Knife
- Velocity Girl
- The Goops
- Turbo Ass
- Built to Spill
- Alice Donut
- Victim’s Family
- My Bloody Valentine
- Codeine
- Mudhoney
- The Raveonettes
- Bad Religion
- Rodan
- Casper Brotzmann
- The Dismemberment Plan
- The Melvins
- Teenbeaters
- The Mad Daddys
- Nudeswirl
- The Wedding Present
- Dan Cray
- Daniel Johnston
- Buzzkill
- The Swingin’ Neckbreakers
- Three to Six Inches
- Aviso ’Hara
- Jhon Thumb
- The Urchins
- The Faux Monks
- Bubble Gum Thunder
- Landspeed Record
- Scott Farkus Affair
- All the Dead Pilots
- Godboy
- Rye Coalition
- The Blisters
- Mildred Pierce
- Evelyn Forever
- Ben Trovato
- Val Emmich
- Hippie Killer
- The Loaded Poets
- The Cogs
- Lumous
- Moistboyz
- Drag Pack
- Thorazine
- The Scrapers (WE Fest 1998)
- Jack Beast, (WE Fest 1998) from Dublin
- Bob Fields
- Footstone
- Mayflies USA (WE Fest 1998)
- Raw Novembre (WE Fest 1998)
- Sonny Sixkiller
- Today’s My Super Spaceout Day
- Doc Hopper
- Sicker Than Others
- Mars Needs Women
- Seething Grey
- Elvis ‘77
- Plug Spark Sanjay
- Cropduster
- Casanovocane
- Velocity Girl
- XBXRX
- D-Generation
- Fur
- NY Loose
- Loose
- Clowns for Progress
- The Raging Lamos
- Muzza Chunka
- Ric Slave and The Phantoms
- Nashville Pussy
- TAD
- Dead Spot
- Clydesdale
- Gap Scatter Recovery
- The Karloffs
- The Slow Jets
- Turkish Taffy
- The Wahoo Moment
- Like Moving Insects
- The Make Out Party
- Joshua Marcus
- The Cherry Valence
- The Jack McCoys
- Fa5hion Colt
- Dewey Defeated
- The Swimmies
- Digger Phelps
- Beaux
- The Blue Ribbons (November 2001, Blacksburg, Virginia)
- WE Fest 2000
- WE Fest 2001
- Slayer
- Autolux
- M83
- Cex
- Mogwai
- Midiron Blast Shaft
- Fair Verona
- Punch Drunk Monkeys
- Mil Mulliganos
- Beautiful Bear (Osa Bella)
- Spoon
- Britt Daniel
- Yeah Yeah Yeahs
- Ex Models
- Arab on Radar
- Autechre
- Lusine
- Matthew Dear
- Pieter K
- Hrvatski
- Les Paul
- LCD Soundsystem
- The Damn Personals
- Runner and the Thermodynamics
- Jim Testa and The Jersey Beats
- Kristen Forbes
- Joanna Newsom
- Pattern is Movement
- Pilot to Gunner
- Ralph Stanley
- Alison Krauss and Union Station
- Tris McCall
- TV on the Radio
- Ulrich Schnauss
- The Beta Band
- Smarty Pants, WE Fest 2001 from Oklahoma
- A Place to Bury Strangers, Post Post, The Big Pink (at North Star Bar, 3/31/10)
The rest after the jump.
1980s
1990s
2000s
*Here are the original Facebook “rules” if you want to participate (though I hope you’re like my friend Walter, who had the restraint to stop at 50, he has a life, apparently, probably needed to get to band practice):
Here are the rules. Test your memory and your love of live music by listing 50 artists or bands (or as many as you can remember) you’ve seen in concert. List the first 50 acts that come into your head. An act you saw at a festival and opening acts count, but only if you can’t think of 50 other artists. Oh, and list the first concert you ever saw (you can remember that, can’t you).
Should you choose this challenge, here’s what you do:
Copy my note. Click on “notes” under tabs on your profile page. Select “write a new note” in the top corner. Paste the copy in the body of the note. Make your list. Change the number at the top, and add your title. Once you’ve saved, don’t forget to tag friends (including me) on the right.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Dang. Were the blue ribbons that forgetable?
Added, sir.
Where’s XBXRX???
Ha! See? Half a brain. And to think I commented on a photograph of XBXRX the same day I was working on this list. Added again. Where would I be without friends with memories?
Wow Alex,seen some great shows..you have an amazing memory..thanks for helping to jog mine too..left off a few on my list.