This page was inspired by one of those Facebook lists. It was supposed
to be 50 concerts, but I put in all that I could remember (well, most of the
ones I remember).
| Rock Superbowl |
1983 |
First Concert |
John Cougar Mellonhead
|
|
|
Loverboy
|
|
I was there for
Loverboy |
Fleetwood Mac
|
|
Left a Lindsey
Buckingham fan: wow |
| Styx: Kilroy was Here |
|
2nd Concert |
| Night Ranger, Greg
Kihn |
Disney Grad Night |
|
| Kansas |
free USAFA concert |
2 year void |
| Sting |
1985: UF |
w/ Vici; saw him much
later in Irvine, CA |
| Tears for Fears |
|
|
| Naomi's Hair/Braille
Closet |
|
w/ Vici |
| The Call |
Dub's in Gainesville,
2nd row |
|
| Tommy Shaw |
Dub's in Gainesville |
|
| The
Cure |
Oct. 1987 (road trip:
University of New Orleans) |
w/ Alan, Bill; my
"all black" period; disappointed in the concert (hopes too
high), music good. The Cure
will not have to change their stage show when they are no longer
ambulatory in their nineties. |
| Jane's Addition/Love
and Rockets |
UF Student Union |
small venue very cool.
Perry was a jerk; L&R was fun. |
| U2 |
Tampa Stadium |
100 yards away and as
intimate as the L&R show at the UF Student union the week before.
Audience exiting the stadium singing "40" |
| The Toll |
some restaurant at UF |
very cool, singer
walking on tables during his in-song rants |
| The Outfield |
a frathouse at UF |
what a great frat
party concert. "Play
Deep" had a bunch of hits. Very
fun. |
| The Pursuit of
Happiness |
some lawn at UF |
fun |
| Lone Justice |
|
|
| Journey |
|
w/ Lonnie |
| The Romantics |
|
|
| The Connells |
some UCF auditorium |
w/Alan, David |
| Midnight Oil |
1990 Universal
Studios, Los Angeles |
w/Martina.
my favorite band at the time (still one my favorites).
California: the poured a bottle of champagne into a folding carton
(like chinese take-out). Some
native said "dude" to me three times in the same sentence.
I was terribly offended when the Oils end the concert covering
Elvis Costello's "What's so Funny about Peace, Love and
Understanding." Crowd leaving the arena singing "Beds are
Burning." |
| The Sugarcubes |
some hotel in Daytona |
A blast.
They came on stage discoing out and having a lot of fun.
Here's a pretty good summary of my musical taste:
I really prefer Bjork with the Sugarcubes than solo.
I need the structure. |
| Peter Murphy w/ Nine
Inch Nails |
Beacham Theatre,
Orlando ('90) |
I didn't trust that
NIN were playing most of their instruments (I could be completely wrong,
but my impression was that it was all machines and keyboards).
I enjoyed Peter Murphy. |
| The Hoodoo Gurus |
Beacham Theatre,
Orlando ('90) |
A fun band, a very fun
concert. "We saw your
Shuttle Launch before the concert!"
"We'll stop playing if you don't be careful down there." |
| Gene Love Jezebel |
Beacham Theatre,
Orlando ('91) |
Saw them at UF at a
free show in the O'Connell Center. Liked
'em enough to buy their latest album and then bought.
Bands have a hard time transcending the strength of the album their
promoting. "Kiss of
Life" was them at their best. Contrast
that now with their lounge act... |
| Redd Kross |
|
|
| Cosmic Mama |
A local Hunstville
blues band, saw them many times |
this would represent a
nadir, in so many ways |
|
Tip Top Café,
Huntsville AL |
a live alternative oasis,
a refuge if you will, in Huntsville, Alabama. One night
the "headlining" act consisted of a drummer, a guitarist and two
girls singing from the lyric sheet they had written the night before.
And is wasn't all that bad (remember I'm living in northern
Alabama). I'm thinking
"THIS is what rock and roll and the creative urge is all about." |
| The House of Love |
Summer Solistice,
1992 in a church in Salisbury, England |
An old converted
church. The opening act was a
British Country and Western band called the "Rockingbirds."
No comment. House
of Love played at about 10:00pm on a stage in front of big round stained
glass window backlit by the sun which hadn't set yet.
One of my favorite concerts. |
| The Dark Summer |
Atlanta |
Alan Dippy's band.
Kevin is still the best bassist I've ever seen in any format. |
| The Cure |
Wish Tour - Atlanta
1993 |
w/Alan Dippy.
This is one of my favorite concerts.
This was my favorite Cure line-up - three guitars, favorite Album
(and, living in Huntsville, AL made the contrast all the more dramatic).
The "Show" VHS recording is probably my favorite recorded
concert. "Pictures of You" live was worth the price of admission |
| Midnight Oil, Ziggy
Marley |
Orlando |
|
| Midnight Oil |
UF Bandshell |
Drove up one weeknight
with Mike, because we could. Ahh,
youth. |
| Rush |
Orlando Arena |
with Chris, while
fans, we had to admit how white their music is |
| Peter Gabriel |
Orlando Arena |
So Tour.
With Rebecca and Alan and Michelle.
Fun. |
| Tick Tick Tock |
somewhere off Park
Avenue |
local band, wonder
what happened to them |
| Rebecca Tex and the
Bridge |
strip mall off Semoran
& Howell Branch |
I see Rebecca is still
making music… |
| The Screaming Trees |
|
|
| The Crowd |
Orlando |
call
me a groupie. Local band, I saw them every chance I could.
"Emotional Overload" is still one of my favorite songs. |
| 91XFest: Blink (prior
to 182) |
San Diego, 95 |
|
| Mercury Tea Company,
with Blue Chrome |
San Diego, 95 |
I went to this
concert to see Mercury Tea Company, having been introduced to them at the
91XFest weeks before. I walked in early in the Blue Chrome set.
Never heard of them. They
blew me away. Guitars and
soaring vocals. A lot of
bands/songs back off, rather than attempt to take things to a new level.
During several songs I expected a drop in intensity and they went
the other way, leaving my mouth hanging open.
They didn't have a CD or tapes or a mailing list.
But the set was awesome. |
| Live |
Irvine, CA., 95 |
I was still new to San
Diego, didn't know anyone. I
asked a girl at a bar if she wanted to go see "Live."
She asked "Who live?"
I went alone. Big Venue
but good seat. |
| Ned's Automic Dustbin |
Soma, San Diego |
Fun
time, Rhythm bass, Lead bass, guitar. |
| Faith No More |
|
|
| Sonic Youth |
|
scuse
me, can I get some more feedback |
| Throwing Muses |
The Back Door, SDSU |
tiny venue, University
album (the last that I felt compelled to listen to).
Kristin is a stud. |
| The Posies |
1995, Belly Up Tavern,
Solana Beach, CA |
Great little venue,
great little concert. Leigh
was there but we hadn't met yet. |
| Peter Murphy &
Jewel |
Spreckels Theatre, SD
1995/6? |
Interesting bill.
Jewel yodeled. New
Hippie paired with the God of Goth. Everyone
was either in bellbottoms or dressed up like Interview with the Vampire.
Lots of boys in lace. |
| See Spot Groove |
|
groupie again.
Friends I played roller hockey with.
Had the privilege of helping them escape a hick bar in rural San
Diego. Another really talented
band that didn't get any play. I
still listen to their stuff. Keith
a great bass-dancer and singer. |
| Oingo Boingo |
1996 Open Air Theatre,
SDSU |
their last album was
their best. Fun show. Well
captured on their "Farewell" DVD. |
| U2 |
1996 - Pop Mart Tour,
Coliseum , LA. |
My first concert with
Leigh. Good times. The last U2 album I ever gave a damn about. |
| INXS |
Hospitality Point, SD,
1996 |
w/Leigh
and Tony. 2nd row, so close
that you could see that Michael Hutchence's face was fairly pockmarked.
A palpable desperation "By the F'ing album". dancing
"waaay back" |
| Morrisey |
Hospitality Point, SD,
1997 |
He sucked.
Talk about dialing in the performance… |
| Peter Murphy |
1998?, LA |
I may not have
brought a lot to the marriage, but I introduced Leigh to Peter Murphy and
the proper way to drink a slurpee (no straws, they suck out all the
liquid). Seen him three times
since. For the Dust show there were probably 100 people in the audience. |
| The Cure |
1999, SDSU Open Air
Theatre |
5th Row, I bought
$200 tickets the day we got back from Africa.
A favorite of Leigh's, she had never seen them.
She suggested that she get two more $200 tickets, invite two of her
customers and have her company pay for all four.
Works for me. The two
customers liked the Cure but hadn't seen them before and were of course
were disappointed. Because of the seats and since it was the Bloodflowers
tour, I like it a lot. We've
seen them a couple of times since, the time was surprisingly enjoyable
(good sound mix). |
| Cake, Violent Femmes,
Jack Johnson |
San Diego Street Scene |
|
| Pixies |
UCSD Rimac Arena |
|
| No Doubt |
UCSD Rimac Arena |
Surprised Leigh when I
told the ticket counter that I was on the guest list (later had to admit
that they were radio station give-aways). |
| 94.9 Independence Jam |
SDSU Open Air Theatre |
I was happy to see
"The Secret Machines" though they translate to the bowl very
well. Blink-182 played, talked
about receiving oral sex. Ben
Folds Five was fun. Muse
absolutely blew us away. Stunning
30 minute set (I was not familiar with them).
"Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs" was a lot of fun (lot of sound from
drums, a guitar and vocals (a bit of "Dark Summer" ripoff,
though. There was a group of
co-eds sitting to my right talking about all sorts of things under the
sun. I was curious about the
younger generation... During
the bass soundcheck for "Franz Ferdinand" the tecnician picked
off a line from "Transmission," one of the girls said "That
sounds like Joy Division." I
thought to myself that the kids are alright.
Our future is safe. |
| Echo & the
Bunnymen |
Spreckels Theatre, SD
1995/6? |
Leigh and I had gotten
back that day from somewhere. Enjoyed
the show then headed over to see The Call |
| The Call |
Brick-by-Brick, SD |
Tiny Venue, Michael
and Tom were outside checking ID's. Tough
business, the music industry. My
conversation with Michael went over far better this go around than my
conversation with Tom back in Gainesville fifteen years earlier. |
| Julie Ritter |
|
no Mary's Danish
stuff, too bad |
| Cardigans |
Soma (original) |
|
| The Mission UK |
Brick-by-Brick, SD |
|
| Sinead O' Connor |
Spreckels Theatre, SD
2009 |
Started out a bit
sketchy as Sinead wasn't really making eye contact with the audience.
Got intimate soon enough when she sang "Just Like You Said it
Would Be" |
| Bauhaus |
San Diego Civic Center |
same hall I took my
Seismic and Survey Engineering exams |
| Midnight Oil |
2005-6 Capricornia
era |
I
saw them eight times in a period of a 14 months or so.
Leigh and I grabbed friends and saw them a couple of times in LA,
once in San Diego. They were
playing in San Francisco when I was doing some trainiing up there so I
flew Leigh up for the evening and drove her to the airport in the morning.
I was in Atlantic City when the played Philadelphia, caught them
there. Very cool. |
| Puddle of Mudd, Queens
of the Stoneage, The Vines |
Soma (sports arena),
SD |
favorite Nirvanna
ripoff. I do really like "Blurry" though |
| Dave Mathews |
Coors
Ampitheatre |
bad seats, couldn't
hear over the teenagers singing off key |
| Alanis Morissette |
Cox Arena, SDSU |
I love Alanis.
Her voice was crystal clear but the concert was so-so |
| Pearl Jam |
Cox Arena, SDSU |
|
| The Hives |
Soma (sports arena),
SD |
derivative |
| Muse |
Soma (sports arena),
SD |
great live.
Normally. This one they
mailed in; just when I was trying to impress my friend Frank. |
| Incubus |
Coors/Cricket
Ampitheater, SD, July 2009 |
poor seats, but
Brandon can sing, it was fun just to listen |
| Nine Inch
Nails/Jane's Addiction |
Coors/Cricket
Ampitheater, SD, July 2009 |
poor seats.
This time I was there to see NIN, having gained an appreciation for
their work and for Trent. Not
disappointed. Jane's Addiction
started their set with Three Days, which was awesome, baby, Awesome. The
set was fun. |
| Radiohead |
Coors/Cricket
Ampitheater, SD, July 2007 |
decent seats.
Awesome show. One of my
favorites. Saw them later, bad
seats, not as much fun. |
| Bob Mould |
Belly Up Tavern, 2009 |
A surprisingly hardass
punk show |
| Bush |
|
|
| Interpol |
Coors/Cricket
Ampitheatre |
other than
"Evil" I don't like Interpol, so… |
| Concrete Blonde |
4th&B, San Diego |
|
| Howard Jones |
Belly Up Tavern |
|
| The Heads |
Belly Up Tavern |
Johnette Napolitano
did the singing. She's very
powerful, her backup band was good. |
| The Church |
Belly Up Tavern, 1998 |
This was a "Best
Of" show, that I had really good seats for.
I was caught off guard and jaw-dropped. I had a blast. They played
a month or two later with all new stuff, didn't like it at all.
Later they played to a mostly empty 'Canes.
I was standing dead center 10 feet away from whats-his-name.
It was probably me standing in front of him in an emphty floor, but
he kept sing to/at me. I kept
averting my eyes. Very freaky. |
| The Dandy Warhols,
with Black Rebel Motorcycle Club |
Canes, 2004 |
Came for 'Warhols"
who were fun. Didn't know who
the opening band would be, it was BMRC before they had any airplay.
They were awesome. No expectations |
| Mercury Tea Company,
with Blue Chrome |
|
|
| Rise Against,
w/Rancid |
Coors/Cricket
Ampitheater, July 2009 |
Low Expectations for
Rancid, but they played a solid set and weren't too self-agrandizing or
self-deprecating. Rise Against
is my favorite active punk band, by far (but that's a genre I'm bored
with). Rise Against has a
compelling mix of urgent rebelliousness and compassion. |
| The Secret Machines |
Canes, 2004 |
Essentially the same
set as the Open Air Theater, but more suited to the small club.
Very good. |
| Flock of Seagulls, Pat
Benatar, Gene Loves Jezebel |
Viejas Casino, 2004 |
casino show, say no
more. Mike Love's voice was
shot |
| Unwritten Law, Sprung
Monkey |
|
|
| PJ Harvey |
|
|
| The Pretenders, B-52's |
|
|
| The Presidents of the
United States of America |
|
Go PUS America! |
| Smashing Pumpkins |
SDSU Open Air Theatre |
|
| Spin Doctors |
|
|
| Spunge |
|
|
| They Might Be Giants |
|
|
| World Party |
|
|
|
|
|
| Upcoming: Arctic
Monkeys |
Soma, SD, Sept 14,
2009 |
|
