The other day I had a discussion that moved onto the topic of bands we have seen in-person and ones that we wished we’d heard live. A nostalgic enterprise which also got me thinking about the types of music each of us listens to over the years, how we progress from one genre to another, from one musician to another, developing our tastes, a bit like life in general.
For the sake of fun, I started writing down the bands I’ve seen and the ones I haven’t but wished I had. Memories flowed. Go get a pen and paper and do the exercise yourself. It might surprise you what this gets you dreaming about. It also tells you something about yourself, your tastes and how the music has formed your frame of the world to a certain degree. You’ll remember who you were with, odd incidents that occurred, how the concerts made you feel, the stage of life you were in.
Bands I’ve Seen Live (in no particular order)
Jethro Tull
The Outlaws
Crosby, Stills and Nash
Charlie Daniels Band (twice)
Heartsfield
Marshall Tucker Band
Neil Young
Bruce Springsteen
J. Geils Band
English Beat
Stray Cats
Midnight Oil (twice)
Grateful Dead
Nickelback
Weezer
Pink
Maren Morris
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
John Prine (twice)
The Strawberries
Band I Wish I’d Seen But Haven’t (some I still could go see, so don’t close the door)
Rare Earth
Steppenwolf
Cream
The Doors
Ten Years After
Traffic
The Beatles
The Rolling Stones
Led Zeppelin
Imagine Dragons
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (note above that I saw the first three together and Neil Young separately, would have loved to have seen them as a foursome in their prime; wow)
Lynyrd Skynyrd
The Allman Brothers
Lindsay Ell
Linkin Park
Public Enemy
OneRepublic
Lou Reed
Gil Scott-Heron
Parliament Funkadelic
Gang of 4
Writing this down takes me back and moves me forward. It’s a list longer than 50 years. I’ve danced my ass off in a high school gym with the temperature outside below zero and left the concert and felt the sweat freezing on my skin. I’ve seen a friend detained by police, and taken him off the officer’s hands so he didn’t get arrested. I’ve watched Springsteen jump into the crowd and get carried across the floor. And so much more.
Was there a best song or concert? I’m not sure. I’m partial to J. Geils Band. I will say this: The second time I saw Charlie Daniels Band was when I was biking across North America, staying at my older brother’s house in Dallas. When he cranked, “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” I don’t think I’d ever heard something so electric and rousing, rocking the venue.
I hope to find new bands and see a few more concerts before I cash it in. Let me know which concerts stand out in your life and who is your list of bands you wish you’d seen.
For the sake of fun, I started writing down the bands I’ve seen and the ones I haven’t but wished I had. Memories flowed. Go get a pen and paper and do the exercise yourself. It might surprise you what this gets you dreaming about. It also tells you something about yourself, your tastes and how the music has formed your frame of the world to a certain degree. You’ll remember who you were with, odd incidents that occurred, how the concerts made you feel, the stage of life you were in.
Bands I’ve Seen Live (in no particular order)
Jethro Tull
The Outlaws
Crosby, Stills and Nash
Charlie Daniels Band (twice)
Heartsfield
Marshall Tucker Band
Neil Young
Bruce Springsteen
J. Geils Band
English Beat
Stray Cats
Midnight Oil (twice)
Grateful Dead
Nickelback
Weezer
Pink
Maren Morris
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
John Prine (twice)
The Strawberries
Band I Wish I’d Seen But Haven’t (some I still could go see, so don’t close the door)
Rare Earth
Steppenwolf
Cream
The Doors
Ten Years After
Traffic
The Beatles
The Rolling Stones
Led Zeppelin
Imagine Dragons
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (note above that I saw the first three together and Neil Young separately, would have loved to have seen them as a foursome in their prime; wow)
Lynyrd Skynyrd
The Allman Brothers
Lindsay Ell
Linkin Park
Public Enemy
OneRepublic
Lou Reed
Gil Scott-Heron
Parliament Funkadelic
Gang of 4
Writing this down takes me back and moves me forward. It’s a list longer than 50 years. I’ve danced my ass off in a high school gym with the temperature outside below zero and left the concert and felt the sweat freezing on my skin. I’ve seen a friend detained by police, and taken him off the officer’s hands so he didn’t get arrested. I’ve watched Springsteen jump into the crowd and get carried across the floor. And so much more.
Was there a best song or concert? I’m not sure. I’m partial to J. Geils Band. I will say this: The second time I saw Charlie Daniels Band was when I was biking across North America, staying at my older brother’s house in Dallas. When he cranked, “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” I don’t think I’d ever heard something so electric and rousing, rocking the venue.
I hope to find new bands and see a few more concerts before I cash it in. Let me know which concerts stand out in your life and who is your list of bands you wish you’d seen.
