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View Full Version : Worst Concert you ever went to?



Topkat
01-24-2012, 11:43 AM
I have 2 worst concerts I ever went to.

First: Ozzy Osborne at Jones Beach in 1996. I remember getting these tickets for a guy I was seeing who loved Ozzy. I just remember that I took several trips to the ladies room, just to escape the noise! I really hated this show!

Second: 2006, Lynyrd Skynyrd at the Taj in Atlantic City. To make it brief, I was bashed on the head, practically knocked unconcious in the front row at this concert; right in front of a security guard, who did nothing to help me! I was so shaken up & traumatized by this experience that I didn't attend a concert for 2 years after this. Make no mistake, security is not there to protect you, they are there to protect the band only! This resulted in a criminal assault charge & a lawsuit that shook me to the core! Thankfully, I'm over it now, but beware of all the drunk people around you.

Freypower
01-24-2012, 05:46 PM
This is easy. REM on the Monster tour in 1995.

Monster was their 'grunge' album which meant they ditched the melodic songs of Out Of Time & Automatic For The People & played a lot of harder stuff with even more incomprehensible lyrics than usual (even in their best songs many of their lyrics appear to be free form which don't mean very much). Michael Stipe actually read his lyrics from a stand, then tossed the lyric sheets into the audience. I still have a newspaper review which basically accused them of treating their audience with contempt. I never felt the same about them afterwards.

Windeagle
01-24-2012, 07:29 PM
Kansas, sometime back in the 80's, at Cumberland County Civic Center in Maine. I'm not generally a concert wimp, but the music was painfully loud to the point where you couldn't really hear actual notes anymore. My ears were still ringing two days later. And it wasn't the venue. I'd been to dozens of concerts there with no problems before.

And FP, agreed about the Monster tour. I had been to the Automatic For the People tour and other than the fact that Michael Stipe is the most arrogant front man in rock (IMO), the concert was great, even though we went in rain worthy of Christchurch! After AFTP, Monster was a huge disappointment. Not my worst show, but definitely below par.

Freypower
01-24-2012, 08:14 PM
I do have another one; reluctant as I am to mention it, but in all honesty I feel I should. I went to see Bob Dylan for the fourth time last year, despite all the stuff I had read about him playing mainly keyboards & his voice being inaudible as well as even hoarser than it is on recent albums. When I saw him previously in 2009 he did play a lot of keyboards, but the material he was doing was still up there with his best.

Last year, not only did he mainly play keyboards but he did not play acoustic guitar AT ALL. When he had a song which involved harmonica he stood there without a guitar, with his harmonica attached to a hand held mic. It was bizarre. To put it mildly, Dylan may be a genius but he does not have the stage presence to pull this sort of behaviour off. Also despite my best efforts to be positive some of the songs were mangled beyond recognition and he only did half of Tangled Up In Blue, which was unforgiveable.

VAisForEagleLovers
01-24-2012, 10:10 PM
Let's see, I guess it depends on your perspective.

I had front row seats at the Capital Centre for Rod Stewart. He spent a good bit of his time 'sniffing the white stuff' between songs and even during songs. Not sure how he survived it. Myself, I was sick as a dog which didn't help.

Had front row seats for Neil Diamond at the same place and while the concert was fantastic, the last song of the last encore involved indoor fireworks and a lot of flashing lights. I wore semi-hard contact lenses back then and ended up at the eye doctor the next day with scratches on the surfaces of both eyes. I couldn't open my eyes for three days, which meant missing work. I was not happy.

Actual performance and sound and quality, I'd have to say Duran Duran. It was a last minute decision and I can't imagine what I was thinking.

TimothyBFan
01-25-2012, 10:14 AM
Kansas, sometime back in the 80's, at Cumberland County Civic Center in Maine. I'm not generally a concert wimp, but the music was painfully loud to the point where you couldn't really hear actual notes anymore. My ears were still ringing two days later. And it wasn't the venue. I'd been to dozens of concerts there with no problems before.
.

I finally saw them a few years ago open for Styx. I have to tell you I had never been a fan..... till I saw them live and WOW!!! The freakin' blew my mind. The whole venue vibrated and I couldn't believe how awesome they were. Yes they were very loud but so spot on with it that I didn't mind at all.

As for worst concert.... easy. My very first one and I hate to say, it was AC/DC and Aerosmith in 1975 or 1976 perhaps (can't remember exact date). No one had really heard of AC/DC yet and the sound was so screwed up, it was hard to know where one song ended and another began. And Aerosmith was about the same but what really topped it off was when Steven forgot the words to Dream On and had to restart it 3 times and then fell off the stage. Really? Seen them since and can say I'm very glad that didn't stop me from going ever again. Love them!

Topkat
01-25-2012, 11:33 AM
I had front row seats at the Capital Centre for Rod Stewart. He spent a good bit of his time 'sniffing the white stuff' between songs and even during songs. Not sure how he survived it. Myself, I was sick as a dog which didn't help.


VA when was that Rod Stewart concert? I saw him in the late 80's & he was totally amazing! He wasn't sniffing between songs, but he changed outfits several times, wearing some pretty flashy suits. But he sounded fantastic! His voice was on the money!

Ive always been a dreamer
01-25-2012, 01:57 PM
My worst concert ever was also AC/DC. I don't know when it was, but it was probably around the mid 80's. I don't know why I let my cousin persuade me into going with her because I was never a fan anyway. But my experience was similar to WE's Kansas concert. It was so loud, you couldn't make out anything. I didn't even recognize a single song. And the crowd in general was disgustingly drunk/high or whatever. As I've said before, I generally am fairly tolerable with bad behavior at concerts because I guess I expect it to some degree. But this one was over the top - the whole thing was pretty ridiculous. I wasn't even very old at the time, but I remember thinking to myself "Can somebody explain to me how this is supposed to be fun?" :shrug:

sodascouts
01-25-2012, 03:17 PM
I know this may seem strange considering how I am now, but growing up, I almost never went to concerts. I believe I saw a grand total of five concerts in my first 22 years. It wasn't until I became a Fleetwood Mac fan that everything changed! As a result of my limited experience pre-Mac and pre-Eagles, I've never yet been disappointed with a headliner.

I can't say that about the opening acts. With all due respect to the Eagles, the worst opening band I ever saw was JD and the Straight Shot. It wasn't that they were horrific, they were just mediocre. I guess I'm lucky.

Brooke
01-25-2012, 05:11 PM
I never got to go to very many concerts over my whole life until the last few years. And even now I don't get to go to many. Living in the boondocks, it's just too far and costs too much.

I will say that all of them I have been to have pretty much been great!

Topkat
01-25-2012, 06:27 PM
Freypower[QUOTE]I do have another one; reluctant as I am to mention it, but in all honesty I feel I should. I went to see Bob Dylan for the fourth time last year, despite all the stuff I had read about him playing mainly keyboards & his voice being inaudible as well as even hoarser than it is on recent albums. When I saw him previously in 2009 he did play a lot of keyboards, but the material he was doing was still up there with his best.

Last year, not only did he mainly play keyboards but he did not play acoustic guitar AT ALL. When he had a song which involved harmonica he stood there without a guitar, with his harmonica attached to a hand held mic. It was bizarre. To put it mildly, Dylan may be a genius but he does not have the stage presence to pull this sort of behaviour off. Also despite my best efforts to be positive some of the songs were mangled beyond recognition and he only did half of Tangled Up In Blue, which was unforgiveable.

FP: I have heard this also from someone who saw Dylan last year. He said his voice was totally shot. I think it's time for him to give it up. I had seen him only in the 70's, not since then, but I was never really a huge fan of him anyway. I know my friend was hugely disappointed at his last show.

VAisForEagleLovers
01-25-2012, 09:06 PM
VA when was that Rod Stewart concert? I saw him in the late 80's & he was totally amazing! He wasn't sniffing between songs, but he changed outfits several times, wearing some pretty flashy suits. But he sounded fantastic! His voice was on the money!

I went with my ex-husband, so it had to be 1985 or before. I can't even remember what song it was, but he filmed a video there. I was the only person in the whole arena sitting down (I hurt too much to stand) and so you can see the top half my head in the video. Imagine my surprise when I saw that on MTV!

RamboIV
03-11-2012, 06:04 PM
I just recently started a log of concerts I have seen since I started regularly seeing bands in 2008. In total, I've been to more than 70 concerts. Pretty insane, huh?

Anyway, I can't identify one as being the worst. The vast majority of the shows I've seen have been great fun. But a few stick out at lackluster.

Aerosmith in 2009 phoned it in like no other band I've ever seen. Played for just an hour to the minute, and skipped most of my favorite songs. And forced us to sit though 3 Doors Down as the opening act when every other show on the tour got ZZ f-ing Top!

Bob Dylan was lame. Didn't acknowledge the crowd once. Skipped almost every song I knew and played the ones I knew in a way so I could not recognize them. I don't know why his fans get off on his treatment of them. Seems like battered-wife syndrome. Also, his opener, Willie Nelson, was a snorefest.

Jimmy Buffett wasn't the most fun because the place was packed and it rained, but that's not his fault. He played fine.

Blue Oyster Cult sucked. They were fun for the three songs that I know. Otherwise, totally boring.

Seeing Kenny Loggins as part of a three band bill was miserable. Just awful. But that's because I don't really like his music.

Dave Mason opened up for Steve Miller once, and he was also very lame.

So yeah, a few minor complaints here and there, but nothing atrocious.

Oh wait. In high school, my then-girlfriend dragged me to a Nickelback concert. That was atrocious from start to finish. And then, last year, I re-lived that nightmare when they showed up at the Half-time show of the Thanksgiving Day Packer-Lions game which I went a roadtrip to go see.

Nickelback is the bain of my concert experience.

sodascouts
03-11-2012, 07:43 PM
Glad Nickelback was your only horrific experience. I don't understand why Neil Young's fans are so impressed by his disdain for them either.

I did that concert log thing recently, listing all the Fleetwood Mac and Eagles-related shows that I've attended over the past 10 years. It was a multi-page document... I was stunned after I added them all up.

TimothyBFan
03-12-2012, 08:38 AM
Oh wait. In high school, my then-girlfriend dragged me to a Nickelback concert. That was atrocious from start to finish. And then, last year, I re-lived that nightmare when they showed up at the Half-time show of the Thanksgiving Day Packer-Lions game which I went a roadtrip to go see.

Nickelback is the bain of my concert experience.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm not the only Nickelback fan there is. I absolutely LOVE them!!!!

Victim of Love
03-12-2012, 09:21 AM
Without question it has to be Aerosmith back in the late 80's! Dokken opened for them and they were horrible. Then Aerosmith came out and announced they were filming for some video footage. They must have played Angel at least 8 times.......and every time I hear that song or see that video I have ugly flashbacks.

Brooke
03-12-2012, 10:16 AM
Sometimes I wonder if I'm not the only Nickelback fan there is. I absolutely LOVE them!!!!

I do really like a couple of their songs (Rock Star and If Today Was Your Last Day), but that's all I've heard. I did watch them on tv at Sturgis and wasn't much impressed. Especially their language.

WalshFan88
03-12-2012, 02:44 PM
Hmm...worst concert experience....

I've been pretty lucky in that I have not had too many bad concert experiences, only one that I can think of.

The "worst" concert I've been to was the last one, to see KISS. It wasn't the band's fault though, but rather the obnoxious drunk who kept pestering me and then later on pulling me out of my chair even just to sit down for a minute to take a break, so when I would sit down he'd start in. I think I told the whole story in another thread but basically it was a shirtless smelly drunk who was sooooo obnoxious. Knocking people over, screaming, wouldn't let anyone sit down as it was "a disrespect to KISS - it's f@cking KISS man how dare you sit down for 1 second" type of thing, plus yelling in my ear. He didn't get the picture that I was sick of it. Finally he took a swing at the security guy and got hauled out towards the very end of the show. I had to deal with that and couldn't focus on enjoying myself at the concert. :(

Maleah
03-12-2012, 09:37 PM
I can't really think of a worst concert ever as far as performance/vocals.....but I would say my worst concert was Boston just because they only sang for 40 minutes with no encore. The entire crowd was very disappointed.

Tori
03-18-2012, 08:47 PM
I went to Farm Aid 2010 in Milwaukee with my mom. The music itself was great (Kenny Chesney, Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp, it was awesome), but it was kind of a bad atmosphere for me to be in - drunk people everywhere. We left during Neil Young's set because this old guy behind us would not stop clapping for some reason. Didn't even get to hear him sing Long May You Run, which is my favorite Neil Young song.

eaglesvet
03-20-2012, 12:01 PM
I know I tread on thin ice here, but a number of years ago, I went to my one and only Jackson Browne concert, at an outdoor amphitheater in Jersey. However, he was playing with Keb Mo and one other blues artist whose name escapes me at the moment. Unfortunately for me, the whole tone of JB's component of the show turned away from the hits I loved and expected, to a bluesy concert that just didn't work. Not that I don't like blues, but it just wasn't what I had paid my money to see. Now, I can't wait to get to a traditional Jackson Browne concert like other fans here have seen and heard and raved about umpteen times before...before he stops touring!:fear:

prayfordaylight
04-02-2012, 01:49 PM
I went to see Yes around 2000 and seriously wanted my money back. They played ONE song from their greatest hits (Roundabout) and it took until nearly 2/3 of the way through the show for them to do that. Every song was "here's another one from a late 80s/early 90s album no one heard or bought". I've never left a concert so dissatisfied.

The only other concert I felt horrible after was a George Thorogood show. He was great but it was 90+ degrees and about 1000% humidity even after sunset and everyone was knee deep in mud.

Prettymaid
04-10-2012, 06:31 PM
I can relate to the excessive volume at Kansas shows. Mine was outdoors (Decatur Celebration, Decatur, IL, @ 1999) my ears still rang for hours afterwards! Other than that I did enjoy the show.

The Marshall Tucker Band, at the same festival in 2006, was absolutely painful to listen to, as their lead singer was recovering from surgery on his vocal chords. He explained and apologized, but I don't know who I felt more sorry for - him or us.

Redcloud
04-11-2012, 12:42 AM
Paul Young in about 2002 at Liverpool. Truly dreadful as was his singing. He just couldnt make the notes.

TimothyBFan
04-11-2012, 10:41 AM
Paul Young in about 2002 at Liverpool. Truly dreadful as was his singing. He just couldnt make the notes.

Really? I've never gotten to see him but would love to and figured he would be excellent in concert, his voice was always so soulful. He was one of my faves in the 80s. I treasure an autographed program that an :angel: from the Border sent me a while back. This saddens me. :worried:

SteveJoburg
04-17-2012, 02:33 AM
Bon Jovi in 1995... Not the bands fault, but they were the first rock band to play the then newly opened Jo'burg Athletic Stadium, (which thankfully is not used for concerts anymore) and it was too big and open and the sound evaporated before it got to the cheap seats where I was... I heard about three notes all night.

On the other side of the coin, I was given free tickets to see Richard Marx in 1994. I thought, what the hell, he does ballads and stuff... Went, he put on one of the best rock concerts I've ever seen. He was funny, his band was world class... And we all rushed the stage so my then girlfriend and I were standing with our hands on the stage a few inches from Richard... We (and I'm sure he and the band) had an absolute blast. He turned me into a fan for life.

sodascouts
04-17-2012, 03:48 PM
That sucks about Bon Jovi. I've never been to a concert, but I've heard they were good - too bad about the sound system.

Richard Marx, a great showman? I'd never have expected that!

zeldabjr
04-17-2012, 06:53 PM
I've seen Bon Jovi several times...they were alway good...my worst would have to be Billy Squier back in the early 80s at the Niagara Falls Convention Center...really bad acoustics there...wasn't built for concerts...and I got tired of watching him repeatedly...how can I delicately put it...be amorous with the stage...if you get my drift...

zelda