Saw Iron Maiden at the Ruskin Arms in 1982 or 83. One of my fellow apprentices was friends with Clive Burr the then drummer, the gig was Tickets only. Released 24 hours in advance. My mate got given 4. After the set they just mingled in the bar.

One of the best gigs I've been to recently was Machinehead. They were doing a big arena tour that didn't include Scotland but uncle Rob loves coming to Scotland so during a break in the schedule, they put in 5 dates across small clubs in Scotland, probably a max of a couple of hundred people. (places like the Liquid rooms in Edinburgh) Intimate gig.

I've only done a few but in quite different venues.  We did Queen at Metro Arena in Newcastle (few thousand), Foo Fighters in the Stadium of Light in Sunderland (55,000 people) and the Levellers in York Barbican (few hundred).  Enjoyed all three thoroughly.

Sadly I'm rather inexperienced in live events compared to Adele, who travelled the country in her teens and has seen some really cool acts like Bob Dylan, Sex Pistols, Iggy Pop and dozens of others I can't remember.

I haven't been to a live event in decades.  I think the last time was to see Steeleye Span with my wife not long after we got married in 1981. Never was much for the big open air pop concerts.  I have an aversion to chemical toilets, mud and tents. 

At the old Guildford Civic Hall......

Status Quo (twice)
Wishbone Ash
Mott the Hoople
Rick Wakeman
Hawkwind
Gillan
10cc
Groundhogs
Genesis
Uriah Heep
Iron Maiden (Pre Bruce Dickinson)
Eric Clapton
Chaz & Dave

Pink Floyd (Earls Court)
Yes (twice) Empire Pool, Wembley (?)
Boston (Rainbow)

(I'm sure I've forgotten some from the Guildford Civic Hall !)

Last 'gig' was a Queen Tribute band, (Mercury ?) about 20 years ago

I never saw as many concerts as I would have liked to, and most I saw were in the period from the mid-80s to early 90s.  Only saw two bands in the last decade - Hawkwind up in Manchester on their 50th anniversary tour in 2019 (excellent) and Bonny Light Horsemen at the Union Chapel in London in February of this year (my eldest son treated me) - also v v good.

Back when I was young and almost single I saw the Michael Schenker Group, Black Sabbath (post Dio), Dio twice, Hawkwind 5 times (ahem), Jethro Tull, Rainbow, The Enid, Dumpy's Rusty nuts (double ahem), Marillion (on their Script tour, with Peter Hammill from VdGG as support), and Fairport Convention umpteen times (I also went four times to their Cropredy Festival where I caught quite a few other, generally rather niche, bands - but that included the superlative John Martyn playing an acoustic set with Danny Thompson).

Later on I caught Victoria Williams, the Jayhawks, Son Volt, David Crosby (RIP) with CPR, Bob Weir with Ratdog, Kate Rusby, David Swarbrick (with Eliza Carthy), Neil Young (and others, including Teenage Fanclub and Pearl Jam) at a London Fleadh, Richard Thompson (possibly 3 or 4 times, in various configurations), Roy Harper, King Crimson and - again too often (far too often) - the Cosmic Charlies (who were then the country's premier Grateful Dead cover band).

Looking back, a lot of these are a bit of a blur; but I remember well the phenomenal charisma of Fish with Marillion; the extraordinary affection poured out in a lovely small north London venue to Victoria Williams; David Crosby's voice still being magnificent despite his age; and the volcanic noise fest of Neil Young's inimitable guitar playing during Like a Hurricane and Down by the River.

Greatest regret?  Not catching the Grateful Dead either in London 1990 or in Boston in September i995 (I had tickets, but Jerry died a month before: they were long past their prime but I just wanted do experience the THING that was a Grateful Dead concert). Sad old hippy, I know...

Quote from: Techno 3 on 04 April 2023, 07:52:23 AM....
Groundhogs

The Groundhogs was one of the bands I would have liked to have seen.

Saw such diverse acts as 10cc, The Baker Gurvitz Army and Steeleye Span for nothing courtesy of a flatmate who worked in the box office of the Usher Hall in Edinburgh.

Only 2 for me - Thin Lizzy at Liverpool empire, and Linard Skinard, Meat Loaf, White Snake at Donington.

Not much for me - Mott the Hoople, Roxy Music and Argent, all at Sheffield City Hall.

Cheers,

Geoff 

Argent !

That's one I forgot from the Civic Hall.

The Groundhogs were great, Flaming pig. Abiding memory from that gig was calling them back for a second encore. They were completely knackered when they left the stage..

I forgot about the Spinners which we saw in Salisbury around the same time as Steeleye Span but I'm not sure if they count as rock or pop.  On reflection we went all the way to Stafford to see the Moody Blues at about the same time, if I remember right. They were massive at the time and had just come back from a tour in the US.  When I think about it, the Spinners were probably the last live performance we went to. They were doing a tour round BAOR as I remember and  were booked by the Sergeants Mess in Rheindahlen.  That would be in the late 1980s.  Lost interest in music generally about that time.

Seen relatively few bands in my time.

Saw David Bowie and Bruce Springsteen many years ago, both at The Wembley Arena (although I think it must have been the Empire Pool back then.

Rainbow and Paul Kossoff's Back Street Crawler at the Rainbow, Finsbury Park.

More recently Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes and George Thorogood at the Shepherds Bush Empire.

I've also seen a band called Kossoff...the Band Plays On a couple of times. They play the music of Free and BSC; as they are fronted by the former BSC lead singer I'm not sure you can call them a 'tribute band'.  They also have a brilliant guitarist who Simon Kirke (ex Free) said he would want in the line-up should Free ever reform.

Mainly I hear opera these days; ENO at the Coliseum or English Touring Opera and Scottish Opera at the Hackney Empire, but the Bowie, Alex Harvey and Stones CDs still come out on a regular basis. Shame I never saw Alex, he is said to have been very good.