tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post2196495670751694686..comments2024-03-28T10:21:05.424-04:00Comments on PowerPop: Weekend Listomania (Prick Up Your Ears Edition)NYMaryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10863355110457910935noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-52958772505518955762007-09-11T07:05:00.000-04:002007-09-11T07:05:00.000-04:00Forgot one! The Grateful Dead, Dylan and Tom Pett...Forgot one! The Grateful Dead, Dylan and Tom Petty, RFK Stadium, July 6 1986. Skullcrushingly boring, hot as hell, and jam-packed with filthy, tripping assholes. Only Petty was in the slightest bit entertaining. Apparently Jerry Garcia went into a coma two weeks later - he was already well on his way by this show. I wouldn't listen to the Dead for 20 years after that BS show.Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13017034003391740148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-20604519755172050342007-09-10T14:18:00.000-04:002007-09-10T14:18:00.000-04:00Gawd, you'd never know I'm an editor. Forgive the ...Gawd, you'd never know I'm an editor. Forgive the mucho-typo post. Joey was the "least" of the four. Well, actually the last (surviving), too, but that wasn't my point.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-41605427522900253802007-09-10T14:16:00.000-04:002007-09-10T14:16:00.000-04:00Worst-ever? That'd be a three-way tie.1. Grateful ...Worst-ever? That'd be a three-way tie.<BR/><BR/>1. Grateful Dead, 1989. Oh-so-boring. In three plus hours they acknowledged the presence of the audience not once. I don't mean "Hello Atlanta!" but even looking up or mumbling. I own a dozen-plus GD studio albums, and the only song they did I had even HEARD before was a Dylan cover.<BR/><BR/>2. "Badfinger," 1982. This was the Joey-led version, as opposed to the also-touring-tehn Tommy version. The players didn't even seem to know the songs. And Joey, gove love'im, was always the last of the main four anyway.<BR/><BR/>3. Styx, Mr. Roboto Tour. They show opened with an incredibly inance long-form music video. Concept album? Ha! They really sucked.<BR/><BR/>Dishonorable mention: The Police at Bonnaroo 2007. See my feature in this month's SKOPE Magazine for details.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-83063077074070372222007-09-10T08:20:00.000-04:002007-09-10T08:20:00.000-04:00I mean, seriously -- how fucked up do you have to ...<I>I mean, seriously -- how fucked up do you have to be to get kicked out of fucking Guns & Roses.</I><BR/><BR/>I know, right? Although to be fair, we were pretty high that night ourselves. <BR/><BR/>I recently met a music photographer who told me a story about seeing a junked-up Axel Rose puking in his oxygen mask one night, then handing it to a roadie to clean. Gross!<BR/><BR/>Second worst show was the Bongos at the 9:30 Club, right before they broke up. They came on two hours late and Richie Barone was obviously coked out of his gourd. They played for barely 45 minutes then left. I find bad club shows to be terribly disappointing, more so than any of the bad stadium shows I've been subjected to (Rush, Waters-less Pink Floyd, Sammy Hagar-era Van Halen).Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13017034003391740148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-42594402768426938732007-09-09T20:07:00.000-04:002007-09-09T20:07:00.000-04:00Heather said... A too-fucked-up-play Guns & RosesI...<I>Heather said... <BR/>A too-fucked-up-play Guns & Roses<BR/></I><BR/><BR/>I always get a laugh thinking about the drummer they fired for being too fucked up.<BR/><BR/>I mean, seriously -- how fucked up do you have to be to get kicked out of fucking Guns & Roses.steve simelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13247393763004076992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-84377488389630129902007-09-09T18:19:00.000-04:002007-09-09T18:19:00.000-04:00A too-fucked-up-play Guns & Roses, October 1987, a...A too-fucked-up-play Guns & Roses, October 1987, at Hammerjack's in Baltimore - right before "Welcome to the Jungle" hit it big on MTV and they were still doing club shows. A friend was managing the record store at the U of Maryland student union, got the promo copy of the album, and insisted that "these guys were gonna be HUGE!" We paid $6, and the sucked so bad that we wanted it back.Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13017034003391740148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-49629784957217363002007-09-09T15:40:00.000-04:002007-09-09T15:40:00.000-04:00Peter Frampton in '76 (we went for the opening ban...Peter Frampton in '76 (we went for the opening band, J. Geils). He was on the knife-edge of being either a guitar hero or a teenybopper hero. He chose teenybopper.<BR/><BR/>Out of love for Mrs. Gummo, I went to see the Dave Matthews Band at Giants Stadium. Let's just say, luckily her ardor for Dave has cooled since then. Dull, dull, dull.<BR/><BR/>Just recently, saw Nick Cave's latest group, Grinderman, open for the White Stripes, and boy, did Grinderman suck. Think of a cross between Metallica and Pere Ubu, with none of the talent or quirky charm. They drove most of the audience out of the arena.<BR/><BR/>Richard Lloyd around '79, '80 at a NYC club. He could barely stand up. It was pitiful.<BR/><BR/>Over 20 years, I saw the Grateful Dead many times. They did some of the best shows I ever saw; they also did some of the WORST shows I ever saw. Talk about a crapshoot.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-25643438648621098192007-09-09T12:11:00.000-04:002007-09-09T12:11:00.000-04:00REM at Hoch Auditorium Kansas University, 1984 or ...REM at Hoch Auditorium Kansas University, 1984 or 1985. They were touring to support "The Reckoning". They gave no indication that they cared to actually all be playing the same song at the same time, and they were amped so loud, that even in the back row it was physically painful to listen. Only concert I ever walked out of.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-82042210330303706072007-09-09T02:09:00.000-04:002007-09-09T02:09:00.000-04:00Deep Purple in 76. They were definitely having an ...Deep Purple in 76. They were definitely having an off night and couldn't put it together, even for "Smoke on the Water".<BR/><BR/>But the opening act was Electric Light Orchestra, and they blew the roof off!Feralhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01110786176703420978noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-66270362913863934922007-09-09T00:20:00.000-04:002007-09-09T00:20:00.000-04:00Possibly the worst show I have ever seen. . .U2 i...Possibly the worst show I have ever seen. . .U2 in Omaha, NE in December 2005. Let me say it wasn't a bad show, I just haven't seen a ton of shows. I saw them in 1992, and it was awesome. This time . . .not so much. It appeared so staged. It was almost as if they really weren't playing live, it was so choreographed and directed that it lost the element of what I think live music should be - "Spontaneous." Granted I will say it was the third or second to last show of the tour, and they sounded really good. But I just couldn't get over how artificial it seemed. I will say that I was, and to some extent still am, a U2 fan. But that really took the luster off of them for me.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02541803254856101754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-36153386191842154502007-09-08T23:54:00.000-04:002007-09-08T23:54:00.000-04:00I knew Ira and his charming wife back in the day, ...I knew Ira and his charming wife back in the day, and I still don't get Yo La Tengo.<BR/><BR/>To me they were always Jon Tiven's little dopey brother band.steve simelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13247393763004076992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-21133924020958939682007-09-08T21:26:00.000-04:002007-09-08T21:26:00.000-04:00You know, tons of people have told me that Yo La T...You know, tons of people have told me that Yo La Tengo was great. I'd buy a disc, and it was inevitably dreadfully boring. Then someone else, would say, "No! Get "Summer Sun"! I'd buy it and it would be awful too. I did this about 4 times. I know better now.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-34873233602165455542007-09-08T15:25:00.000-04:002007-09-08T15:25:00.000-04:00Maybe Syd Straw on the night that she had obviousl...Maybe Syd Straw on the night that she had obviously smoked too much pot, and had an onstage meltdown eerily reminiscent of Ronee Blakely's in "Nashville?"<BR/> Buddy Guy! One of my running buddies worships him, but every time his endless yammering schtick has left me cold, cold, cold. Shut up and play yer guitar...<BR/> And it's sad to say that the only time I saw Townes Van Zandt, he was just staggeringly drunk and couldn't remember the words to his own songs. And I'll never have another chance...- Bill BucknerAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-4281092270664008552007-09-08T13:24:00.000-04:002007-09-08T13:24:00.000-04:00"She actually told me I was cute and that I remind..."She actually told me I was cute and that I reminded her of Phil."<BR/><BR/>No offense, steve, but that must have been the equivalent of an acid flashback for her.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-14171762131622446992007-09-08T13:23:00.000-04:002007-09-08T13:23:00.000-04:00My wife says Michael Penn at the Loring Pasta Bar ...My wife says Michael Penn at the Loring Pasta Bar was her worst show. She continues to love Michael Penn, but at this show he was performing to a very small audience and he seemed pinned to the very back of the stage where he kept yelling at the dishwasher, telling him to be more quiet. (The Aimee Mann birthday video made me write this.)<BR/><BR/>Rather than to pick on loud, amusical "hard rock" bands that all blurred together and that merely put me to sleep in auditorium seats in the late 1970s, let me nominate Yo La Tengo. I like Yo La Tengo and have seen them before and after their memorably bad show at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis, early 1990s. For this particular show, they were deafening in a literal sense, easily the loudest show I have ever seen, and were amusical as well (or perhaps so creative that I didn't get it.) The effect was beyond the worst of Rossington Collins. I still blame this particular show any time I can't hear something.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-20180988402969489722007-09-08T12:03:00.000-04:002007-09-08T12:03:00.000-04:00Was she sober when she recorded it? Oh yeah. But s...<I><BR/>Was she sober when she recorded it? </I><BR/><BR/>Oh yeah. But she was a notorious party animal at that point.<BR/><BR/>I met her at a party after a show where she sang with Springsteen in -- I think -- '78.<BR/>I was absolute jello in her presence -- I mean she was Ronni fucking Spector. Yipes, was she hot.<BR/><BR/>She actually told me I was cute and that I reminded her of Phil.steve simelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13247393763004076992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-83551519127719246642007-09-08T11:51:00.000-04:002007-09-08T11:51:00.000-04:00One of my oldest friends (and the drummer in my sk...<I>One of my oldest friends (and the drummer in my skinny tie band) played on that album and co-wrote one or more of the songs.... <BR/></I><BR/><BR/>Was she sober when she recorded it?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-12462390794993719152007-09-08T10:47:00.000-04:002007-09-08T10:47:00.000-04:00Kid Charlemagne said... I saw Ronnie Spector so...<I> Kid Charlemagne said...<BR/><BR/> I saw Ronnie Spector sometime in 1980 at the Youngstown Agora. She was touring for the recently released "Siren" LP.</I><BR/><BR/>One of my oldest friends (and the drummer in my skinny tie band) played on that album and co-wrote one or more of the songs....steve simelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13247393763004076992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-41283463194636741992007-09-08T09:35:00.000-04:002007-09-08T09:35:00.000-04:00Mojo Nixon.Now that is a funny guy. I think that ...Mojo Nixon.<BR/><BR/>Now that is a funny guy. I think that he's got a radio show on Sirius called Lying Cocksuckers.<BR/><BR/>Brilliant.Cleveland Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12514937281212775227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-55062537948695370402007-09-08T09:01:00.000-04:002007-09-08T09:01:00.000-04:00Of course the cop won the tussle and after the fra...<I><BR/>Of course the cop won the tussle and after the fracas we found the youth's jean jacket had been left behind with the aforementioned 4 floor seats and a small bag of some pretty decent weed.<BR/><BR/>We thought that we had the jackpot...until the Eagles took the stage.</I><BR/><BR/>Fucking hilarious.<BR/><BR/>"The Boys of Summer" notwithstanding, Mojo Nixon had it right...steve simelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13247393763004076992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-80903492936478565272007-09-08T08:57:00.000-04:002007-09-08T08:57:00.000-04:00The Eagles, circa 1977, Richfield Coliseum.While t...The Eagles, circa 1977, Richfield Coliseum.<BR/><BR/>While technically proficient, they captured the bloat that stadium rock was wallowing in at the time to a tee.<BR/><BR/>Excruciatingly dull and lifeless was their performance and we were within 20 rows of the stage in great floor seats!<BR/><BR/>We had acquired said tickets while loitering in the mens room "making a deal" when some kid comes dashing into a stall with a Cleveland city cop in close pursuit.<BR/><BR/>Of course the cop won the tussle and after the fracas we found the youth's jean jacket had been left behind with the aforementioned 4 floor seats and a small bag of some pretty decent weed.<BR/><BR/>We thought that we had the jackpot...until the Eagles took the stage.Cleveland Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12514937281212775227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-7914277045228635782007-09-08T07:42:00.000-04:002007-09-08T07:42:00.000-04:00When the giant inflatable pig "floated" over the s...<I>When the giant inflatable pig "floated" over the stadium the entire stadium erupted. I spoiled it for the girl sitting next to me and told her there was a wire holding the pig up. Pretty sure that ruined my very remote chances of a meaningful relationship with her but I couldn't resist.</I><BR/><BR/>Spoilsport. ;)NYMaryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10863355110457910935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-17506543868195712782007-09-08T05:30:00.000-04:002007-09-08T05:30:00.000-04:00I was sitting with Townes during Martin's set, and...<I>I was sitting with Townes during Martin's set, and when I asked him what he thought, he deadpanned, "I'm enjoying the theatrics."<BR/><BR/>9/07/2007 5:34 PM </I><BR/><BR/>Oh dear god.<BR/>:-)steve simelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13247393763004076992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-67972655794567532972007-09-08T00:39:00.000-04:002007-09-08T00:39:00.000-04:00It was July 6, 1975, the venue was the Cotton Bowl...It was July 6, 1975, the venue was the Cotton Bowl at State Fair Park in Dallas, mid-July, on a sun-baked 100 degree day.<BR/><BR/>Four bands. Openers Montrose followed by power trio Trapeze. Both gawd-awful beyond belief, heinous boogie and guitar wanking, the heat and pot stench almost overwhelming. Then the Eagles, just prior to their "glory" days bored me to tears with such fare as "Already Gone", etc. Finally, the Rolling Stones appeared early evening, accompanied by the infamous giant inflatable penis. Frankly I don't remember if Mick Taylor was still around by then, and I have no good memories of their performance, just lots of mincing by Jagger and sloppy playing by the rest of the boys.Mister Pleasanthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15525855662696903836noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8921382.post-71563131573947887332007-09-07T17:34:00.000-04:002007-09-07T17:34:00.000-04:00Some boy when I was in college was trying to win m...Some boy when I was in college was trying to win my heart. He took me on a date to a surprise concert. We had to take the train to some sports arena outside the city... for...<BR/><BR/>Jethro Tull!<BR/><BR/>Needless to say, we were not a good match! But, although I remember nothing about the concert and less about the boy, it was still fun because it was so bizarre.<BR/><BR/>And just so I can keep mentioning Townes Van Zandt whenever possible: I had to endure Martin Sexton opening for him once (I know you said no opening bands, but...) I was sitting with Townes during Martin's set, and when I asked him what he thought, he deadpanned, "I'm enjoying the theatrics."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com