Music Quality, live VS recorded

[MattsPrincess]

Dh and I went to a big concert tonight. We always end up discussing if we were impressed by or disappointed in the way the performer sounds live. What are some shows you've gone to and been blown away by how good they sounded? How about the ones you leave feeling like it wasn't worth the money because they sounded bad? For me:

Blown Away/amazing:
Switchfoot
The Offspring
Flogging Molly
Sum 41
Reel Big Fish (this I can say is consistant..i've been to a few shows and they always sound great)
Abney Park

Bad:
The Used - just awful. The singer kept forgetting words, and bragged about it being because he was so stoned
The Misfits
Black Label Society

 

[Micca]

I've been going to concerts for 40 years and have seen very few bad shows.
Among the stinkers were Huey Lewis & the News--BORING I'm also among the few who saw Led Zeppelin and was non-plussed. Saw Smashing Pumpkins at the height of their popularity and thought I'd heard better bands in a bar. The best shows I've seen in the past few years were Paul McCartney, Springsteen and Neil Young.

BTW MattsPrincess, thanks for mentioning Reel Big Fish, hadn't thought of them in a long time.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

My last concert was Kansas, Foreigner, & Styx and they were fantastic.

Clapton, Aerosmith, REO, Paul McCartney, and Fleetwood Mac.....all great.

Then again all of them can sing. Kansas singing Dust in the Wind was awesome.

Clapton will grab his guitar and go a capella.

 

[The Iron Giant]

Pearl Jam is the best live band on the planet. I've seen them 32 times and have been blown away every time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjaSfvSQu0Q

 

[suejai]

Celine Dion was way better live.
The Eagles - it's hard to believe that they can do those harmonies live, but they do.

Elton John - I've seen him twice and he was BORING both times. I guess Edmonton doesn't excite him, he just goes through the motions and collects his cash.

And back in the 80's Chris de Burgh was always very good in concert.

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

With the exception of PJ Harvey's opening act for U2 a while back, I've never been to a bad concert. I would guess that's because I simply love live music. I will listen to music I don't really like if it's live that I wouldn't normally listen to otherwise.

I would have to say the best concert I've ever been to was Rush. They put on an unbelievable show... and it's just them. No openers. At least that's what it was like when I saw them a couple years ago.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

With the exception of PJ Harvey's opening act for U2 a while back, I've never been to a bad concert. I would guess that's because I simply love live music. I will listen to music I don't really like if it's live that I wouldn't normally listen to otherwise.

I would have to say the best concert I've ever been to was Rush. They put on an unbelievable show... and it's just them. No openers. At least that's what it was like when I saw them a couple years ago.

You know my 14yodd has "discovered" RUSH a few weeks ago. She called me to her room to say "hey mom listen to this song, it is called 'Tom Sawyer' ". Oh so cute.

If they are still touring that would be an awesome first concert. She has never been to one yet.

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

You know my 14yodd has "discovered" RUSH a few weeks ago. She called me to her room to say "hey mom listen to this song, it is called 'Tom Sawyer' ". Oh so cute.

If they are still touring that would be an awesome first concert. She has never been to one yet.

They're in the middle of a tour right now, I think...

 

[The Mystery Machine]

They're in the middle of a tour right now, I think...

I will check it out.

 

[dawson5]

DMB always puts on a great show, never been disappointed yet. Even love the openers.
Grateful Dead, the shows I've seen have been good. I do know that is a crapshoot though.
Crosby, Stills and Nash. I walked away hoping to see them again. I don't like political diatribes in shows, they do that quite often, but I would still go see them again. Voices have aged, but the harmony is still there. Stills is still amazing on guitar.

I've seen Aerosmith a few times now, I just have never been impressed. Maybe it was when I saw them, I believe it was when they just started touring again. I was more impressed with their openers (Ted Nugent and Guns & Roses) than I was with them.

I've always wondered about Phil Collins, went years ago and he sounded like a record. No life, nothing. He sounded perfect but clinical (? don't know how to describe the sound).

The one that surprised me the most was Sheila E. She opened for Prince and I was just amazed by the energy she had and her playing. I did not expect that from that type of concert. Prince wasn't bad, but I walked away talking more about her and her playing than I did him.

Primus is definitely fun.
John Mellencamp is consistent--to the point that it's almost always the same setlist. He sounds good, but would not go to back to back shows.
Steely Dan consistent and good, nothing to write home about.

Not a country fan but have seen Kenny Chesney a few times (hubby likes him) and he puts on a good show. Doesn't sound bad at all.

 

[Abbeys_mom]

DH and I have seen about 200 artists, mostly before child.

The best:
String Cheese Incident - we were never disappointed. That right there is about a dozen shows. In fact, using the Internet Archive, I was able to download a FREE soundboard recording of my first show. It was AMAZING to relive that moment, especially when a few Dead band members came out and played Estimated Prophet.

Michael Franti, before he went mainstream. Talk about crazy energy!

Billy Joel. 'Nuff said.

Simon & Garfunkl Old Friends Tour - wow. The harmonies were still there, and they were nice to each other on stage. The Everly Brothers came out on stage and had the place going wild.

U2 - Now that is a SHOW. They go beyond the music to make it a production.

DMB - about a dozen times, always interesting. The worst show was at PacBell Park (which was the first concert ever there), the acoustics were awful and Macy Gray the opener was like nails on a chalkboard.

I could go on and on about a ton of jam bands and West Coast Jazz bands that were over the top, huge energy, shows like Greyboy Allstars, Galactic, Keller Williams, Ozomatli. We love live shows!

The worst shows:
John Lee Hooker - he was on my list of those living legends. We saw him about two months before he passed, and it was like watching a depressed caged animal, who was drooling and propped up on a chair. I cried.

Maktub - they could have made it HUGE if their lead singer was not always coked out of his gourd. He could not remember words and was manic on stage. I love their studio recordings, but saw them live twice and was disappointed.

Great thread! DH and I just had a 20 minute conversation about a bunch of these shows.

 

[rszdtrvl]

We have a small theatre in town that shows live acts, but have only been to a few.

We saw Leann Rimes live and she was AMAZING! Her voice is pure gold! Would see her again in a heartbeat as we could only stay for half of the concert because DS was sick.

We saw Randy Travis (going back to see him in August) and his voice is great too!

Not live, but we saw a live concert of The Black Eyed Peas on tv and thought they sounded awful. (Not the superbowl - it was some sort of actual concert.)

 

[tvguy]

I never expect a live concert to sound as good as something recorded in the perfect world of the studio. Now the energy of the performer can overcome that.
My kids went to see Paul McCartney in San Francisco........and they said the sound was okay, but the special effects made the show.