The "First Concert Ever" Thread

[Five Alive]

I like to ask this at the bar, sometimes you get really fun answers.

"What was the first concert you ever went to?"

And please speak up even if it was "Debbie Gibson at Six Flags" or "Eddie Money at the County Fair", that's how it is for lots of people...

---
I'll start, dating myself badly:

When I was eleven, my friend's older sister was forced by her mom to take us along to the see:

The Police on the Synchronicty Tour @ Hollywood Park Race Track in Inglewood, CA... 1983.

Opening bands were The Thompson Twins, The Fixx and Berlin all of which were in pretty heavy rotation on the relatively new MTV at the time.

I got crushed by a bunch of much bigger teenagers. I didn't know even half the songs... but at eleven it was all so stupefyingly awesome.

I wish I could find that family again and thank that mom.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to another show until deep in my High School years, seeing a really good Midnight Oil show...

How about you?

[stevedave]

The Dogs D'Amour at The Cliff's Pavillion in West Cliff, Southend. 1988. Support from Underneath What.
We snuck in. Couldn't afford tickets.
About a week before Monsters Of Rock at Donnington. Iron Maiden, Kiss, David Lee Roth, Megadeth, Guns N' Roses and Helloween.
Awesome old school festival. Fire, bikers, Jack Daniels. However there was a bad crush during GNR. Two kids died.

[biblesalesman]

It was either CSN&Y with Joni Mitchell and jesse Colin Young. Or The Beach Boys.
Not really sure.

[anniehall]

first concert was Chicago, the band, at PNC Bank Arts center in Jersey the summer of 2002?
I saw Bruce at Giants stadium less than a week later.

my first punk show that wasn't local was Motion City Soundtrack and Limbeck at Starland Ballroom in 2004 or so.

[john k]

stiff little fingers - tv club dublin november 9 1982
the tv club was a great venue and played host to many of the greatest shows i was ever at. i saw johnny thunders, the ramones, the fall, slf, the undertones, big country, the alarm and many more there. its now a block of flats.

[stevedave]

I wish I'd seen The Ramones. I had the chance more than once...

[Five Alive]

Jan 16, 2009 14:32:08 GMT -5 john k said:

stiff little fingers - tv club dublin november 9 1982
the tv club was a great venue and played host to many of the greatest shows i was ever at. i saw johnny thunders, the ramones, the fall, slf, the undertones, big country, the alarm and many more there. its now a block of flats.

That's a hot one. "Suspect Device" is an all-time destroyer punk song.

[stephanie]

Pop Will Eat Itself, opening for Nine Inch Nails on 18 January 1995 at MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, WI. Mum let me take the day off school to bundle up and go wait in line alllllllll day. Got there bright and early in the morning. I was 12 years old and I had very very long green hair and all the adorable goths following NIN around the country adopted me as one of their own and stuck me front and center, where I howled for Trent until I lost my voice and was promptly knocked unconscious by a crowd surfer. Woke up on a stretcher covered with ice, immediately jumped off and took a flying leap back into the mosh pit, and the rest is history.

PWEI were the first band I ever saw live, favorite band of all time by miles and miles.

[gushingblood]

Oasis in Manchester.

I am a complete nerd who has compiled a gig booklet, where I find the setlist and details of the show. So I now have a record of all the gigs that I have been to

[katieee]

Jan 16, 2009 14:29:55 GMT -5 anniehall said:

my first punk show that wasn't local was Motion City Soundtrack and Limbeck at Starland Ballroom in 2004 or so.

I was there!! With Tsunami Bomb, right?

okay so my first ever concert was LMNT in the Macy's parking lot. AKA all the people who didn't make "Making the Band" and they formed their own band and I was like 11 and a really big Making the Band fan.

Other than that. SUGARCULT. in 2003. it was school picture day, I remember. so sometime in September.
Krome Nightclub, South Amboy, NJ
My mom and dad drove my friends and I in the mini-van. I had BEGGED my parents to let me go to a "punk" concert. But they were all in sketchy neighborhoods in NJ so I wasn't allowed to go to a show until I was in high school.
We got there about when the doors opened and we ran right up to the stage and couldn't believe that there weren't like a million people there and I couldn't believe how lucky we were that we got right in front of the stage.
I screamed every single word and Marko72 gave me his guitar pic and I almost died. Afterwards we saw the band in the parking lot, got pictures with them, autographs. I thought I was absolutely the coolest kid in the entire universe. I wore the tour t-shirt the next day in school and told absolutely EVERYONE about the concert and it did not occur to me once that they weren't really famous and nobody cared about the show. I also thought it was SO badass because my pants smelled like cigarettes and I wore an obscene amount of eyeliner.

[sketchyjoe]

Bowling For Soup supported by Jesse James and Farse. I was 15, me and three of my mates went, one of whom was there for the soundcheck as he was dating the daughter of the club owner. We were right up by the barrier in front of the fat dude from BFS. We got groped by a middle-aged woman standing behind us, which was almost as cool as all the music and dancing.

[stuckbetween]

Voice of the Beehive at Wolverhampton Civic in November 1988!

[john k]

Jan 16, 2009 14:36:13 GMT -5 stevedave said:

I wish I'd seen The Ramones. I had the chance more than once...

definitely one of the loudest and fastest bands i've ever seen. my ears were ringing for a week afterwards.

[anniehall]

Jan 16, 2009 15:34:04 GMT -5 katieee said:

Jan 16, 2009 14:29:55 GMT -5 anniehall said:

my first punk show that wasn't local was Motion City Soundtrack and Limbeck at Starland Ballroom in 2004 or so.

I was there!! With Tsunami Bomb, right?

haha YEAH

[mashablues]

Jan 16, 2009 14:00:24 GMT -5 stevedave said:

The Dogs D'Amour at The Cliff's Pavillion in West Cliff, Southend. 1988. Support from Underneath What.

I saw The Dogs D'Amour in Ipswich in 1989. Can't remember a thing about it now! First gig was Queen at Wembley Arena in 1985 which was awesome. I saw The Boomtown Rats pretty soon after that I think as I can remember Geldof plugging Live Aid. Ipswich used to be quite a big draw for bands back in the 80s and I also saw Ozzy, Meat Loaf, Blue Oyster Cult, Uli Roth, Hawkwind, UFO, Gary Moore and Big Country amongst others. Things have changed now unfortunately although Rufus Wainwright visited last year at the end of his tour which was a bit random.

stevedave said:

I am a complete nerd who has compiled a gig booklet, where I find the setlist and details of the show. So I now have a record of all the gigs that I have been to

This is a good idea! I've kept all my gig tickets over the years and display them in clip frames!

[212margarita]

My first concert ever was the '97 KROQ weenie roast. It was such an awesome show, i went with my best friend. The lineup was:

Third Eye Blind
Reel Big Fish
Squirrel Nut Zippers
Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Everclear
The Foo Fighters
Radiohead
The Offspring
Social Distortion
Wallflowers
The Chemical Brothers
Oasis
The Cure
Blur
Echo and The Bunnymen

[brady]

My first concert was Weird Al.

[Rhinovirus]

I seem to remember sitting in the grass with my parents at a very young age listening to The Moody Blues, whether that was a cover band or not I haven't the slightest clue.

First concert that I went to of my own choice was Smashing Pumpkins in 95. It was the Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness tour. Even though I will never go to any arena show again in my life, unless free of course, it was so great to walk out, ears buzzing, and voice harsh and crackling.

[john k]

Jan 16, 2009 14:56:41 GMT -5 Five Alive said:

Jan 16, 2009 14:32:08 GMT -5 john k said:

stiff little fingers - tv club dublin november 9 1982
the tv club was a great venue and played host to many of the greatest shows i was ever at. i saw johnny thunders, the ramones, the fall, slf, the undertones, big country, the alarm and many more there. its now a block of flats.

That's a hot one. "Suspect Device" is an all-time destroyer punk song.

fingers still cut it live. the last time i saw them was last summer with the stooges(RIP Ron).

[Five Alive]

Jan 16, 2009 17:33:39 GMT -5 brady said:

My first concert was Weird Al.

Now that's what I'm talking about!

[Five Alive]

Jan 16, 2009 17:23:29 GMT -5 212margarita said:

My first concert ever was the '97 KROQ weenie roast.

Maybe my third or fourth show was the first ever KROQ "Acoustic" Christmas... must of been Dec. '89.

Social D (stand up bass, small rockabilly drum set... but Mike Ness plugged in?)... Dramarama, Chris Isaak, Trashcan Sinatras...

I think you got the better end of the KROQ deal.

[ando1712]

The Angels played at my school in about 86, I saw AC/DC around then as well at the Melbourne Tennis Centre.

The first pub gig I went to was The Crown of Thorns at the Punters Club followed by the Meanies & the Nursery Chrimes at the Richmond Club

[Admin]

Q101's Twisted 8. December 13, 2001.

I had just turned sixteen. It was a radio holiday show.

Blink 182
Sum 41
311
Puddle of Mudd
Crystal Method.

Got there late and missed Pete Yorn and Alien Ant Farm. Mercificully missed almost all of Puddle of Mudd.

[biblesalesman]

Jan 16, 2009 16:18:34 GMT -5 john k said:

Jan 16, 2009 14:36:13 GMT -5 stevedave said:

I wish I'd seen The Ramones. I had the chance more than once...

definitely one of the loudest and fastest bands i've ever seen. my ears were ringing for a week afterwards.

Ever hear The Ramones album 1978? I was at that show at The old Palladium on 14th street. And many more before...

[ct]

first concert for me was Waylon Jennings.....

not too long after that one Johnny Cash......

i got a good start on my concerts.....