What Was the First Band You Saw in Concert?

[my66s55]

The first group I saw was Smokey Robinson and the Miricles in 1961. I'm from Northwest Detroit suburbs, so I saw a number of singers and groups.  

[StevenGuthmiller]

If we're talking about the best show I ever saw, it was without a doubt the Roger Waters "Wall" tour in 2010!

Went to see it again in 2012.

Amazing!

 

And actually, the first band I probably ever saw was The Beach Boys at the Minnesota State Fair some time in the 80s.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

Edited April 26, 2020 by StevenGuthmiller

[Rob Hall]

First was Van Halen in 1986, was in high school and went with a group of friends.   

Best is hard to pick, been to a lot of shows over the last 30+ years, esp. the last 20 years.  It might have been David Gilmour in 2004.   Though the many U2 shows I saw in the '00s were great, incl. Pearl Jam opening for U2 in Hawaii in 2006...Rolling Stones in '03 and The Who in '06 were great also. 

Most recent was Dave Mason in March of this year.

[DonW]

3 hours ago, TarheelRick said:

Black Sabbath, 1972 at Lawrence Joel Veterans Coliseum in Winston-Salem, NC; for some reason my mind was a bit fuzzy when I left.

My ears were ringing for 3 days after I saw them in '76. The car sounded awfully quiet on the way home!

[Tom Geiger]

I’m not sure what was the very first. The summer after I graduated high school was the first time I had a drivers license to go to concerts. Summer of 1976.

That year there was a concert series at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, NJ. I saw The Eagles, Yes and Kiss there. Then someone got stabbed at a concert there and the city canceled the rest of the schedule!  Today the stadium site is condos! 

[curt raitz]

Everly Brothers 1964 Santa Clara County Fairgrounds

 

[vamach1]

Grand Funk Railroad @ the Capital Centre in I think 1974.  I'll post the ticket stub later.  I think it was $6 plus maybe a 50 cent service fee for floor seats.  My how have times changed.

Favorite GFR songs We're and American Band and I'm your Captain.

Last conccerts I saw (last two years) were Eagles, ELO, Blue Oyster Cult , the Hooters and Ozzie Osborne.

I was not a big Ozzie fan but I won the tickets.  All of the the shows were very good but the ticket prices for the Eagles and ELO were $$$$.  The Hooters tickets were maybe $30 last year in a small venue in Clearwater FL.

 

 

Edited April 26, 2020 by vamach1

[vintagerpm]

Rick Wakeman
Hofheinz Pavilion, on the University of Houston campus
September 1974

[charlie8575]

"Real" concert was probably the Boston Pops in 1999.

After that, I've been to Rascal Flatts (great show), Steely Dan in 2016 with Traffic opening. That was fun, although there were a couple of songs we wished they'd play, and Asia with Journey in 2017, that was phenomenal. If possible, assuming Cancel the World ends, I might go see Alanis Morrissette this year.

Charlie Larkin

[Earl Marischal]

Hawkwind and Man double bill, Slough Community Centre, 1971.

steve

[DonW]

16 minutes ago, Earl Marischal said:

Hawkwind and Man double bill, Slough Community Centre, 1971.

steve

Nice!

I got to know Martin Ace (he sometimes played with Man) a bit in the last decade, he played with a drummer friend of ours regularly in a gigging rock'n'roll band.

Love Man, never saw them.

Was Lemmy with Hawkwind when you saw them?

Cheers,

-Don. 

[BaBaBooey]

Charlie Daniel's Band. Mid 90s at the county fair.

[landman]

Can't remember which was first, either Steppenwolf or Sly and the Family Stone, 1968.

[RichCostello]

19 hours ago, Bucky said:

Three Dog Night...1972...Nashville, Tn.

Me too! Same band, same year...Sioux City, IA.

Saw a girl there wearing bib overalls with no shirt, knew I was going to a lot more concerts!

[iamsuperdan]

1988

Scorpions with Kingdom Come opening.

 

[Dentz]

Neil Diamond. Cobo Hall, Detroit '86.

First on my own, AC/DC Razors Edge tour, Palace, Detroit '91 I think?

Best.. Black Sabbath reunion tour, Pantera opened..Dime Bag melted my face!. Palace, 2000 I think?

tied with Weird Al in 2015  Casino Windsor (absolutely loved that show. I'm a massive Weird Al Nut)

[Lunajammer]

The Fixx, 1984. Lead singer Cy Curnin was in a full leg cast, yet he still hobbled around through his concert movements. Weird.

[ChrisBcritter]

Jan and Dean with Papa Doo Run Run, Mill Run Theatre in Niles, IL, August 1980. It was tough for Jan with the brain injury, but he made it through. They closed with, of all things, "Brown Sugar"!

Edited April 27, 2020 by ChrisBcritter

[Foxer]

Jethro Tull at Trinity College in 1969, sitting on a gym floor with Ian Anderson kicking his leg over my head as he played a flute!. They were little known and this had to be their first US Tour. I was a fan to the end!

[James2]

J. Geils, mid 70's in the North HS auditorium.

[Jantrix]

All right, no laughing now. ?  My first concert was these guys. Back in the late seventies they had their own TV show and my folks loved the 50's music, so I watched it and liked it. My folks got tickets when they came to Long Island, in '78 when I was 10. For those that aren't familiar with them, they were the band that played at the dance, in Grease. A young struggling comedian named Jay Leno was the opening act.

[GLMFAA1]

1965: Lovin spoonful with John Sabastian. Won front row seat tickets from local radio station.

greg

 

[Earl Marischal]

21 hours ago, DonW said:

Nice!

I got to know Martin Ace (he sometimes played with Man) a bit in the last decade, he played with a drummer friend of ours regularly in a gigging rock'n'roll band.

Love Man, never saw them.

Was Lemmy with Hawkwind when you saw them?

Cheers,

-Don. 

I believe he was. Saw Hawkwind several times subsequently both with him and after he had left. One time I saw them Motörhead were the support band.

steve

[Mike999]

The Beach Boys at the Clemson University field house in spring of 1968.  Their opening acts were Strawberry Alarm Clock and Buffalo Springfield. (!!!)

That was a really strange concert tour, according to the book "Heroes & Villains" by Steven Gaines.  The Beach Boys paid for it themselves and it was a disaster.  Martin Luther King had just been killed and many other things were happening in the spring of '68, mostly bad.  Many venues cancelled the Beach Boys shows and the band lost a ton of money.  

[DonW]

1 hour ago, Earl Marischal said:

I believe he was. Saw Hawkwind several times subsequently both with him and after he had left. One time I saw them Motörhead were the support band.

steve

I once wrote to Motorhead to try to get sponsorship for a car I was racing. I got a letter back: 'Sorry, Don, the band ain't that rich.'

I saw Hawkwind after Lemmy left once. They weren't anything like the band they were before.

Saw Nik Turner solo too, playing outside a festival and painted completely silver, head to foot. Great sax man. I didn't like his new direction, as I remember - we just walked past.