Thursday Thirteen #6- Favorite Live Performances




Thirteen Memorable Live Performances Seeing a live performance is one of my favorite things to do. For a small venue, it offers the opportunity to see an artist up close and personal. On the other hand, the arena sized shows gives you the chance to party with thousands of other fans. Below are some of my favorite live shows (in no particular order). 1. Run DMC/The Beastie Boys in 1987- Not only was this a cool show, but it was also my first ever concert! I think I still might have the concert T-shirt buried somewhere. 2. Lollapalooza 92- among the artists in the lineup for this show were The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ice Cube, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Ministry. While standing at the top of the hill during Ministry's performance, a swarm of people surrounding a small-statured man headed in my direction from the left. I stuck my hand out and gave the small-statured man the "soul brother" handshake. That man was Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. 3. The Temptations in the late 1980s- The Tempts were the featured act for the annual U.P. Sports Festival (held in Marquette, MI) that year. Although the outdoor show was in July, the temperature dipped down to 36 degrees that night! Since our apt. was in walking distance, me and my girlfriend went home to get our winter wear before the show started. I remember that The Tempts had the lapels on their suits turned up because it was so cold. 4. R.E.M. in 1995- For rear stage seating, our view was pretty good. Lead singer Michael Stipe also turned around on occasion to play to those of us not facing the front. Directly behind us were some teenyboppers who were shrieking, "We love you Michael Stipe!" It was funny without being annoying. However, it did give me the feeling that I was at an NKOTB concert as opposed to an R.E.M. show. 5. Patti Labelle/Gerald Levert in 1998 or 1999. Patti was in superb form as was to be expected. During the show, she went on a rant regarding the poor service she received at Fishbones (a popular Detroit restaurant). Ironically, that is where me and my then girlfriend had dinner before the show. Luckily, we didn't run into the problems that Ms. Labelle did. The surprising thing about the concert is that the late Gerald Levert outperformed Patti... which isn't easy to do. You could tell that Gerald learned alot about live performing from his dad Eddie (of the Ojays). 6. Def Leppard/Journey in 2006- One of the funny things about this show is that the singer who replaced Steve Perry was sick and didn't perform. That meant that we saw a replacement for the replacement. However, the stand-in did a helluva job. Joe Elliot of Def Leppard sounded as good as he did during the Pyromania days. As side entertainment, there were 2 ladies (I called them The Banger Sisters) in the row in front of us. Wearing their sequined tops and shaking their teased hair all over, they were partying like it was 1987! 7. Daryl Hall & John Oates in 1996- Although I have seen them 3 times in 3 different years, I chose the 1st show as my favorite. Since it would be next to impossible for them to include all of their hits, I forgive them for omitting "Private Eyes" (one of my personal favorites). They more than made up for it with a mix of classics and tunes from their then upcoming CD (Marigold Sky). During their encores, they also covered such classics as "Hot Fun In the Summertime" and "Me and Mrs. Jones". 8. Chris Rock in 2003- There were no pyrotechnics or booming PA announcer to introduce Chris, he simply walked onstage to thunderous applause. I found this to be a pretty cool effect. I read in an interview that Chris picked this up from a U2 show that he saw. Chris had us cracking up all night with jokes about late night trips to ATMs, the reality show "The Bachelor", and the Detroit Lions among others. He definitely gave my stomach muscles a good workout. 9. The Police just 2 weeks ago- Since I wrote about this show in great detail the day after the concert, I won't rehash it. However, the concert was such that I had to include it on this TT. You can click here if you would like to read about it. 10. Living Colour & Candlebox in 1994- Since this show was in Kalamazoo, MI, I had to travel a few hours to see it. Because I had worked earlier that day and didn't get a chance to take a nap, I fell asleep briefly during the Candlebox segment (those theater seats were comfy as hell). However, I did wake up in time to see all of Living Colour's set. One of the songs that they performed was "Elvis Is Dead". At the end of the studio version of this tune is the line, "Elvis has left the building". For the live version, lead vocalist Corey Glover proclaimed, "Elvis has left the bleepin' planet!" 11. Felix Cavaliere's Rascals in 2002- Felix sang and played his ass off that night! One of the highlights was a medley of classic oldies that he mixed in by other artists such as Chuck Berry and Marvin Gaye. Since Felix had forgotten one of the lines in "Maybellene", he sang about this fact in place of the line and didn't miss a beat. After the show, I got a chance to meet Felix and get his autograph on the booklet for my copy of the 2-CD set "The Rascals Anthology, 1965-1972". 12. The Lovin' Spoonful in 2001- Since she knew I was a big fan of The Spoonful, a dear friend and former co-worker asked if I wanted to go with her to a free concert they were giving in Flushing, MI. Since John Sebastian (the original lead singer) was no longer with the band, I was somewhat skeptical. As the show was about to start, orig. drummer and current lead singer Joe Butler strapped on the autoharp (which was a trademark of Sebastian). When I saw this, I said to myself, "These guys mean business." The band seemed to really enjoy playing for us. In addition to their hits, they also played some of their lesser known tunes that only a Spoonful freak such as I would know. They also did a medley of tunes by some of their folk-rock contemporaries like The Mamas and Papas, The Association, and The Byrds. 13. India.Arie in 2006- One of the benefits of my job is that recording artists often come to the office building where I work. One of the things that struck me is that India was smaller than I expected. She performed songs from her then upcoming CD "Testimony Vol. 1- Life and Relationship". India mentioned that the singular form of "relationship" in the title was intentional. Seeing India perform in an intimate setting was perfect for her style of music. After the performance, I got her autograph on my copy of her 1st CD... as well as a hug! Links to other Thursday Thirteens! (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!) 1. Lori does her best Heloise impersonation and shares 13 helpful household hints. 2. Ben Clapton provides 13 reasons you should have a cup of joe. 3. Mama Lee offers an extended and hilariously twisted TT this week. She lists rejected Dr. Seuss titles and Little Golden Books that never made it. 4. Pay a visit to Lori's Old School Mix... she also lists 13 of her favorite live shows. 5. Robin tells us about 13 things she has planned with her 3 1/2 year old daughter while her husband and son are visiting the U.S. 6. Ed lists 13 of his faves from the small screen. He even includes You Tube links as well! 7. The Gal Herself has a TT that deals with the perils of dog fighting. 8. Dana tells you about 13 things that she wouldn't want to live without. 9. The Crux shares 13 quotes by "The Sage of Baltimore", H.L. Mencken. 10. Holly lists 13 of her pet names. 11. Yoshi has a TT that'll make your mouth water! 12. The Rock Chick tells you how an illness of hers was misdiagnosed 13 times! 13. Book Mama shares 13 things she did on her one week vacation.




Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants