Bob's Chat
I've been thinking recently about all the giants of blues & rock music who I've been fortunate to have seen perform live over the years.
Most of the ones I've seen were at concerts in Australia and mostly in the 1970s. There have been way too many to remember and to try and list them all so I'll just pick out some of the highlights, the ones who really blew me away and left vivid memories.
The Rolling Stones 1965 and again in 1973. First time it was the original early Stones with Brian Jones, doing "Not Fade Away" and "Mona", and more of those early classics. Then again in 1973, a very different Stones with Mick Taylor, also along for the ride were Bobby Keys and Nicky Hopkins. I have a vivid memory of Jagger singing "Midnight Rambler" and whacking the stage floor with his belt.
Johnny Cash, with June Carter, Mother Maybelle Carter & the Carter Sisters and Carl Perkins in 1973. Carl Perkins wasn't advertised as being on the show, so I was totally blown away when JC introduced Carl. Halfway through the show Carl did a set of his best known songs. And to see Mother Maybelle Carter and her daughters performing live was one of the highlights of my life. What a night of legends.
Bo Diddley 1973, I saw Bo play live numerous times over several tours he made. On a good night he was unbeatable, he could rock a crowd up into a frenzy. First time I saw Bo live he played the song Bo Diddley for around 35 minutes, every 5 minutes or so he'd crank the tension up a notch until he had the entire audience on their feet grooving along with him to that infectious driving rhythm. I can't think of any other guitar player who could play just one chord (with a few tricks thrown in) for over half an hour and have everyone screaming for more.
Some of the Guitar Legends I've seen live:
Freddie King
Buddy Guy
Eric Clapton
Jimmy Page (with Led Zep in 1972)
Roy Buchanan
Jeff Beck
Rory Gallagher
Mick Taylor
John McLaughlin (with Mahavishnu Orchestra + Jean-Luc Ponty)
Harvey Mandel (with Canned Heat)
Chuck Berry
I wasn't really a big Zep fan before I saw them perform live in Australia in 1972, their heavy rock songs were good but what did totally blow me away was the acoustic set they did in the middle of the show, that was incredible music: "Going to California", Bron-Yr-Aur Stomp", "That's the Way". I was stunned.
Anyway these are some of the best shows I've seen, how about you guys? Let us know what shows you've seen, which legends you have seen play live.
Thanks for that write-up: I always enjoy these occasional pieces about your music-related experiences. Although I've definitely slowed down in terms of going to live performances, I must have been to hundreds of shows over the years (partly because so many of my friends used to be in bands -- with the result that there was a decade or so when I was going out to gigs all the time). At any rate, I’ve probably been to see at least 60 or 70 “big name” artists, though a lot of those were in musical genres such as punk and progressive rock and what-not that I probably don’t need to get into for present purposes.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I too have seen the Rolling Stones, only it was during the “Some Girls” tour of 1978 – which means that I saw yet ANOTHER incarnation of the group than the two versions you’ve mentioned. And I’ve actually seen Bo Diddley as well. The irony in that case was that he was the OPENING act for the Clash. Now, no offense to the latter, but it’s always seemed to that having Bo Diddley billed lower than the Clash was a decidedly ass-backwards state of affairs!
As for some of the other gigs I’ve been to, the ones that might make sense to list here include Anita O'Day, Big Mama Thornton, The Blasters (and, separately, both Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin), Charlie Feathers, Charlie Gracie, Dave Van Ronk, Ella Mae Morse, Joe Maphis, Joe Pass, John Fahey, Lowell Fulson, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Rose Maddox, Rory Block, Roy Brown, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, and Weather Report. (As I say, there’s more; those are just some of the artists/groups that your post has now put me in mind of.) Oh, and let me also mention Dale Watson -- who I actually went to see just a couple of months ago.
Well done on this article, Bob! I can't say the same, because Lyon wasn't really a major concert venue—the biggest shows took place in Paris—but like you, I saw the Rolling Stones in Lyon in 1970 with Mick Taylor, Led Zeppelin in 1973, and the Grateful Dead in 1974 in Vincennes (three hours on stage)—incredible! Bob Seger in Paris, ZZ Top in 1980 in Paris, Joni Mitchell, Ry Cooder, Frank Zappa and others I'm forgetting, yes, the Pretty Things too, the original 1968 lineup... In 2004, for the reissue of the album “S.F. Sorrow,” a superb concert, I almost forgot Deep Purple in 1970 (In Rock tour), The Who too in 1972 and 1975, The Groundhogs and The Chicken Shack, with two great English guitarists who I think are underrated, Tony McPhee and Stan Webb in '73, Canned Heat with Harvey Mandel.
ReplyDeleteI only became interested in jazz in the early 80s, with the album “We Want Miles” by Miles Davis and John Coltrane, thanks to the French band Magma, since the Jazz Festival in Vienne, Miles Davis, Pharoah Sanders, Archie Shepp among others... As for blues, it's a complete desert for me in terms of concerts, that's all.
@Crab Devil: yep you've seen some good 'uns.
ReplyDelete@Patrick: looks like you saw the same Canned Heat as I did, still had the Bear, the Bear's brother on bass, Harvey on guit. Stan Webb was an interesting artist. In my opinion he was excellent but just not quite there to be a front man. Friends of mine saw him with Canned Heat in London in the mid 70s, they say he was outstanding.
ReplyDeleteYes, it must have been the same tour, in '74 with Harvey Mandel in Lyon at the Palais D'Hiver, yes, with Bob Hite's brother. Mandel had just released a very good album, “Shangrenade.” He's a great guitarist. I don't need to tell you that he played with Charley Musselwhite on “Stand Back!” before playing with Al Wilson's Canned Heat. Hey Bob, that's when I would have loved to see Canned Heat!
ReplyDelete@Patrick: Stand Back is a magnificent album, one of the best blues albums ever by a white artist. To this day it remains my most favorite Musselwhite album. It's sheer perfection. I also have Shangrenade. Al Wilson was certainly an impressive musician, however I got a bit sick of him in his later stuff when he was wallowing around in self pity a bit too much for my liking. I realize the poor guy had mental issues. It would have been great to have seen Canned Heat when they made that live album the live Refried Boogie. Al Wilson's open tuning intro and then the first solo is spectacular. Back in my musician days in the early 1970s I got a more advanced musician than myself to teach me how to play the Al Wilson parts of that boogie in open G. I still remember most of it today. Lot's of it comes from Hooker.
ReplyDeleteLucky you!!!!
ReplyDelete👍😁👋
DeleteI was late starter re Live Shows.
ReplyDeleteBob Dylan 1st concert PEC 1986, Haven't missed one since
Albert Collins
George Thorogood
Emmy Lou Harris
Bill Chambers
Jethro Tull - PEC
BB King PEC
Deep Purple PEC
John Hammond
Tony Joe White
Buddy Guy - Perth Concert Hall (Dave Hole did a set with Buddy)
Taj Mahal
Charlie Musselwhite
Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite - Perth Concert Hall
Dr John
plus all the great artists at Bluesfest shows.
Canned Heat in Bunbury several times
Eric Bibb
Dr John & Keb Mo
That's quite a list Ray, Albert Collins must have been a great show, I miss so many of the artists who play Perth as I spend most of my time in Thailand. I did have tickets for Nut and I to see Mayall with Carolyn Wonderland at the Astor, but the damn pandemic stopped that.
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