’30-YOC Top Ten Lists’ – ‘Top Ten Concerts Attended’
I love me some good music. And it has been that way all of my life. In total, I have probably been to between 50 and 60 live shows. From 200-seat theaters to 70,000-seat stadiums and everything in between. And the genres are just as vast – country, rock and roll, heavy metal, pop, and classic rock – I have seen it all…
And when I try to rank the ‘Top Ten Concerts’ that I have attended, it is much easier than I thought. There are shows that I have seen and forgotten about, and then there are those that will never fade from my memory.
Ready? Lets do this!!
Honorable Mention: Phil Collins, Creed, Phish, Chicago, Crosby/Stills/Nash, The Rolling Stones, Traffic, Rod Stewart, and Bob Dylan.
10 – Billy Joel & Elton John. Two classic performers with a ton of hits. The show was full of their best songs and the crowd sang along the entire night.
9 – Jimmy Buffett. Possibly the most fun show of them all. The crowd takes over the show and Jimmy just leads them through all of his hits. Lots of ladies, lots of beer, and lots of fun!!
8 – Ziggy Marley & The Melody Makers. This show was at a park in Miami and it was a very relaxed and fun day – all day. Ziggy Marley is a fantastic musician and he throws in a bit of his brother’s music to please the crowd.
7 – REM. At the peak of their popularity, REM put on a nice show with tons of lights and lasers. Michael Stipe commands your attention while on stage and the bands plays very well live.
6 – Eric Clapton. Just three days before REM, I saw Clapton. It was part of his ‘Blues’ tour so he didn’t play any of his hits. He sat on a stool for the entire show and changed guitars between every song. He is a classic musician and it was pretty neat to see a different side of him in person. Still would have like to have heard ‘Pretending’.
5 – Aerosmith. Fun, Fun, Fun. The summertime in Chicago at an outdoor venue with Aerosmith on the stage is nothing but a good time. I have seen them play live three different times, but this show with great friends by my side was the most memorable.
4 – Guns-N-Roses. Unquestionably the best band going at the time, GNR did not disappoint with their performance. It just started 2 hors late. Scheduled to go on at 9PM, they didn’t start until close to 11, and finished after 1AM with Paradise City. Oh, and Smashing Pumpkins opened for them – before they hit it big… And yes, I made it to school on time the next day. 
3 – The Jacksons. Michael and his brothers were fantastic at the Orange Bowl. I have vivid memories of Michael being left on stage to perform Billie Jean by himself and it was fantastic – easily the highlight for the 70,000 in attendance.
2 – The Grateful Dead. I have seen 9 Grateful Dead shows from Chicago to Tampa to DC. Each show is an experience and I have never in my life experienced anything close to it since. Sting was a phenomenal opening act.
1 – Lenny Kravitz. My favorite artist of all-time. I have seen Lenny four times, and am looking forward to his 2011 concert tour. This show was held at a small venue in South Miami and the seats we had were perfect. Lenny is an absolute master performer and represents everything that a rock and roll musician should be. His band is unreal – and the energy that they put into each and every performance is second to none!
So there you have it. A pretty good mix of music and artists. I have a ton of memories packed into these concerts – and I only hope that I am able to add some more to my memory bank in the future.
I am eager to hear what kind of music the ’30-YOC’ reader listens to. Let me hear it – I want to know the best shows you’ve seen too.
For next week’s ‘Top Ten List’ I was thinking about ‘Top Ten Iconic Movies From The 1980s’.
See you next Sunday – but hopefully before that too…
Thanks!
