I was sitting back this weekend having a cold adult beverage with some of my favorite young people. The Amazing Scott, Jammin Jamie, rappers Cam & Chris, and the ever present, Kristin and I were discussing the Detroit area music scene, now and from 20 years ago. This discussion covered various venues, both open and closed, national artists and local bands. In inevitably, the question came up: "What were the best shows you've seen this year"? A few came right to mind, but a little thought and searching the somewhat fuzzy memory banks. Here are the Detroit Rock Dogg's top ten picks through August1, 2009.
1. J Geils Band at the Fillmore. Never thought I'd see them play live again. Never thought they could come close to the energy they used to play with. I was wrong! Not only did they play 2 sold out nights in their adopted home town, but the sound and energy were equal to the heyday of Geils.
2. Coldplay at Pine Knob. As stated in one of my postings, I've never been a fan of Coldplay. The lovely BLT has been after me for years to go to "her kind of shows too". Well.... after the Dogg saw Coldplay in person, my opinion has totally changed. A truly awesome show.
3. Nickelback at Joe Louis. We got last minute floor seats to the Saturday show and were very excited since we'd never seen Nickelback before. Rocked out 50' from the stage and saw a true great live show.
4. Elton John & Billy Joel at the Palace. BLT and I traded 2 seats in our suite for Aerosmith to our friends Lou and Carla for 2 great seats to this sold out show. Both performers were in rare form and no concert goer left without hearing what they wanted. Another truly great show!
5. Styx, REO, .38 Special at Pine Knob. If only Styx had won the coin flip to headline, this would have been a top 4 show. As it was (and as written in my Blog), this was as fine a triple header as one could want. Throw in perfect weather and it sure doesn't get much better!
6. Led Zeppelin Symphony at Pine Knob. In a huge surprise to me, I can find no fault in this show. Part of the ranking was the group of people we were with (16), another part the weather (perfect), and lastly (and for those who have never seen this show) the band, show and lighting are absolutely great. If you love Zeppelin then you'll love this show!!!
7. Kid Rock & Lynrd Skynrd at Comerica Park. The weather was not good, the sound was spotty, the sight lines sucked, yet this show makes the top ten? Yessir, the thing about stadium shows is the spectacle. This one did not disappoint. Where we sat, the sound was acceptable and the pyro awesome! The set list was varied and great.
8. Dave Matthews Band at Pine Knob. Another great crowd, the weather turned out to be pretty decent, the band rocked and the staging was excellent. Another great show to see.
9. Bad Company & Doobie Bros. at Pine Knob. How can you go wrong when 2 of the biggest and best selling acts of the 70's and 80's team up. Bad Company reunites for a 14 show tour (first in over 10 years) and absolutely rocks the house. Doobies were their usual splendid musician and vocal masters. We left totally fulfilled.
10. Incubus at Pine Knob. This show left us gasping for air. Great sound, super high energy crowd, great weather and most of all a band that plays as if they love it still. Could have been a top 5 show had they had a better light show and staging.
There you have it, the top ten shows we've seen so far in 09. I may have missed one or two, but this mind isn't what it used to be.
1. J Geils Band at the Fillmore. Never thought I'd see them play live again. Never thought they could come close to the energy they used to play with. I was wrong! Not only did they play 2 sold out nights in their adopted home town, but the sound and energy were equal to the heyday of Geils.
2. Coldplay at Pine Knob. As stated in one of my postings, I've never been a fan of Coldplay. The lovely BLT has been after me for years to go to "her kind of shows too". Well.... after the Dogg saw Coldplay in person, my opinion has totally changed. A truly awesome show.
3. Nickelback at Joe Louis. We got last minute floor seats to the Saturday show and were very excited since we'd never seen Nickelback before. Rocked out 50' from the stage and saw a true great live show.
4. Elton John & Billy Joel at the Palace. BLT and I traded 2 seats in our suite for Aerosmith to our friends Lou and Carla for 2 great seats to this sold out show. Both performers were in rare form and no concert goer left without hearing what they wanted. Another truly great show!
5. Styx, REO, .38 Special at Pine Knob. If only Styx had won the coin flip to headline, this would have been a top 4 show. As it was (and as written in my Blog), this was as fine a triple header as one could want. Throw in perfect weather and it sure doesn't get much better!
6. Led Zeppelin Symphony at Pine Knob. In a huge surprise to me, I can find no fault in this show. Part of the ranking was the group of people we were with (16), another part the weather (perfect), and lastly (and for those who have never seen this show) the band, show and lighting are absolutely great. If you love Zeppelin then you'll love this show!!!
7. Kid Rock & Lynrd Skynrd at Comerica Park. The weather was not good, the sound was spotty, the sight lines sucked, yet this show makes the top ten? Yessir, the thing about stadium shows is the spectacle. This one did not disappoint. Where we sat, the sound was acceptable and the pyro awesome! The set list was varied and great.
8. Dave Matthews Band at Pine Knob. Another great crowd, the weather turned out to be pretty decent, the band rocked and the staging was excellent. Another great show to see.
9. Bad Company & Doobie Bros. at Pine Knob. How can you go wrong when 2 of the biggest and best selling acts of the 70's and 80's team up. Bad Company reunites for a 14 show tour (first in over 10 years) and absolutely rocks the house. Doobies were their usual splendid musician and vocal masters. We left totally fulfilled.
10. Incubus at Pine Knob. This show left us gasping for air. Great sound, super high energy crowd, great weather and most of all a band that plays as if they love it still. Could have been a top 5 show had they had a better light show and staging.
There you have it, the top ten shows we've seen so far in 09. I may have missed one or two, but this mind isn't what it used to be.
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