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Post by Kapitan on Sept 8, 2022 13:42:44 GMT
In Minneapolis, live music went almost entirely original bands by the late 90s or early 00s; and a lot of other bars just went to DJs. I believe the outstate bars that used to have live music basically all just went to DJs, karaoke nights, trivia, etc.--cheaper for the bar owners than paying band (whose incomes were already dwindling while they tried to compete with the aforementioned).
Every now and again, you see stories of cover bands from the '80s who would make $500 to $1000 a night back then; by the time I was familiar with local bands in the mid-late '90s (this is outstate, mind you, not Minneapolis...I mean college town of Mankato and small towns around it) they'd be down to $200 or so, competitive with DJs. And as I said soon after that went away, too. It's crazy imagining a profession that paid so, so much more 40 years ago than it does now. Unfortunately (from my perspective) the public's taste went away from live music: they just didn't care whether there were people playing those songs, or a sound system playing those records.
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Post by kds on Sept 8, 2022 14:18:34 GMT
In Minneapolis, live music went almost entirely original bands by the late 90s or early 00s; and a lot of other bars just went to DJs. I believe the outstate bars that used to have live music basically all just went to DJs, karaoke nights, trivia, etc.--cheaper for the bar owners than paying band (whose incomes were already dwindling while they tried to compete with the aforementioned).
Every now and again, you see stories of cover bands from the '80s who would make $500 to $1000 a night back then; by the time I was familiar with local bands in the mid-late '90s (this is outstate, mind you, not Minneapolis...I mean college town of Mankato and small towns around it) they'd be down to $200 or so, competitive with DJs. And as I said soon after that went away, too. It's crazy imagining a profession that paid so, so much more 40 years ago than it does now. Unfortunately (from my perspective) the public's taste went away from live music: they just didn't care whether there were people playing those songs, or a sound system playing those records.
I think it's more that younger people just want to hear dance music when they go to a club now, and that stuff hardly requires live musicians. In the late 90s / early 00s, most local bars here didn't book original bands. I guess they figured patrons would rather sing along to Don't Stop Believin, Sweet Home Alabama, and Livin' on a Prayer than sit through a set of music they didn't know. So, bands that did originals (which in early 00s Baltimore was basically 99% Blink 182 clones) were relegated to very small clubs. Many of those smaller clubs that I remember have closed their doors since.
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Post by Kapitan on Sept 8, 2022 14:26:35 GMT
I think it's more that younger people just want to hear dance music when they go to a club now, and that stuff hardly requires live musicians. I think that's true now, but at least here it wasn't true then. A lot of those first DJs encroaching on bars were just playing the same rock music of that era.
Specific to Minneapolis (not counting the outstate area I grew up, where I'm not sure anymore), in the '00s fans of live music also just took a different attitude toward cover bands. They really looked down on them as something for suburban rubes, any "real" musician would write their own stuff. So we had a bazillion mediocre indie rock bands playing their mediocre songs (yours truly included) for their friends, rather than playing great songs to bigger crowds who wanted to hear great songs. There were a few "joke" cover bands, and frankly they did really, really well.
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Post by kds on Sept 8, 2022 14:55:38 GMT
I think it's more that younger people just want to hear dance music when they go to a club now, and that stuff hardly requires live musicians. I think that's true now, but at least here it wasn't true then. A lot of those first DJs encroaching on bars were just playing the same rock music of that era.
Specific to Minneapolis (not counting the outstate area I grew up, where I'm not sure anymore), in the '00s fans of live music also just took a different attitude toward cover bands. They really looked down on them as something for suburban rubes, any "real" musician would write their own stuff. So we had a bazillion mediocre indie rock bands playing their mediocre songs (yours truly included) for their friends, rather than playing great songs to bigger crowds who wanted to hear great songs. There were a few "joke" cover bands, and frankly they did really, really well.
I knew some people who shared that attitude about cover bands in the early 00s. But, I'll say the cover bands were infinitely more enjoyable than the originals bands I saw at the time. I remember when I'd go to bars with DJs back then, early in the night, they'd often play some rock stuff, or even some classic rock. But, by 9 or 10pm, when the place would start to fill with scantily glad young girls, the music would shift to more techno stuff.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Sept 8, 2022 16:37:19 GMT
Well, it happened. After holding the tickets for nearly three years, and after three postponements, my wife and I finally saw Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band in Baltimore last night. The band played for about two hours. The 24 song setlist was split with twelve songs from Ringo's career as a Beatle and solo artist and 12 songs from the All Stars - Edgar Winter, Steve Lukather (Toto), Colin Hay (Men at Work), and Harnish Stuart (Average White Band) got three songs a piece. Bonus, as a casual fan of Men at Work and Toto, I got to hear the three biggest songs from those groups - Roseanna, Africa, Hold the Line and Down Under, Overkill, Who Can It Be Now. Last night's setlist has not been posted yet, but it was the same song list as the night prior www.setlist.fm/setlist/ringo-starr-and-his-all-starr-band/2022/lyric-performing-arts-center-baltimore-md-1bb089b4.htmlRingo sounded pretty good overall, although his voice did croak a few times during the show. He is 82 after all. He sang nearly every song featuring a lead vocal from his Beatles career, as well as a few solo favorites like It Don't Come Easy and Photograph. Nothing from his latest run of EPs. Looks like a great show, kds. I looked at the setlist; one great song after another. And, you don't get to see many rock legends bigger than Ringo Starr. I have to see Ringo before he hangs it up. I have no excuses. He's consistently appeared within driving distance of my home. Maybe next time...
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Post by kds on Sept 8, 2022 18:37:12 GMT
Well, it happened. After holding the tickets for nearly three years, and after three postponements, my wife and I finally saw Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band in Baltimore last night. The band played for about two hours. The 24 song setlist was split with twelve songs from Ringo's career as a Beatle and solo artist and 12 songs from the All Stars - Edgar Winter, Steve Lukather (Toto), Colin Hay (Men at Work), and Harnish Stuart (Average White Band) got three songs a piece. Bonus, as a casual fan of Men at Work and Toto, I got to hear the three biggest songs from those groups - Roseanna, Africa, Hold the Line and Down Under, Overkill, Who Can It Be Now. Last night's setlist has not been posted yet, but it was the same song list as the night prior www.setlist.fm/setlist/ringo-starr-and-his-all-starr-band/2022/lyric-performing-arts-center-baltimore-md-1bb089b4.htmlRingo sounded pretty good overall, although his voice did croak a few times during the show. He is 82 after all. He sang nearly every song featuring a lead vocal from his Beatles career, as well as a few solo favorites like It Don't Come Easy and Photograph. Nothing from his latest run of EPs. Looks like a great show, kds. I looked at the setlist; one great song after another. And, you don't get to see many rock legends bigger than Ringo Starr. I have to see Ringo before he hangs it up. I have no excuses. He's consistently appeared within driving distance of my home. Maybe next time... This is why I ultimately got these tickets several years ago. For the most part, I've seen just about everybody that I really feel like I need to see (David Gilmour the lone exception, but he's not played close to me since Floyd last played DC, before I had any interest in the band). But, I knew if I didn't see Ringo, one of the two remaining Beatles, I'd regret it. Now, I've seen Paul twice (should be three times, fuckin' COVID), Ringo, and even Pete Best.
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Post by kds on Sept 13, 2022 16:15:59 GMT
We've discussed price as a deterrent for going to concerts these days. I just found another example.
Mercyful Fate is going on their first US Tour in about 20 years. The face value of their Maryland area show is $132!!! I'm actually a bigger fan of King Diamond as a solo artist (perhaps the only artist from a prominent band I can say that about), and I think I paid $55 to see him three years ago.
And, if we're being honest, Mercyful Fate is a well respected band in metal circles, but there were more influential than popular. The fact that you can see Iron Maiden for less makes zero sense.
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Post by lonelysummer on Sept 18, 2022 20:09:08 GMT
Well, it happened. After holding the tickets for nearly three years, and after three postponements, my wife and I finally saw Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band in Baltimore last night. The band played for about two hours. The 24 song setlist was split with twelve songs from Ringo's career as a Beatle and solo artist and 12 songs from the All Stars - Edgar Winter, Steve Lukather (Toto), Colin Hay (Men at Work), and Harnish Stuart (Average White Band) got three songs a piece. Bonus, as a casual fan of Men at Work and Toto, I got to hear the three biggest songs from those groups - Roseanna, Africa, Hold the Line and Down Under, Overkill, Who Can It Be Now. Last night's setlist has not been posted yet, but it was the same song list as the night prior www.setlist.fm/setlist/ringo-starr-and-his-all-starr-band/2022/lyric-performing-arts-center-baltimore-md-1bb089b4.htmlRingo sounded pretty good overall, although his voice did croak a few times during the show. He is 82 after all. He sang nearly every song featuring a lead vocal from his Beatles career, as well as a few solo favorites like It Don't Come Easy and Photograph. Nothing from his latest run of EPs. I think they've been playing "Anthem" from his last full length album, "What's My Name".
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Post by lonelysummer on Sept 18, 2022 20:13:57 GMT
We've discussed price as a deterrent for going to concerts these days. I just found another example. Mercyful Fate is going on their first US Tour in about 20 years. The face value of their Maryland area show is $132!!! I'm actually a bigger fan of King Diamond as a solo artist (perhaps the only artist from a prominent band I can say that about), and I think I paid $55 to see him three years ago. And, if we're being honest, Mercyful Fate is a well respected band in metal circles, but there were more influential than popular. The fact that you can see Iron Maiden for less makes zero sense. Yes, price is a big deterrent these days. If there are any cheap seats - $35 or less - you gotta jump on them fast, because they are the first to go. I passed on seeing Squeeze a year ago because the seats were around $100. Good band, but not worth starving for. Probably just as well that I don't go to concerts now. The hearing is going in my left ear. Constant ringing. I miss the experience, but I've complained about the price of new vinyl, and realistically, $30 for a new album that I can play over and over again is a much better investment than $100 for a show that lasts a couple hours.
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Post by kds on Sept 19, 2022 13:26:18 GMT
We've discussed price as a deterrent for going to concerts these days. I just found another example. Mercyful Fate is going on their first US Tour in about 20 years. The face value of their Maryland area show is $132!!! I'm actually a bigger fan of King Diamond as a solo artist (perhaps the only artist from a prominent band I can say that about), and I think I paid $55 to see him three years ago. And, if we're being honest, Mercyful Fate is a well respected band in metal circles, but there were more influential than popular. The fact that you can see Iron Maiden for less makes zero sense. Yes, price is a big deterrent these days. If there are any cheap seats - $35 or less - you gotta jump on them fast, because they are the first to go. I passed on seeing Squeeze a year ago because the seats were around $100. Good band, but not worth starving for. Probably just as well that I don't go to concerts now. The hearing is going in my left ear. Constant ringing. I miss the experience, but I've complained about the price of new vinyl, and realistically, $30 for a new album that I can play over and over again is a much better investment than $100 for a show that lasts a couple hours. I think I might try to buy tickets day of for some shows. Roger Waters's show in DC would've cost about $250 for a cheap seat, but I heard reports that people were able to buy tickets the day of the show for $75.
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Post by lonelysummer on Sept 19, 2022 20:27:17 GMT
Yes, price is a big deterrent these days. If there are any cheap seats - $35 or less - you gotta jump on them fast, because they are the first to go. I passed on seeing Squeeze a year ago because the seats were around $100. Good band, but not worth starving for. Probably just as well that I don't go to concerts now. The hearing is going in my left ear. Constant ringing. I miss the experience, but I've complained about the price of new vinyl, and realistically, $30 for a new album that I can play over and over again is a much better investment than $100 for a show that lasts a couple hours. I think I might try to buy tickets day of for some shows. Roger Waters's show in DC would've cost about $250 for a cheap seat, but I heard reports that people were able to buy tickets the day of the show for $75. I've gotten lucky a few times showing up at the venue an hour early, and finding someone with an extra ticket they just need to get rid of. I've gotten in free that way a few times. Of course, it's also very disappointing if I can't get in at all. 10 years ago, that meant I would drive down the street to the nearest record store; but all of ours seem to be closing around 7 pm these days - if they're open at all.
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Post by kds on Sept 19, 2022 20:31:13 GMT
I think I might try to buy tickets day of for some shows. Roger Waters's show in DC would've cost about $250 for a cheap seat, but I heard reports that people were able to buy tickets the day of the show for $75. I've gotten lucky a few times showing up at the venue an hour early, and finding someone with an extra ticket they just need to get rid of. I've gotten in free that way a few times. Of course, it's also very disappointing if I can't get in at all. 10 years ago, that meant I would drive down the street to the nearest record store; but all of ours seem to be closing around 7 pm these days - if they're open at all. Unfortunately, most shows I'd want to attend tend to be a bit of a drive for me, so I wouldn't take that chance unless I had ticket in hand (or, on phone as it is now). We're down to one true record store in Baltimore, and the last time I went there (two years ago), they'd greatly decreased their space, and quite a bit of their existing retail space was devoted to Funkos. I keep meaning to get back there one of these days because I feel like their days are numbered.
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Post by kds on Oct 23, 2022 20:16:32 GMT
This past Xmas, my wife got me an Iron Maiden ticket for DC. Nearly ten months later, the show is tonight. The show itself will be great, as Maiden always delivers. But, man, on a gray Sunday, there's a part of me that really wants to stay home.
This is my normal preshow frame of mind.
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Post by carllove on Oct 23, 2022 22:37:27 GMT
This past Xmas, my wife got me an Iron Maiden ticket for DC. Nearly ten months later, the show is tonight. The show itself will be great, as Maiden always delivers. But, man, on a gray Sunday, there's a part of me that really wants to stay home. This is my normal preshow frame of mind. The older I get - the more I feel that way about just getting out of the house. Last Saturday my husband wanted to go play miniature golf, and I just wanted to stay home. It was a beautiful day too. We went and had a great time. The beer helped. Sounds like a great time. Once you get inside the venue - your adrenaline will pick up and you will be glad you went.
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Post by B.E. on Oct 30, 2022 15:28:34 GMT
Well, it happened. After holding the tickets for nearly three years, and after three postponements, my wife and I finally saw Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band in Baltimore last night. The band played for about two hours. The 24 song setlist was split with twelve songs from Ringo's career as a Beatle and solo artist and 12 songs from the All Stars - Edgar Winter, Steve Lukather (Toto), Colin Hay (Men at Work), and Harnish Stuart (Average White Band) got three songs a piece. Bonus, as a casual fan of Men at Work and Toto, I got to hear the three biggest songs from those groups - Roseanna, Africa, Hold the Line and Down Under, Overkill, Who Can It Be Now. Last night's setlist has not been posted yet, but it was the same song list as the night prior www.setlist.fm/setlist/ringo-starr-and-his-all-starr-band/2022/lyric-performing-arts-center-baltimore-md-1bb089b4.htmlRingo sounded pretty good overall, although his voice did croak a few times during the show. He is 82 after all. He sang nearly every song featuring a lead vocal from his Beatles career, as well as a few solo favorites like It Don't Come Easy and Photograph. Nothing from his latest run of EPs. Looks like a great show, kds. I looked at the setlist; one great song after another. And, you don't get to see many rock legends bigger than Ringo Starr. I have to see Ringo before he hangs it up. I have no excuses. He's consistently appeared within driving distance of my home. Maybe next time... This is why I ultimately got these tickets several years ago. For the most part, I've seen just about everybody that I really feel like I need to see (David Gilmour the lone exception, but he's not played close to me since Floyd last played DC, before I had any interest in the band). But, I knew if I didn't see Ringo, one of the two remaining Beatles, I'd regret it. Now, I've seen Paul twice (should be three times, fuckin' COVID), Ringo, and even Pete Best. I saw Ringo at Hard Rock Live in Atlantic City on September 24th, just a week prior to the cancellations. I'm so glad I went! It was a great show. Everyone in the band was fantastic. Gregg Bissonette's drum solo was incredible. I even enjoyed the non-Ringo material that I wasn't familiar with (i.e. Average White Band). Would I listen to that at home? No. But live it was fun. I wish I had reviewed it when all the details were fresh, but I at least wanted to encourage others to see Ringo & His All-Starr Band if you haven't before. Hopefully he'll be on the road again very soon. He seems to still really enjoy it. It's hard to believe that guy is 82! He looks and sounds much younger. He literally jogged onto and off the stage. At one point, near the end of the show, he was singing and clapping his hands over his head so enthusiastically, it looked like he was doing jumping jacks! Sure, part of it was about seeing Ringo Starr, the Beatle, in person, being in the same room with him, but the band also delivered a heck of a show. Oh, and another highlight for me was that they performed "I'm The Greatest". For some reason I had it in my head that they didn't perform it, but they do (and did). And the venue was great. I hadn't been there before. It wasn't too big. I'm not sure there's a bad seat. And the seats were actually comfortable. I'm just so grateful I went after skipping every previous opportunity. (I've seen Paul twice.)
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