A concert is a funny thing. You spend a lot of money, fight on-line for the best seats and usually need to travel a bit (or a lot) to get to the venue – a major city if it’s at an arena or stadium. And then it typically lasts only two hours and you have to plead for an encore. Then you begin planning for your next concert. Oh that was awesome! What a performance! They made that song even better!
Anyone who loves music goes through this ritual over and over again. It wanes as we are in our middle years, raising families. But then, when we’re approaching retirement, look out – the Boys are Back in Town as Thin Lizzy sang 45 years ago. Of course, it’s no longer a realm of only the boys. The female led groups have exploded into pop stars, hip-hop moguls and we’ll always have the divas in certain genres.
It’s actually a pain in the ass to plan, attend and leave a concert and I’ll do it over and over again. What are the “steps?” First, there’s the quest: who’s playing and when? Then the organization, the task force. “OMG, did you hear who’s playing at the Roxy? Bruce is coming to town! Are you guys in? Can you make it on the 10th?” Then the hunt for tickets.
Once you narrow down your posse (your past experience will tell you which friends or relatives are reliable and who is likely to bail the night before the concert), the planning shifts into a whole other gear. Who’s driving or when do we meet? Dinner before? Where? Are we tailgaiting to have a few pops before the show? What are YOU wearing? You’re wearing THAT? Is the parking free? DON’T FORGET YOUR TICKETS!
Then it’s time and you arrive. You’re nervous. Forget about the group you’re about to see – they should be nervous, but you have thousands of to-dos to check off your list in order to have the best concert experience. No matter, get in there, it’s time to secure your seats!
Now the buzz is flying, you’re sitting or standing along with a crowd of strangers united by the spirit of the artist or band who’s about to come out. The anticipation is higher each minute and is still building as the clock hits 9:00, 9:01, 9:02. And you wonder why bands always come out a bit late? Are you kidding? They know you’re not quite ready yet, they are gonna make sure the crowd is on fire! 9:10, 9:15.
Then someone shuffles onto the stage, the crowd goes crazy – oh, it’s only a stagehand bringing out another guitar. Now the chants begin, the clapping becomes more unified, everyone is now STOMPING! What the hell is happening here?
Suddenly the lights dim, the clapping is faster and the yelling is now a roar and deep from the shadows emerges Eric or Beyonce or Trisha and they and the rest of the band pick up their instruments or microphones and charge into the opening number. It’s perfect!
The first concert I attended on my own was the Simon & Garfunkel farewell concert at Forest Hills Tennis Stadium back in 1970. Talk about setting the bar high. Since that time, I’ve seen Paul Simon at the Concert for the NY Public Library at Madison Square Garden back in 1976 and his huge concert at Central Park in 1991. While I was a bit too young to attend Woodstock, my best friends (still) and I attended the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen, NY in the summer of 1973, a 24 hour explosion of the Band, Grateful Dead and our favorites, the Allman Brothers. Attended by more people than Woodstock (do not tell that to anyone who attended Woodstock, they’ll just smile at you, shrug their shoulders and move on from you), it was a frenzy I’ll never forget. Or actually, I did forget a lot of it but that’s a whole other story.
I won’t recount every concert but a few highlights include Eric Clapton’s 70th birthday concert at Madison Square Garden, Gary Clark Jr, Derek Trucks Band, CSNY, the Rolling Stones, Springsteen’s Born in the USA tour, Richie Havens and so many more.
They all know how to craft a show, build up, slow it down, then develop a knockout and repeat the sequence. And by the end, we are drained (and we wonder why the band is drained, they only do this night after night after night…) and elated and we wave our arms overhead, light our lighters even if we don’t smoke, and yell, no we roar for more! OMG, you don’t think it’s really over, do you? And of course they come out – once again they’ve made us wait until we are in a frenzy.
They casually saunter out and then launch into the one mega-hit you’ve been waiting for the whole night. It’s perfect! And then as you come down off your cloud, you realize it’s time to go home, time to jostle through the crowds, back to your parking lot, time to sit in traffic until things begin to thin out.
Then you put in the CD or choose the playlist you brought (or bought at the concert) and relive the concert all the way home. And the excitement level in the car is high. Yes you are all weary but also elated as your endorphins crashing around in your brain making your feel, making you know that you’ve just been part of a special experience.
And one day soon, you’ll hear on the radio or a friend will tell you or you will get a message on your phone, computer or device that your favorite band is coming to town with special guest John or Mary or Carlos. Get your phone out quick and log onto your favorite ticket app to begin the process all over again. You know it will be worth it – what a pain in the ass.
Chris Ebel
10/8/2021
Photo credit: @yron_db