Rock Groups You Wished to have seen in their Prime?

[socksoff]

I was born in 1960 and I missed alot of my favourite Bands,due to the fact that they reached their prime in or around 1973.I was 13 and living in a small town about 60 miles from both Buffalo and Toronto.In those days,father wouldn't drive you to a concert and wait for you in the car .(Like my younger cousin had when seeing Judas Priest in Buffalo in the 80's).
My first concert was Rush in 1976 in Hamilton.By then alot of my favourites from the early 70's had disbanded or were heading to the backside of their prime time.(Don't get me wrong..they were still good,but it would have been good to see them earlier.
Here is a small list of bands I wanted to see,the year I wanted to see them,(The year I finally saw them) and,in some cases,a brief comment.

Deep Purple - 1972 (Finally saw them on the Reunion Tour of 1985)
By 1976,after 2 Line-up changes,The Band disbanded 'til
1985

Led Zeppelin - 1973 (Does Page/Plant 1995 count?.If not,then never
them)
I'm sure there will be many who will say 69-71ish or
even 1975,1977 or 1979-80.But I would think 1973 would
be the year it all came together for them.Cult
following + commercial success with Zeppelin IV +
a new album on the way

Pink Floyd - 1975 (3/4 of the Floyd Toronto 1994,The other 1/4 in
Toronto 1999)
This is a very sad story here.I remember hearing Dark
Side of the Moon in 1974 and,other than the synthesizer
bit in "On the Run" and perhaps "Time",I didn't really
like the polished sound.I was too involved in Purple &
Sabbath.
Then in 1975 came word that The Floyd were coming in
June to Hamilton's Ivor Wynne Stadium.Through all the
hype and excitement,I decided It wasn't worth going.
All I can say now is,had the album "Wish You Were Here"
(the greatest album of all time)been released in early
'75,I'd be holding a souvenir ticket stub today!
As for '77 - They never came to Toronto and I had not
the money my working friends had,who took a bus to
Cleveland to see them.
1980 - Pretty impossible to get a ticket for New York
1987 - Held out in hopes Waters would come back.

King Crimson - 1974 (Final saw them in 1995)
Would've killed to see Fripp,Bruford,Wetton,and Cross
in 1974.Great music and Improv. (Bruford - the most
percussively challenging drummer)

Genesis - 1973 (saw them sans Gabriel in 1980)
Lamb Lies Down Tour of '75 would have been interesting,
but I would've wanted to see more of the other earlier
stuff including "Supper's Ready".
THIS BAND,in realty,CEASED TO BE GENESIS WHEN GABRIEL
LEFT!!!! COLLINS EVENTUALLY SOLD OUT THE BAND AFTER
1977! .I still don't know why I went to Buffalo in 1980
to see them.

Yes - 1973 (saw them first in 1978)
'73 was their prime after "Close to the Edge" and
"Fragile" and just before Wakeman left.

 

[leafstk]

Sad to hear about you missing the Floyd, Socksoff 🙁 I was born in 74 and I was fortunate enough to see their 94 tour here in Toronto. All I can say is, they are probably the most phenomanal performing band of all time.... the quality of sound, the lights, the props, the whole damn thing! I'm a Floyd freak, so that was a major highlight for me, as well as seeing Roger Waters when he stopped by a few years ago 😀

I do wish I could have seen the Floyd in their prime, performing on the Animals tour.

I also would have died to see Genesis in their prime perform "Fox Trot" and "Selling England by the Pound" 😀

 

[TklDuo-Drew]

Whether this could be considered their "prime" or not, I would've liked to see the following:

Bad Company- 1975/76
Led Zeppelin-1970/75
Pink Floyd-1969/72
The Band-1970/74
The Clash-1980


Drew

 

[Dave2112]

I completely agree with you about Genesis. I saw them a couple of times in the '80's but wish I'd seen them in the Gabriel years. They were still good with Collins for "...And Then There Were Three" and "Duke", but pretty much sold out after that.

I got to see most of the bands I wanted to, but there are a few I wished I'd seen. Maybe the Beatles or the Stones back when they were still young and innovative. Or Zeppelin.

Oddly enough, the artists I most wished I'd seen are the guys who either passed on or quit playing long before I was born. I would have loved to have seen Charlie Parker, Miles Davis or any of the forefathers of jazz back in the clubs when they were forging the sound from scratch.

 

[featherfingers]

Born too late to see the Fab Four

My favorite rock group of all time is The Beatles. I would have loved to see them in 1966 at their final performance (at Shea Stadium?)as a touring band. From what I've read and heard, you could barely hear the music over the sounds of the screaming girls. I did see Paul McCartney & Wings on their 'Wings Over America' tour in 1976. I missed George Harrison when he was in Tucson around 1974, but I was only 12 years old and really only knew his Beatles Era music. And I saw Ringo Starr a few years ago on one of his All-Starr Band tours, but I may as well have been watching the show from Mars as my tickets weren't exactly front row seats. And just as I was looking forward to attending my first Grateful Dead concert, Jerry Garcia had to kick the bucket. Well, at least I've got the albums.

 

[TklDuo-Drew]

I agree with you, Dave2112. Imagine seeing some of the greats from jazz in some small, smoke-filled club back in the late 50s? Miles, Coltrane, Lee Morgan, Lou Donaldson, or any of Art Blakey's line-ups.

The same goes for blues, I'd give my left arm to be able to see Howlin' Wolf, Freddy King, Elmore James, Slim Harpo or Muddy Waters.


Drew

 

[Mitchell]

I have two. My all time favorite, the Beatles, whom I would love to have seen when they were together and in their prime.
Although I did see Simon and Garfunkel twice, in 1983 at Shea Stadium and 1993 at the Paramount in Madison Square Garden, I wish I could have seen them in about 1969 or 1970 just before they broke up, right around the time of "Bridge Over Troubled Water". I wish I could have heard Art Garfunkel sing that song right after it was released.
Then of course, there's the group I DID see in their prime, but wish I could remember more about them, and that is of course, my father's former clients, Kiss. As I've stated on here before, I saw a few concerts at MSG in about 1975 or 76 when they were at their peak, but I dont remember them well, as I was only about 5 or 6. All I remember is a lot of screaming and yelling and people throwing fire. The music, however, is a blur, and I really didnt get to appreciate Kiss' music until I heard it played years later. "Rock and Roll All Nite" is an awesome song!
So that's my list.

Mitch

 

[Ticklebell]

Janis Joplin and Queen. Sooo before my time, blast it!!

Mwah!

~Bell

 

[Knox The Hatter]

Never got to see Zep. That one still smarts.

Drew, I'm going to take this one step further, and I'm sure you'd find this intriguing: wouldn't you have loved to have seen Louis Armstrong at the Cotton Club, back in 1931 or so? To see genius in the flesh?
Or Charlie Parker?

 

[Strider]

I was born in 1981.Started going to concerts when I was like 12.

Van Halen in 1984/1985.I ended up seeing them in 1995 after Dave was already long gone.

Black Sabbath in 1977.Saw them in 1999 at the reunion tour.

KISS in 1977.First time I saw them was 1996,and since then,I've seen them in 1998 and 2000.

Guns N'Roses in 1991/1992.I never did get to see them seeing as they self destructed.Which,I have to say is a tragedy as these guys could have legitamately been on a level with The Stones.

Queen in the late 70s/early 80s,and in that respect,I would have also loved to be at the tribute concert for Freddie.

 

[MsDivaNYC]

*Beatles, definitely, in the mid-60s, before they went 'psychedelic'.

*Stones--Steel Wheels tour, ca. 1990-1 (?)
*Sting--'Dream of the Blue Turtles' Tour, '87 (?)
*Bowie--'Serious Moonlight' Tour, '84
*Madonna--'Blonde Ambition' Tour

I just missed Prince's 'Musicology' tour stops here in NY (MSG), but was glad in the end, as it was overpriced and I hear he hardly did any of the old songs, and if he *did*, he cleaned up most of the raunchy lyrics/choreagraphy. Drat!

 

[TklDuo-Drew]

That would've been awesome to see some of the early greats back in the 30s, Knox. Including Duke Ellington and Louis Jordan. I remember that Ken Burn's Jazz special, where they showed Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie together on a tv show in the early 50s. Outstanding!


Drew

 

[featherfingers]

QUEEN! Mainly to see and hear how Freddy Mercury handled singing that complex song, "Bohemian Rhapsody"!

 

[naveltkltr1350]

i would of liked to hear the original Lynard Skynard and Ac/Dc(with bon scot<SP>) other than that..im too young to remember what years they were in their prime..probably liked to hear Jimmy Hendrix on his guitar..i have the American National Anthem he played..i was blown away by it.

 

[featherfingers]

If you don't already have it on CD, find a copy of the 2 CD set, "Jimi Hendrix-Live At Woodstock". This has "The Star Spangled Banner" in it's entirety which segues into "Purple Haze" and then into a slow bluesy number. Some of the other tracks on that CD fall a little flat but it's worth it for the ones I just mentioned.

 

[giantfan121262]

My picks are

Led Zeppelin 1970/1976- I was supposed to see them when they toured in 1980 but cancelled due to Bonhams untimely death.

The Beatles- early to mid 60's- Their early stuff was their signature stuff which really went a long way to establishing themselves as one of the all time great bands.

The Who with Keith Moon at the drums. I got to see them in 1989 but really wasn't the same without Moon

The Stones during the 60's- See the comments for the Beatles

Van Halen with David Lee roth. He has to be one of the all time best performers on stage

Elvis

Chuck Berry- One of the pioneers of rock and roll

 

[giantfan121262]

KISS in 1977.First time I saw them was 1996,and since then,I've seen them in 1998 and 2000.

I saw that concert. It was an awesome show!

 

[naveltkltr1350]

If you don't already have it on CD, find a copy of the 2 CD set, "Jimi Hendrix-Live At Woodstock". This has "The Star Spangled Banner" in it's entirety which segues into "Purple Haze" and then into a slow bluesy number. Some of the other tracks on that CD fall a little flat but it's worth it for the ones I just mentioned.

I will look for it tuesday at best buy when i get my Ma$e cd and Tim McGraw cd..yeah..laugh..i listen to all types of music..

 

[featherfingers]

Jimi was #1

Hey, so do I! You need a variety of musical interests to give you a full appreciation of music. I'll listen to AC/DC and get my fill then I'll play The Carpenters to mellow me out. (I hope that doesn't hurt my credibility) Now, I wish I could've seen Pink Floyd perform. Didn't they stop performing awhile back?

 

[Fastwalker]

Groups I wish I'd seen

Some of these might not have been in their prime when I wanted to see them, but here they are:

The Who w/ Keith Moon (in their prime? hell yeah!)
Yes in 1984 for the 90125 tour. Caught them the next time around with the Big Generator tour in 87, and again in 94 when "Talk" came out. Big Generator tour was much better.
Rush, Moving Pictures tour. Caught them for Grace Under Pressure in 84 and again in 87 for Hold Your Fire. I have the DVD of Rush In Rio, and it's almost as good as being there.

 

[Knox The Hatter]

KISS in 1977.First time I saw them was 1996,and since then,I've seen them in 1998 and 2000.

Madison Square Garden, December 15, 1977. Orange seats, due left of the stage. My sister, then 12, was the fan, not me, but I knew many years down the line, I'd be able to talk about seeing this show.

 

[BigJim]

Pessy Misser and The Weg Letters.

 

[TklDuo-Drew]

Here are a couple other less common choices:

The Allman Brothers- 1970, with Duanne Allman
Roy Buchanan- early 70s
Spirit- 1968 with Jay Ferguson
Thin Lizzy- early to mid-70s, but not the 80s. (I think the drugs were taking their toll by then)
Humble Pie- 1970, with Steve Marriott and Peter Frampton running the band


Drew

 

[featherfingers]

Vanilla Fudge

 

[Faramir]

/\/\egaDeth ...!!