My Top 17 Concerts

There’s always something good about going to a live show, but sometimes good is great. Sometimes it’s the band and the music, sometimes it’s the magic of the crowd. Sometimes it’s whatever’s going on in my life at the time. But memories get cluttered up, and sometimes we need to sort them out. Here is what, sitting here today, are my favorite concerts. They’re heavily weighted to more recent shows, but it’s always the music magic that keeps me going back.

Ted Nugent and Van Halen, Capital Centre, Landover, MD, 12 August 1978

One of my first concerts. We went to see Ted, but walked out commenting “That guy in the first band was pretty good.” Turns out Henry Rollins was at that show too.

Rolling Stones, Capitol Centre, Landover, MD, 8 December 1981

Tattoo You tour, it was my first Stones show. I was at the peak of my Keith fan-dom, and the show left a lasting impression on me. Lately, the Stones have become a parody of themselves onstage. This was when they still had real fire.

Grateful Dead, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD, 1 July 1984

I was a Reagan Republican in the early ’80s, but a good friend of mine from the University of Maryland, who was as hippie as hippie could get, told me I had to go to this show. He told me the show from the day before was apparently legendary, and this show, on a Sunday, did not disappoint. The band, and the scene, forever changed what I thought music was and could do. It was the beginning of the end of my days as a Republican.

Dire Straits, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD, 8 August 1985

The Brothers in Arms Tour. The musicianship on stage was without doubt among the best I’ve ever heard. All the intangibles were there too. It was a gorgeous evening, a happy time.

Christy Moore, Cork Opera House, Cork, Ireland, 1995

It wasn’t the show so much as being there, soon after my father’s death, in the town of my Irish ancestors. Irish music will resonate in the bones of every Irishman and Irishwoman. Christy Moore digs up ancient runes, old spirits, and fills the room with them.

Grateful Dead, RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C., 25 June 1995

Of all the Dead shows I’ve been to, this one was the most moving. It was one the four legendary Dylan and the Dead shows. The energy in the place came off the stage, and lit up the arena. Jerry died 46 days later.

Bob Dylan, Cameo Theater, Miami Beach, FL, 31 March 1998

Almost as if Jerry’s death was still affecting us all, this was one of the darkest Dylan shows I’ve been. Before the show, I was having cocktails at Club Deuce. I can’t be sure, but a guy that looked a whole lot like Dylan walked in, sat in a corner, and had one too. No one approached him. It was eerie.

Phish, American Airlines Arena, Miami,FL, December 30, 2003

A Phish show is a miracle. It has all the love of a Dead show, with a magic of its own. This was a rare light in a particularly dark time.

Leonard Cohen, BB&T Center, Sunrise, FL, 22 October 2009

Got front row seats with my new smart phone the minute the show was announced on television. Cohen is a sorcerer, and the band, led by Roscoe Beck, lifted the room. There was a dark edge to the evening — it would be the last date with my then-wife. Favorite song: In My Secret Life.

Levon Helm Midnight Ramble with Chad Smith, Woodstock, NY, 4 December 2010

Seeing Levon play a Ramble at his barn studio was a life event. Amy Helm and Larry Campbell did an a capella version of Brokedown Palace that chilled me to the bone. Incredibly intimate venue. Levon died two years later.

Pearl Jam, American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL, 9 April 2016

Pearl Jam shows are sort of like family gatherings. They have all the energy of the punk days, with a self-assured power that comes with age.

George Clinton & Parliament/Funkadelic, Fillmore East, Miami Beach, FL, 5 March 2017

George Clinton is the king of organized chaos. I was right up front for this one. You could feel the energy, everyone had a part, but personnel were shuttling on and off stage all night. The sound was all over the place, but still with a solid core. The highlight for me was standing within ten feet of Dewayne McKnight’s version of Maggot Brain. He put all the feel into it that Eddie Hazel did on the record.

Surnatural Orchestra, Studio L’Ermitage, Paris, 18 March 2017

This was one of those no-idea-let’s-see-what-happens shows you go with no expectations. The band’s creativity and enthusiasm bowled me over. It was as if, for a few hours, we were all Children of the Revolution.

Los Lobos, Daryl’s House Club, Pawling, NY, 15 December 2017

A great band in a small, intimate venue. I got to meet Caesar Rosas after, we talked about the ’80s punk scene.

David Byrne, Center for the Arts, Buffalo, NY, 6 March 2018

I never saw the Talking Heads, so I made a point to catch the American Utopia tour. Being in the same room with David Byrne was almost enough. He’s a polymathic genius. Onstage, he was genuine and humble. He even forgot a few lyrics. There was a vulnerability to the performance that brought me in. I cried when he played Naïve Melody.

King Crimson, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, Glascow, Scotland, 12 November 2018

I sprang for a very expensive ticket, in order to meet members of the band before the show, and to sit in the second row. Fripp was impressed (well or ill, I’ll never know) with a few of my questions. I blurted something about the pregnant moment before the music starts. “Before the music begins,” he corrected me. A very left-brain experience.

Los Lobos, The Venu Restaurant and Bar, Boynton Beach, FL, 15 February 2019

A great band in a small, intimate venue. This was basically a continuation of the Pawling show. I have an affinity with this band that makes me look forward to seeing them again.