Opening Acts

Skel · #1 12-16-2006, 05:29 PM

Ever seen a really famous band before they hit the big time? I went to see "Black Sabbath" and they had an opening act called "Van Halen". The crowd was stunned. Somebody working for Black Sabbath had to have gotten fired the next morning. The crowd booed Black Sabbath and they seemed like they were in their 60's or something - not that they were bad, but how do you follow a young, hungry Van Halen?

Talk amongst yourselves.

62Walnut · #2 12-16-2006, 07:34 PM

I saw REM on the bill at U2 gig in Croke Park, Dublin in 1985.

I'll never forget that gig as long as I live. Not necessarily for the music either. As a normal fit 18 year old, up front, there was the usual swaying and rolling. It took a life of its own and became a very frightening wave which ended up with me being flattened on the ground under an extremely fat guy who must have been about 20+ stone!

The crush was still moving and around my head were the feet of others caught up in it. All I feared now was a kick in the head or face. Unable to breathe, as the guy above me wasn't getting up, I started to panic. Some people around grabbed my arms and tried pull me up, but it was against the weight of my 'new companion' so that was a futile exercise.

I was eventually rescued from my plight, and carried, or rather passed over people's heads and across the barrier at the front, and away. I spent the rest of the gig in the safety of a seat in the stands.

I've lived to tell the story. Nothing big to most people, but when you can't breathe and all you can see are feet trampling around your head, it's a damn frightening experience.

Not where the thread was meant to go, but anyway. Did I mention REM? Michael Stipe with a long dark tweedy trench coat and generally looking like a tramp.

They had been going about 5 years by then, but I don't know if they would have been considered as 'big time'. I was aware of them, but didn't know anything about them.

Walnut

velvetkevorkian · #3 12-16-2006, 08:52 PM

I've seen Mendeed a number of times locally. Dunno if they've made it across the pond yet, but they're a Glaswegian metalcore band who signed to Nuclear Blast this year and doing really well in Europe.

bongomania · #4 12-17-2006, 06:14 PM

There's a moderately-known indie band called 5-8, which I saw a few times when they were just getting started.

Eric Moesle · #5 12-17-2006, 08:16 PM

I saw Bon Jovi open up for Ratt. Go figure.

I also saw Def Leppard open up for Billy Squier. Drummer had two arms back then.

I saw a VERY young Bryan Adams open up for Journey. He was actually trying to be a rebel back then . . .

i_got_a_mohawk · #6 12-17-2006, 08:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by velvetkevorkian

I've seen Mendeed a number of times locally. Dunno if they've made it across the pond yet, but they're a Glaswegian metalcore band who signed to Nuclear Blast this year and doing really well in Europe.

Ive seen them a few times, i wouldnt say they are that big to be honest, and TBH, they really think they are bigger than they are.

They have a bit of a superiority complex.

I remember when Franz Ferdinand played in a bar in dundee, i wasnt there, but a guy i know was, only 7 people were there

Lazylion · #7 12-19-2006, 11:16 AM

I saw Yes on their first visit to the US. They were opening for Jethro Tull (Aqualung tour). I loved the music but thought they had a stupid name. Still love their music, and I got used to the name!
In the country music arena, I not only saw, but played with some hick from the sticks. He was overweight, his hair looked like crap, teeth were crooked. The bar manager said "you're backing this guy Saturday night." He played a borrowed guitar, and had a borrowed shirt on. He had two songs we'd never heard of, and he did the worst version of Marshall Tucker's "Can't You See" that I'd ever heard. Just awful. We all agreed that he was a nice enough guy, but sucked musically. We got through the gig, scratched our heads, and figured we'd never hear of this hillbilly again.
We were wrong. 3 or 4 months later, he was nominated for best new male vocalist of the year. He went on to have a string of hits. His name is John Anderson.

Skel · #8 12-19-2006, 11:23 AM

Whoa! And "Yes" is a great name!

iamthebassman · #9 12-19-2006, 02:19 PM

In 1976(?) I went to see Moxy in Corpus Christi,TX, the opening act was a crazy band no one had heard of, AC/DC. I ended up seeing them 5 more times, only the last time was without Bon Scott.

Not an opening act but along the same lines: as a kid in the 60s I used to go watch my cousin's band rehearse in his garage. My cousin played drums, and the guitarist/singer was George Strait.

mimaz · #10 12-19-2006, 03:11 PM

OK, don't flame for lame, but........

Back in the earlier/mid '80s I took my g/f to see Jeffery Osborne (a funk, RB singer) in Pittsburgh PA.........young gal that was the opening act about blew him away..........say, who was that, anyway........a few weeks later Whitney Houston's first album came out.

Spoiled Grape · #11 12-19-2006, 03:31 PM

Woooooo

Okay, went to see a local Riverside band about 10 or 12 years back with my friend's older brother, called "The Skeletones." I get there early and an opening band, No Doubt, is on the stage. The chick singer looks sort of punk-ish, and there are about 20 people in the crowd mulling about.

On a more "punk" note, around the same time or more, I saw Rancid open up for Voodoo Glow Skulls in Southern California. I also saw Blink 182 open up for The Vandals.

That's about it.

billjr · #12 12-19-2006, 03:34 PM

I saw Nantucket open for Kiss back in the 70s during the Alive II tour. They were huge around the Southeast, and had three or four albums. Don't know how big or well known they were elsewhere.

Also saw Heart twice. The first time Eddie Money opened for them, and the second time John Cougar opened for them (supporting his American Fool album).

I have a friend who writes, sings and plays guitar who opened for Brooks and Dunn in Athens, GA. He wrote Kenny Roger's Scarlet Fever and Joe Nichols' "Size Matters" and "Joe's Place."

SuperDuck · #13 12-19-2006, 03:42 PM

Coheed and Cambria seem to be doing pretty well for themselves; I saw them open for the Get Up Kids.

Baryonyx · #14 12-19-2006, 03:43 PM

I remember seeing Eric Sardinas the second time I went to see Steve Vai. He was amazing, all over the stage knocking out amazing blues licks. I don't know if he'll eveer make it into the guitar mainstream, but he is a brilliant musician all the same. Plus, my brother caught the slide he used for the whole set when he threw it into the audience. Talk about a score!

mimaz · #15 12-19-2006, 03:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spoiled Grape

Woooooo

C'mon man, I made the disclaimer "don't flame for lame". It was a girlfriend thing. Really.

MakiSupaStar · #16 12-19-2006, 03:57 PM

I remember seeing No Doubt a couple of times when they were just a local OC band. They were opening for a band called Mary's Danish (Whooo?) I also saw them play with another group called Sublime. Sublime sucked so bad they got boooed off the stage. They were too drunk to put together one song. No Doubt came on after them. They were opening for an acoustic Dave Wakeling (what?). This was when No Doubt was a ska band. Not the pop monster it became launching the other pop monster Gwen Stephani. The show was called Showdown at the Ghost Town and it was out in San Bernardino or something like that at this little tourist Ghost Town shopping mall place in some little cow town, which is now a vast landscape of housing tracts.

MakiSupaStar · #17 12-19-2006, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spoiled Grape

Woooooo

Okay, went to see a local Riverside band about 10 or 12 years back with my friend's older brother, called "The Skeletones." I get there early and an opening band, No Doubt, is on the stage. The chick singer looks sort of punk-ish, and there are about 20 people in the crowd mulling about.

On a more "punk" note, around the same time or more, I saw Rancid open up for Voodoo Glow Skulls in Southern California. I also saw Blink 182 open up for The Vandals.

That's about it.

That's funny. We've been to a lot of the same shows. Skeletones and No Doubt played a lot together. They also did a few shows with Sublime. Oh yeah, another band I saw. A little band called Green Day played in the pub on my campus at UCI.

Spoiled Grape · #18 12-19-2006, 04:43 PM

Sublime was generally a horrible live act at any show with alcohol. I saw them once as a tight band, and well, they were really good. Too drunk and drugged most of the time.

The Skeletones are still around, although their music is much more hip-hop driven. They just put out an album that would do well if the band was young enough to tour. Unfortuantly, they just can't drum up the support to really tour again.

Dave Wakling was in the English Beat, right? I opened for him a while ago, but it was just him doing some new wave/pop stuff.

agreatheight · #19 12-20-2006, 08:23 AM

I've seen...

Dream Theater open for Winger!

Jeff Buckley open for Julianna Hatfiled!

Primus open for 24-7 Spies!

King's X open for Hurricane!

...although Hurricane actually cancelled, so it was really just King's X.

Passinwind · #20 12-20-2006, 11:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skel

Ever seen a really famous band before they hit the big time?

I saw (the original) Mahavishnu Orchestra open for T-Rex.

Aerosmith on the sidewalk in front of BU on Comm Ave in Boston in '71. They also used to open for various semi-obscure local blues bands at school functions back then.

Half of the guys in Soundgarden used to rehearse in my house in Seattle in the mid-80s, just before the whole scene exploded there.