What is the best live show you’ve ever been to? And why?
Take a moment to think about it. What made that live show memorable and meaningful for you?
A little while back I asked folks on social media this exact question. The responses were interesting. Here they are (sic):
Kenn:
“Dave Matthew’s Band CPT 2016, phenomenal stage performance and musicianship, Switchfoot CPT 2016, How to be a frontman and put on a show 101 and lastly Ani DiFranco Edinburgh 2004 again for making an acoustic guitar and double bass sound like an orchestra…”
Katherine:
“Suzanne Vega in Jhb. I’m battling to work out why… it was surreal. I went on my own. I sang along, cried, laughed and was transported back to my late teens. Also, she owns that stage!”
Kerry:
“Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott because I love them so much, the music is brilliant, their rapport with the audience is great, and the quality of the music is just as good as on their albums.”
Gregory:
“The Killers in Franshoek, Rolling stones in JHB, U2 in Belfast and James in Dublin were all brilliant 👌overall great experience… music, sound, visuals, performance, did we dance the whole concert?”
It’s interesting to see some common themes in those responses.
I have attended some amazing shows in my time, all of them amazing for different reasons. For me, I think the top spot belongs to Jamie Cullum, performing in Durban back in the early 2000s. (One day, I’d love to meet him.)
Jamie was opening for Jonathan Butler. It seemed obvious that the majority of the audience were there for Jonathan. As Jamie walked out, he raised a can of beer towards the audience’s welcoming applause, took a glug, and sat down at the piano. The auditorium went hush.
The opening exploration of chords culminated in a baritone vocal entry of Cole Porter’s I Get A Kick Out Of You. It seemed that almost instantly, the audience understood that this more than just an opening act. Early on in the set, Jamie started with his ubiquitous percussion and climbing on top of the piano to get some decent-sounding bass beats out of it by stomping the top of the baby grand.
That was part of the best experience of the show, as a more mature gentleman behind me – clearly a connoisseur of good pianos – simply couldn’t help his instinctive response of caution: “Be careful with it!!” he shout from the nosebleeds. I laughed out loud along with everyone around me.
The show just escalated and escalated until, nearly at the end, it felt like there was no ceiling… and we were all ascending into delirious ecstasy. By then, most had forgotten this was an opening act.
Even now, I think back on it fondly.
For me, I’m always interested in how live music influences mental health. And especially in a world that still has varying degrees of lockdown measures in place, here’s the big question:
What makes people want to go out to a live show?
I would love to hear your favourite experience in the comments below. What was your favourite live show? And why?
