Support better than headliner

[neepheid]

"Better" is a subjective term but I remember seeing Muse in February 2000 in a wee venue called Glow 303 in Aberdeen. Soulwax were the support and I preferred them to be honest. Memories of a Casio guitar shaped synth thing and the whole crowd going C-A-S-I-O! Then Muse came on, they might have been amazing but they were far too loud for the venue to the point where I wanted to leave. So I did before blood started coming out of my ears.

I was 23 at the time, so it wasn't an age thing, it was actively, nastily loud in there.

Soulwax 1, Muse 0

[NancyJohnson]

I saw Japan at The Lyceum in 1980/81 and one of the supports were a band called The Smart.  Outstanding.

Same venue, The Alarm supporting Big Country.

[4000]

21 hours ago, casapete said:

Seen a few great support acts over the years. The Stones always seemed to pick acts who gave them a good run for the money

One that springs to mind was Skynyrd at Knebworth. I’d have hated to be any band going on after that performance of Freebird. One of the great moments, IMO. 

[Bluewine]

On 01/02/2020 at 13:12, Bassman Sam said:

The Eagles blew Neil Young off the stage when I saw them back in the early '70's in Glasgow. Young kept stopping songs to complain about the monitor sound and he looked like he was off his face. His set was cut short thank F***.

Yes , that sort of thing happened back in the 70s. Opening acts blowing away the headliner. I'm not sure that happens much these days.

Blue

[Sammers]

23 hours ago, la bam said:

Saw a young unsigned band called Casino (I think) support the Stereophonics at the guild hall in preston. Honestly the blew them off the stage and out of town.

Dont think they ever did anything, but gees Stereophonics musn't have been so pleased! They sounded so boring in comparison (and I like them).

Casino were somewhat local legends here in Brum when they were together, seen ‘em a few times and they were always on point. Never a bad show!

Their guitarist is actually in the ‘phonics now, it’s Adam Zindani!

[Skybone]

21 hours ago, Graham said:

Cathedral supporting HIM - Cathedral were the only redeeming feature of the night.

If I'm being completely objective, Old Man Gloom were better than Cave In last year, but they were both great.

In a similar vein, Oxbow were better than Sumac when I saw those two as well.

First gig I did with one band was supporting Cathedral (2nd album?), Sleep (Holy Mountain tour) & Penance.

Cathedral's rider was a 24 can slab of cheap bitter. They let us drink it for them!  

[lowregisterhead]

On 01/02/2020 at 18:36, Old Man Riva said:

Cov Theatre 1978

Headliner: Black Sabbath (10th anniversary tour)

Support: Van Halen (first UK gigs)

Never seen anything like it before or since.

Same line-up, same tour at Aberdeen Capitol Theatre. Same result! Van Halen were jaw dropping.

[MacDaddy]

On 01/02/2020 at 19:46, mr4stringz said:

Pantera opening for Megadeth in ‘92 springs to mind.

 

Also Flotsam & Jetsam opening for Megadeth in about '87.

[Muzz]

18 hours ago, Little Dragon said:

When I saw Squeeze at the Sage in Gateshead a couple of years ago, they put the legendary John Cooper Clarke on first. Hard to beat that.

It was quite the thing with punk bands, especially round Manchester, to get JCC to support...he was always terrific. If you've never heard Beasley Street through a 10kw PA, you've never lived... 😀

[Muzz]

15 hours ago, spectoremg said:

Todd Rundgren and Utopia, Knebworth '79, before Led Zep. They were blinding. 

Then again, they were all trying to follow Chas and Dave...now there's a Led Zep opening act... 😀

[Rexel Matador]

Go on then, I'll play:

Dillinger Escape Plan, who I'd never heard of, supporting an incredibly lacklustre System Of A Down circa 2001.

[EliasMooseblaster]

22 hours ago, Graham said:

Because of a podcast, I've listened to Danzig IV, V, VI and VII recently and wowser, some of that is bad.

I'll have to go back and listen to the earlier stuff at some point, as I understand that's a lot better.

I went to see Danzig in Brixton last year, and was very glad that most of the set drew on the material from the first three albums. You can probably dispense with everything after those. (Good gig, though!)

[Graham]

8 minutes ago, EliasMooseblaster said:

I went to see Danzig in Brixton last year, and was very glad that most of the set drew on the material from the first three albums. You can probably dispense with everything after those. (Good gig, though!)

There's a reason he's pulled everything after Danzig III from Spotify/Apple etc 

[BigRedX]

20 hours ago, Geek99 said:

Thanks - Actually I’m being slowly reminded by long-term storage archives in my heads that when I got the data for the history page, u2 were on there 

I met Andy Rourke there once. Nice man.

Back in 1980 when I moved to Nottingham, it was a time before Rock City and The Royal Concert Hall, (and after the Sandpiper) where there were few opportunities to go and see really well-known bands without travelling to another city or knowing someone who was a student at Nottingham University. 

The Theatre Royal put on a series of reasonably well-known bands over the summer - I saw Ultravox (with Midge Ure) and Lene Lovich there, but if you were into the sort of music that John Peel played The Boat Club and The Ad-Lib Club were fantastic. Over the next 9 months (until the opening of Rock City essentially killed them off as music venues) I saw Bauhaus, Classix Nouveax, The Au Pairs, Sector 27 (Tom Robinson), Young Marble Giants, U2, Comsat Angels, Bow Wow Wow, Orange Juice, and whole load of great Nottingham bands.

[EliasMooseblaster]

I can't remember the year, but the venue was the grounds of the Tower of London. The headliner was Jeff Beck; the support was Buddy Guy.

It's not that Jeff Beck was bad - he did his Jeff Beck thing perfectly well, his guitar playing was lovely, and the band were really good. But if you're doing an entirely instrumental set of jazzy, soft-rock numbers, it's going to feel a bit flat when the chap before you is not only an original Blues legend, but also just radiates charisma from the second he wanders onto the stage. Guy's performance was still up there with the best of them, but his rapport with the audience was superb. He was engaging, he was funny; his manner was warm and he clearly loved what he was doing. Poor old Jeff managed to mumble a "thank you" into his mic about twice, and that was the totality of his interaction with the audience. His music might have been more technically interesting than Buddy's, but the vastly greater passion and energy of the old bluesman rather trumped the sight of four guys staring at their shoes while noodling away in a much more subdued groove.

[cetera]

Scorpions supporting Judas Priest at Hammy O. Priest dialled it in and Rob Halford prowled the stage looking at the floor. Only gig I've ever left early...

Tyketto supporting White Lion at Town & Country Club. Energy, songs and amazing vocals put a pedestrian White Lion to shame....

[Skybone]

2 hours ago, EliasMooseblaster said:

I went to see Danzig in Brixton last year, and was very glad that most of the set drew on the material from the first three albums. You can probably dispense with everything after those. (Good gig, though!)

"Probably is not the word that I'd use!  

[MrCrane]

Muddy Waters supporting Eric Clapton at the Hammersmith Odeon 1978

The Band supporting CSNY at Wembley Stadium 1974

[Chezz55]

University of Essex Rag Week 1970 , SU Dance Hall,

'Home' supporting 'Family'

I like to think that 'Family' had a bad night - but they were comprehensively out-played and out-classed by 'Home' whose line-up included Laurie Wisefield (went on join Wishbone Ash) and Cliff Williams (hooked up with AC/DC).

 

 

[Rich]

Mrs Rich was at the Birmingham date on this tour. She reckons Skynyrd totally wiped the floor with the Dutch fellas, to the extent that people were leaving halfway through the GE set.

 

[Teebs]

Snow Patrol headlined The Witchwood in Ashton (small but legendary Manchester venue) on a Thursday night, probably 2001ish - shortly before they became famous.

They were supported by a band called Terra Diablo, if I remember correctly, who were absolutely amazing & owned the night - easily the best band of the evening.

Never heard of Terra Diablo again, which is a great shame, whereas Snow Patrol went on to commercial success etc.

As an aside, our band headlined the same venue on the Friday, to about twice as many people as the Snow Patrol gig, and rocked it!

...and who remembers us, eh?

[acidbass]

I enjoyed Ghost more than Metallica at their Slane Castle concert last Summer!

[jacko]

The quo at Glasgow - probably 10 winters ago had Roy Wood playing support. He was brilliant. The quo were a bit Meh! in comparison. 

[thodrik]

2 hours ago, EliasMooseblaster said:

I can't remember the year, but the venue was the grounds of the Tower of London. The headliner was Jeff Beck; the support was Buddy Guy.

It's not that Jeff Beck was bad - he did his Jeff Beck thing perfectly well, his guitar playing was lovely, and the band were really good. But if you're doing an entirely instrumental set of jazzy, soft-rock numbers, it's going to feel a bit flat when the chap before you is not only an original Blues legend, but also just radiates charisma from the second he wanders onto the stage. Guy's performance was still up there with the best of them, but his rapport with the audience was superb. He was engaging, he was funny; his manner was warm and he clearly loved what he was doing. Poor old Jeff managed to mumble a "thank you" into his mic about twice, and that was the totality of his interaction with the audience. His music might have been more technically interesting than Buddy's, but the vastly greater passion and energy of the old bluesman rather trumped the sight of four guys staring at their shoes while noodling away in a much more subdued groove.

I saw Buddy Guy when he was over 70 and he was suffering from the flu. He was utterly outstanding as were his band. 

[cetera]

A couple of years ago at Wembley Arena - REO Speedwagon blew Status Quo, without Parfitt (RIP), off the stage...