I’ve seen over 170 bands at 120+ concerts since my first gig in 1986. Favourites? It’s hard to pick just one, but a few which stick out are:
- Dio (1986) because it was my first big concert
- Motorhead (1991)
- Rush (2002)
- Bjork (2003)
- Deep Purple & Thin Lizzy (Massey Hall, 2004)
- The Musical Box (2004)
- Dumpy’s Rusty Nuts (Sugar House, 1987) was a fun show – it ended with Dumpy riding a motorbike on to the main floor, doing doughnuts and then riding off through the emergency exit
- Kiss (2000) was an OK concert but it was the day Kerri & I got engaged.
*** I take it back – it is easy for me to pick a favourite now – it’s the Marillion Weekend in Montreal, April 2011 – I even wrote about it!
Gigs – past, present and future
Date | Headline act | Venue | Support act(s) |
---|---|---|---|
13/02/1986 | Pallas | SugarHouse | (none) |
10/05/1986 | Dio | Queens Hall, Leeds | Keel |
23/05/1986 | Pallas | King George’s Hall, Blackburn | Militia, Cobra |
14/09/1986 | Chris de Burgh | NEC | ? |
06/10/1986 | Magnum | Guildhall, Preston | FM |
22/11/1986 | Cobra | Yorkshire House | – |
28/11/1986 | Gary Glitter | Great Hall, Lancaster University | – |
29/01/1987 | Blitzkrieg Zone 20/20 | SugarHouse | – |
30/01/1987 | Cobra | Georgian Club, Lancaster | – |
31/01/1987 | Metal Heart | Yorkshire House | – |
06/02/1987 | Rough Edge | Yorkshire House | – |
15/02/1987 | Metal Heart | Flying Dutchman ph, Lancaster | – |
01/03/1987 | Raw Deal | Furness JCR | – |
06/03/1987 | Magnum | St.Georges Hall, Bradford | Heavy Pettin’ |
07/03/1987 | Deep Purple | NEC | Bad Company |
13/03/1987 | Raw Deal | SugarHouse | – |
14/03/1987 | Raw Deal | Yorkshire House | – |
07/05/1987 | Wedding Present | SugarHouse | – |
16/05/1987 | Raw Deal | Yorkshire House | – |
21/05/1987 | Blyth Power | SugarHouse | – |
04/06/1987 | Dumpy’s Rusty Nuts | SugarHouse | – |
22/08/1987 | Bon Jovi | Donington | Cinderella, WASP, Anthrax, Metallica, Dio |
28/08/1987 | The Mission | Reading Rock Festival (day 1/3) | The Babysitters, All About Eve, The Godfathers, Fields of the Nephilim, Icicle Works, The Fall |
29/08/1987 | Status Quo | Reading Rock Festival (day 2/3) | Quireboys, Dumpy’s Rusty Nuts, Shy, Glory, Terraplane, MGM, Lee Aaron, Georgia Satellites, Bad News, Magnum |
30/08/1987 | Alice Cooper | Reading Rock Festival (day 3/3) | Chariot, Kooga, Virginia Wolf, Vow Wow, Gypsy Queen, Lizzy Borden, The Enid, FM, The Bolshoi, Zodiac Mindwarp, The Stranglers |
11/10/1987 | Raw Deal | Furness JCR | – |
22/10/1987 | Tygers of Pan Tang | SugarHouse | – |
25/10/1987 | The Damned | Great Hall, Lancaster University | The Crows |
02/12/1987 | Dio | NEC | Warlock |
22/12/1987 | Marillion | NEC | It Bites |
03/01/1988 | Whitesnake | NEC | MSG (McAuley Schenker Group) |
03/03/1988 | Heart | NEC | The Jitters |
18/04/1988 | Def Leppard | NEC | Loverboy |
16/06/1988 | Pallas | Georgian Rooms, Lancaster | – |
27/06/1988 | INXS | NEC | Big Pig |
15/11/1988 | David Lee Roth | Wembley Arena | – |
12/03/1989 | Gary Moore | Wembley Arena | (Victory, except they cancelled) |
01/04/1989 | Europe | Hammy Odeon | Dare |
19/08/1989 | Bon Jovi | Milton Keynes Bowl | Skid Row, Vixen, Europe |
29/10/1989 | Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman & Howe | Wembley Arena | – |
26/11/1989 | Aerosmith | Wembley Arena | – |
10/12/1989 | Alice Cooper | Wembley Arena | Britny Fox, Great White |
11/05/1990 | Heart | Wembley Arena | – |
12/05/1990 | Midnight Oil | Wembley Arena | – |
30/06/1990 | Pink Floyd | Knebworth – Silver Clef Award Winners Concert | Cliff Richard & The Shadows, Dire Straits, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Genesis, Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd, Robert Plant & Jimmy Page, Status Quo, Tears for Fears |
18/08/1990 | Whitesnake | Donington | Thunder, Quireboys, Poison, Aerosmith |
05/09/1990 | Black Sabbath | Cambridge Corn Exchange | – |
16/09/1990 | Magnum | Wembley Arena | – |
16/12/1990 | Status Quo | Wembley Arena | Dumpy’s Rusty Nuts |
20/01/1991 | Ozzy Osbourne | Wembley Arena | Thunder |
19/02/1991 | Motorhead | Hammy Odeon | The Almighty |
14/03/1991 | Deep Purple | Hammersmith Odeon | Vixen |
16/04/1991 | AC/DC | Wembley Arena | – |
30/06/1991 | Yes | Wembley Arena | – |
06/07/1991 | ZZ Top | Milton Keynes Bowl | Little Angels, Thunder, Bryan Adams |
11/02/1992 | Lynyrd Skynyrd | Town & Country Club | – |
24/02/1992 | Eric Clapton | Royal Albert Hall | Clive Griffin |
27/06/1992 | Def Leppard | Earls Court, Olympia | Gun |
18/07/1992 | Bryan Adams | Wembley Stadium | Little Angels, Squeeze, Extreme |
24/07/1992 | Mr. Meana | Plinston Hall, Letchworth | From The Dark |
02/08/1992 | Genesis | Knebworth | Lisa Stansfield, Saw Doctors |
22/08/1992 | Iron Maiden | Donington | The Almighty, WASP, Slayer, Thunder, Skid Row |
04/10/1992 | Gary Moore | Royal Albert Hall | – |
13/12/1992 | Apollyon | Baldock F.C. | From The Dark |
20/12/1992 | Status Quo | Wembley Arena | – |
08/01/1993 | From The Dark | Plinston Hall, Letchworth | Apollyon |
09/04/1993 | From The Dark | Plinston Hall, Letchworth | The Lords |
17/05/1993 | Iron Maiden | Wembley Arena | The Almighty |
22/05/1993 | Bruce Springsteen | Milton Keynes Bowl | – |
13/02/1994 | The Egg and Bacon Band | The Man In The Moon ph, Stevenage | – |
24/02/1994 | The Uninvited | Red Lion ph, Stevenage | – |
13/04/1994 | Black Sabbath | Hammersmith Apollo | Cathedral, Godspeed |
04/05/1994 | Catch 22 | Red Lion ph, Stevenage | – |
09/06/1994 | Mr. Rainmaker | Red Lion ph, Stevenage | – |
17/06/1994 | Hard To Cure (?) | Hitchin Football Club | Devious |
23/06/1994 | Rickshaw AKA | Red Lion ph, Stevenage | – |
07/07/1994 | Turn The Page | Red Lion ph, Stevenage | – |
01/10/1994 | Purple Turtle | Yorkshire Grey ph, Stevenage | – |
20/06/1995 | Corduroy | Agincourt, Camberley | The Hairy Things (!) |
16/02/1996 | Deep Purple | Rivermead, Reading | Pan Ram |
21/06/1996 | AC/DC | Wembley Arena | – |
29/06/1996 | Eric Clapton | Hyde Park | Alanis Morissette, Bob Dylan, Pete Townsend’s “Quadrophenia” |
14/12/1996 | Status Quo | Wembley Arena | Steeleye Span |
18/05/1997 | The Who | Wembley | – |
25/10/1997 | Motorhead | Brixton Academy | – |
29/10/1997 | Lynyrd Skynyrd | Royal Albert Hall | – |
22/11/1997 | John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers | Shepherds Bush Empire | – |
27/02/1998 | Genesis | Earls Court | – |
07/05/1999 | Think Floyd | (?) | (none) |
23/06/2000 | Kiss | Air Canada Centre | Skid Row, Ted Nugent |
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18/03/2001 | Jeff Beck | Massey Hall | – |
26/05/2001 | Raoul & The Big Time | Steam Whistle Brewery | – |
01/06/2001 | J.Englishman | (Windsor) | – |
19/06/2001 | Lynyrd Skynyrd | Molson Amphitheatre | Ted Nugent, Deep Purple |
05/07/2001 | Styx | Molson Amphitheatre | Joe Stark, Billy Squier, Bad Company |
07/07/2001 | Raoul & The Big Time | (?) | – |
24/07/2001 | Black Sabbath | OzzFest @ The Docks | Zakk Wylde’s Black Label Society. Crazy Town, Disturbed, Linkin Park, Papa Roach, Slipknot, Marilyn Manson |
28/09/2001 | The Arrogant Worms | Hugh’s Room | Wendell Ferguson |
30/11/2001 | April Wine | Kool Hous | Blue Oyster Cult |
05/06/2002 | Big Rude Jake | The Horseshoe | (none) |
27/04/2002 | Motorhead | The Docks | – |
06/07/2002 | Long John Baldry | Harbourfront | (none) |
17/07/2002 | Rush | Molson Amphitheatre | (none) |
16/08/2002 | Zeppelinesque | Healey’s | (none) |
17/08/2002 | (various Thin Lizzy cover bands) | Healey’s | – |
22/08/2002 | Jethro Tull | Molson Amphitheatre | Saga |
21/12/2002 | The Arrogant Worms | Hugh’s Room | (none) |
05/03/2003 | Status Quo | Club 279 (Hard Rock Cafe) | The Trews |
11/04/2003 | Zeppelinesque | Healey’s | (none) |
05/06/2003 | Blessed Blond | Bistro 333 | (none) |
05/07/2003 | The Trews | Celebrate Toronto | – |
30/07/2003 | Rolling Stones | Downsview Park (“Molson Rocks For Toronto”, a.k.a. “SARSstock”, a.k.a. SARSapalooza”!) |
AC/DC; Rush; The Guess Who; Justin Timberlake; Blue Rodeo; The Tea Party; Sam Roberts; The Flaming Lips; Kathleen Edwards; The Isley Brothers; Sass Jordan; La Chicane; Jim Belushi & Dan Aykroyd & Have Love Will Travel Revue |
03/08/2003 | Iron Maiden | Molson Amphitheatre | Dio, Motorhead |
12/08/2003 | Def Leppard | Molson Amphitheatre | Ricky Warwick |
|
Bjork | Centre Island | Bonnie Prince Billy |
09/10/2003 | Eric Idle | Massey Hall | ? |
10/10/2003 | Buffy Sainte-Marie | Massey Hall | ? |
31/01/2004 | The Trews | Horseshoe Tavern | Rebel Emergency; Bedouin Soundclash |
26/02/2004 | Deep Purple | Massey Hall | Thin Lizzy |
27/03/2004 | “The Musical Box” (Genesis cover band) recreating “Selling England By The Pound” | The Danforth Music Hall | (none) |
22/07/2004 | Alice Cooper | Molson Amphitheatre | Edgar Winter Band & Foghat |
18/08/2004 | Judas Priest | Molson Amphitheatre | Slayer |
21/08/2004 | Deep Purple | Molson Amphitheatre | Thin Lizzy & Joe Satriani |
18/11/2004 | April Wine | Hard Rock Cafe | Carl Dixon |
18/03/2005 | Thunderstruck | Opera House | (AC/DC tribute band) |
16/06/2005 | Marillion Live and Acoustic Trio (Los Trios Marillos = h, Rothers & Pete) | Mod Club | ? |
03/08/2005 | Iron Maiden | Molson Amphitheatre | Mastodon |
15/08/2005 | Def Leppard | Molson Amphitheatre | The Tea Party |
04/10/2005 | Jethro Tull | Massey Hall | Lucia Micarelli |
03/12/2005 | The Musical Box | Massey Hall | performing The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway |
28/06/2006 | Spamalot | Canon Theatre | (Not a concert, I know, but a fun night nonetheless) |
16/10/2006 | Iron Maiden | Air Canada Centre | Bullet For My Valentine |
03/04/2009 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Sun Domingo |
04/04/2009 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | The Wishing Tree; Sun Domingo |
05/04/2009 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | John Wesley |
08/04/2011 | Sun Domingo | Brutopia, Montréal | Tempus Fugit |
08/04/2011 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Pete & Robin; John Wesley |
09/04/2011 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Jason Hart |
10/04/2011 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | The Free Press |
20/06/2012 | Marillion | The Opera House, Toronto | Sun Domingo |
22/03/2013 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Mystery |
23/03/2013 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Jacob Moon |
24/03/2013 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Sound Of Contact |
24/04/2015 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Scripted; Kings; |
25/04/2015 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Lo-Fi Resistance |
26/04/2015 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | David Barrett Trio |
31/10/2016 | Marillion | Danforth Music Hall, Toronto | John Wesley |
17/05/2019 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | District 97 |
18/05/2019 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Jenny Rothery and Riccardo Romano |
19/05/2019 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | “An Audience With Marillion” |
04/09/2020 | Marillion | Couch Convention | – |
05/09/2020 | Marillion | Couch Convention | – |
06/09/2020 | Marillion | Couch Convention | – |
01/07/2022 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Randy McStine |
02/07/2022 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | The Cyberiam |
03/07/2022 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | “An Audience With Marillion” |
12/05/2023 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | John Young |
13/05/2023 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | Matt Dorsey |
14/05/2023 | Marillion | Théâtre L’Olympia, Montréal | “An Audience With Marillion” |
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– | – | No plans at present | – |
As of 01-Nov-2022, setlist.fm says I’ve seen 206 concerts of 123 different artists.
Marillion is obviously the lion’s share of those gigs, followed by Deep Purple, Iron Maiden, and Status Quo.
Missing?
I’m sure there are other bands that I’ve seen which don’t appear on this list, such as
- Derek Miller (at the benefit concert where I also saw Buffy Sainte-Marie)
- Tangible Fruit Squad
- Voivod
I also saw The Spice Girls and Jamiroquai perform a couple of songs each at the launch of the McLaren (Formula One) car on 13 Feb 1997.
Other bands I’d like to see (if I could turn back time)
- Fleetwood Mac … but the Peter Green incarnation (not Stevie Nicks)
- Led Zeppelin (although I have seen Page & Plant)
- Queensryche
- Rainbow (there’s no official band site, and Richie Blackmore is doing other stuff these days)
- Stevie Ray Vaughan
- Toyah
- Triumph
What have I been listening to recently?
Unfortunately last.fm no longer supports the charts which I used to include here, so if you want to see what I’ve been listening to you’ll have to go to my last.fm profile page.