May 16, 2020
This may come as a surprise to those of you who knew me "back in the day", but I did not go to many rock concerts...I never had a definite FAVOURITE group, or type of music (at least those who were still alive or performing!) My record/cassette/CD/mp3 collection is quite eclectic. I just pulled three random CDs from my collection (honestly, without looking), and got: Phil Collins: ...But Seriously, the soundtrack from Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and Vivaldi: Le Quattro Stationi, performed by I Musici. You get my drift...
I have probably enjoyed putting on an album, and a headset, and losing myself in that, rather than paying for a seat, having beer spilled on me, getting up every 5 minutes to allow people to pass, and then standing ANYWAY for the majority of the concert, as those in front of us feel the need to do so. (We are usually SO far up, we need the large screens they use now, to remind us of who we've come to see!)
Don't get me wrong. There is nothing like seeing Billy Joel live, or watching the spectacle of a Trans-Siberian Orchestra performance, or closing your eyes and just listening to Barbra....the problem is that the tickets are no longer $7.50 for the GOOD seats...so, we have to be choosier.
When it came to this concert, it was essentially a no-brainer: TWO groups (actually three, but I'll get to that) for the price of one. We had aisle seats about 20 rows up from the floor at the ACC, so the 'blockage' was down to a minimum, as we were looking at everything on an angle; so the only thing we had to deal with was the flow of people walking up and down said aisle, because they just HAD to have their $20 US pint of beer...
We actually came to see Journey. I had to hear for myself if this Mr Pineda could match Steve Perry's pipes (Opinion: a valid reproduction). We both enjoyed Journey. What actually ended up happening was that Caroline enjoyed Def Leppard more than she thought she would (they were okay...
😉 ) AND I wished the opening act had performed more than 45 minutes. The opening act...for Def Leppard and Journey (two acts that wouldn't have been caught together on the same CONTINENT, let alone the same stage in the 80s)...was Peter Frampton...PETER FRAMPTON. The arena was still filling with people as he was performing. As it was really only him performing, it was a little difficult to pick him out on the stage, but I didn't need to. Didn't need the big screens either. I just closed my eyes, listened, and transported back to a much simpler time.
The irony: my favourite part of the night, being an opening act, did not get 't-shirt space'. Doesn't matter. Every time I wear this Def Leppard/Journey top, I will remember the great Peter Frampton concert I went to.
Have a wonderful day everyone.
#StayHome #StaySafe #TShirtADay