Songs Some Artists Should Start/End Their Shows With
I've written some good posts on concerts including finding the best seats in the house, but something that often gets overlooked is the setlist.
What about The Setlist?
While I'm no one's tour manager or organizer, I do make mental notes of shows (whether I attend them or not), and I feel that the most important way to set the stage and what you leave your audience with matters.
The beginning is key
I won't list all artists in both categories, but here are a select few artists and how they should start their shows.
U2: I was disappointed that during their 30th Anniversary Joshua Tree tour they opened with Sunday Bloody Sunday. Being a good (and important song), I feel it would make a better interlude. Most U2 shows I heard of opened with I Will Follow, and that song's jangling guitars tend to really be saying "welcome," and it seems like an obvious warm-up choice for Bono.
Fleetwood Mac: This one is a DEAD giveaway, but The Chain is the no-brainer. In fact, it opens their show called The Dance filmed in 1997. My only question for Mr. McVie is, why was your bass turned way low?
Styx: I was SO disppointed seven years ago when I went to see them. They did not open with Rockin' the Paradise, nor did they close with The Best of Times. I know what you're thinking, Dennis DeYoung has been out of the band for twenty years, but come on! Just watch their 1997 Return to Paradise show and you'll understand why I said what I say.
Elton John: Another no-brainer, but if I were tour manager/organizer, I would REQUIRE Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding to be the opener. Watch his 2000 show at Madison Square Garden and just hear the screams as he takes to the piano. It has a long opening, but to me that makes it seem like an Overture. I can't believe he put it in the MIDDLE of the setlist on his farewell tour. It was that, which made me not want to go see him, and where I live, he played two nights in a row.
Sticking to EJ for a while longer, the closing candidates to me would have have to be either I'm Still Standing, or Don't Let the Sun go Down on Me. There's something special in the latter's grand ending. It's actually very much like the closing of Bridge Over Troubled Water. On the other hand, the former is his sort of "rebound" hit. On that track, he literally said two words, "I'm back."
Bon Jovi: I don't understand why It's my Life is usually played in the middle of their shows. It's sort of like a Living on a Prayer Part 2 to me mainly because of the talkbox and the reference to "Tommy and Gina." To think, they opened their VH1 Storytellers show with it, so why not open shows with it?
And sticking to Livin' on a Prayer. I did not expect that at the encore. That is more of a song mid-show. I would've gone with I'll be There For You or Always, but I think the former is now tougher without Sambora.
Pink Floyd (well Gilmour and Waters anyway) Imagine how unperturbed I was on Facebook several years ago, when a friend posted a video from the Desert Trip in Indio, Cali, in which Mr. Waters did Shine on You Crazy Diamond halfway into the show. Just like how Funeral opens Yellow Brick Road, Shine On opens Wish You Were Here and has just as much of a significant stage-setting intro. It builds up slowly to where your anticipation is growing. Then when you hear that four-note guitar arpeggio, it makes you feel like you're at a rock concert even though, for all you know, you may be listening to the record.
Luckily, Floyd HAVE opened their 1987-88 and 1994-95 tour dates with that number, and it comes first on their PULSE concert DVD, which I would recommend to anyone. Perhaps the only other alternate opening could be Speak to Me/Breathe (for Gilmour anyway, I suppose), but seriously, Shine On wins.
And while Comfortably Numb sounds like a good idea for a closer, Run Like Hell is actually better. If/when you see PULSE, you'll understand why.
Jethro Tull: The band with the flute player. While Living in the Past sounds good enough for a mood-setter, THE opener prize goes to...Aqualung! The song really sets the mood on the album, so why not have it set the mood on stage? And not the reworked version, no-no, the ORIGINAL.
The Police: Stewart Copeland's intro drumming on Message in a Bottle, gets you pumped, but if they EVER were to come together, I'd recommend sliding it between Synchronicity I and II. After all, Synchronicity II usually followed Message at their 2007-08 tour.
Supertramp: They're a forgotten band, but I just love the way their 1979 Paris Concert starts with School, but they did not do that later in their career. Their shows close with the closing track of Crime of the Century, so why wouldn't they open with the opening track?
Foreigner: Feels Like the First Time is something of a wildcard. It makes a good opener being their first single, but ultimately just as good of a closer. For an alternate opener, I'd go with the lesser-known Soul Doctor.
What about the Closers?
Everyone's tired by now and all they're thinking of is how the hell are they gonna get out of the jam-packed stadium. BUT, the band or artist still has some ten minutes left to run through two of their songs or so, what shall they be?
Rush: This may seem obvious, but their 1974 hit, Working Man fits the bill - although I am disappointed for not hearing it seven years ago. If you hear the original, you'll be wondering if it's Sabbath with Geddy Lee instead of Ozzy, but really the end is a real "smackdown," by the way they slow it all down. Other choices could be Limelight, or The Spirit of Radio, but the latter makes a fine opener.
Journey: Never got the chance to see them, but if I had to pick, I'd go with a ballad such as Open Arms or Faithfully. The former, however, ends a bit too soon for me, so I'd recommend maybe repeating the chorus.
Paul McCartney: His rendition of Golden Slumbers/Carry the Weight/The End is good, but I think it's a bit too little to do Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 2, without doing Part 1 to start with. Also while he did do A Day in the LIfe during his early 2010s tours, I would use that to close a show or two. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five, which closes BOTR, or The Long and Winding Road, are also good choices, but the latter is a bit too sad, don't you think?
Eric Clapton: Slowhand's choice of Crossroads for closing his show on my 21st birthday, was a pretty good one, but what about doing Layla? I know some will say Mr. Clapton can't sing as high, but still it's his signature songs and one that gets credited to him as a solo artists EVEN THOUGH WE ALL KNOW he did not record it solo.
I could have ranted on all day about every other artists, but these were just a few of the key ones. Of course, everyone has their own opinions, so please go ahead and comment your opinions for openers/closers.
What about The Setlist?
While I'm no one's tour manager or organizer, I do make mental notes of shows (whether I attend them or not), and I feel that the most important way to set the stage and what you leave your audience with matters.
The beginning is key
I won't list all artists in both categories, but here are a select few artists and how they should start their shows.
U2: I was disappointed that during their 30th Anniversary Joshua Tree tour they opened with Sunday Bloody Sunday. Being a good (and important song), I feel it would make a better interlude. Most U2 shows I heard of opened with I Will Follow, and that song's jangling guitars tend to really be saying "welcome," and it seems like an obvious warm-up choice for Bono.
Fleetwood Mac: This one is a DEAD giveaway, but The Chain is the no-brainer. In fact, it opens their show called The Dance filmed in 1997. My only question for Mr. McVie is, why was your bass turned way low?
Styx: I was SO disppointed seven years ago when I went to see them. They did not open with Rockin' the Paradise, nor did they close with The Best of Times. I know what you're thinking, Dennis DeYoung has been out of the band for twenty years, but come on! Just watch their 1997 Return to Paradise show and you'll understand why I said what I say.
Elton John: Another no-brainer, but if I were tour manager/organizer, I would REQUIRE Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding to be the opener. Watch his 2000 show at Madison Square Garden and just hear the screams as he takes to the piano. It has a long opening, but to me that makes it seem like an Overture. I can't believe he put it in the MIDDLE of the setlist on his farewell tour. It was that, which made me not want to go see him, and where I live, he played two nights in a row.
Sticking to EJ for a while longer, the closing candidates to me would have have to be either I'm Still Standing, or Don't Let the Sun go Down on Me. There's something special in the latter's grand ending. It's actually very much like the closing of Bridge Over Troubled Water. On the other hand, the former is his sort of "rebound" hit. On that track, he literally said two words, "I'm back."
Bon Jovi: I don't understand why It's my Life is usually played in the middle of their shows. It's sort of like a Living on a Prayer Part 2 to me mainly because of the talkbox and the reference to "Tommy and Gina." To think, they opened their VH1 Storytellers show with it, so why not open shows with it?
And sticking to Livin' on a Prayer. I did not expect that at the encore. That is more of a song mid-show. I would've gone with I'll be There For You or Always, but I think the former is now tougher without Sambora.
Pink Floyd (well Gilmour and Waters anyway) Imagine how unperturbed I was on Facebook several years ago, when a friend posted a video from the Desert Trip in Indio, Cali, in which Mr. Waters did Shine on You Crazy Diamond halfway into the show. Just like how Funeral opens Yellow Brick Road, Shine On opens Wish You Were Here and has just as much of a significant stage-setting intro. It builds up slowly to where your anticipation is growing. Then when you hear that four-note guitar arpeggio, it makes you feel like you're at a rock concert even though, for all you know, you may be listening to the record.
Luckily, Floyd HAVE opened their 1987-88 and 1994-95 tour dates with that number, and it comes first on their PULSE concert DVD, which I would recommend to anyone. Perhaps the only other alternate opening could be Speak to Me/Breathe (for Gilmour anyway, I suppose), but seriously, Shine On wins.
And while Comfortably Numb sounds like a good idea for a closer, Run Like Hell is actually better. If/when you see PULSE, you'll understand why.
Jethro Tull: The band with the flute player. While Living in the Past sounds good enough for a mood-setter, THE opener prize goes to...Aqualung! The song really sets the mood on the album, so why not have it set the mood on stage? And not the reworked version, no-no, the ORIGINAL.
The Police: Stewart Copeland's intro drumming on Message in a Bottle, gets you pumped, but if they EVER were to come together, I'd recommend sliding it between Synchronicity I and II. After all, Synchronicity II usually followed Message at their 2007-08 tour.
Supertramp: They're a forgotten band, but I just love the way their 1979 Paris Concert starts with School, but they did not do that later in their career. Their shows close with the closing track of Crime of the Century, so why wouldn't they open with the opening track?
Foreigner: Feels Like the First Time is something of a wildcard. It makes a good opener being their first single, but ultimately just as good of a closer. For an alternate opener, I'd go with the lesser-known Soul Doctor.
What about the Closers?
Everyone's tired by now and all they're thinking of is how the hell are they gonna get out of the jam-packed stadium. BUT, the band or artist still has some ten minutes left to run through two of their songs or so, what shall they be?
Rush: This may seem obvious, but their 1974 hit, Working Man fits the bill - although I am disappointed for not hearing it seven years ago. If you hear the original, you'll be wondering if it's Sabbath with Geddy Lee instead of Ozzy, but really the end is a real "smackdown," by the way they slow it all down. Other choices could be Limelight, or The Spirit of Radio, but the latter makes a fine opener.
Journey: Never got the chance to see them, but if I had to pick, I'd go with a ballad such as Open Arms or Faithfully. The former, however, ends a bit too soon for me, so I'd recommend maybe repeating the chorus.
Paul McCartney: His rendition of Golden Slumbers/Carry the Weight/The End is good, but I think it's a bit too little to do Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 2, without doing Part 1 to start with. Also while he did do A Day in the LIfe during his early 2010s tours, I would use that to close a show or two. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five, which closes BOTR, or The Long and Winding Road, are also good choices, but the latter is a bit too sad, don't you think?
Eric Clapton: Slowhand's choice of Crossroads for closing his show on my 21st birthday, was a pretty good one, but what about doing Layla? I know some will say Mr. Clapton can't sing as high, but still it's his signature songs and one that gets credited to him as a solo artists EVEN THOUGH WE ALL KNOW he did not record it solo.
I could have ranted on all day about every other artists, but these were just a few of the key ones. Of course, everyone has their own opinions, so please go ahead and comment your opinions for openers/closers.
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