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Cool Stories

Music forum.
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Angry Waters
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Cool Stories

Post by Angry Waters »

Here's another thread idea that is certainly non-genre specific: Anybody have any cool stories (good or bad) about meeting name-worthy (touring) bands/musicians? Maybe you were the "groupie" for Joan Jett back in the day.. I've got a few stories that are decent, but not earth-shattering, I'll share if this thread gathers any steam.
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Lenny5160
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Lenny5160 »

My only real personal interaction was getting my "Surfing with the Alien" CD signed by Joe Satriani at the MOA Sam Goody, on the 4th day the mall was open. My dad was at work and my mom doesn't really do highways, so we had to schlep out to the mall on a couple buses. That was pretty cool of my mom to do that just so I could go see Joe.

A good friend of mine ran into Nickelback at the Walmart in Menomonie, WI several years ago when they were at their peak.
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Night Train »

Axl Rose and Rick Rubin and a small posse were walking by while I was at 6 Flags Anaheim in the early 90s.

Went to see Sonic Youth at First Ave years ago and I was standing upstairs watching the show then I looked beside me and there was standing Michael Stipe from REM, they were playing the next night at Target center with SY opening. Gave him a nod and didn't hassle him. Was shorter than I expected.
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Beef Supreme
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Beef Supreme »

Have met and talked with guys from Clutch, The Sword, Tod A (from Firewater), and GWAR.

Had a friend get on stage with Billie Joe from Green Day at first ave before they blew up.

Had another friend catch Eddie’s heart after Bruce Dickinson threw it from the stage during a maiden show.

Had Andreas Kisser from Sepultura give his guitar pick to me after a show (he gave it to me, I didn’t catch it after he tossed it into the crowd randomly), I think because I was rocking out so hard or something.

Got Marilyn Manson’s blood on me at first ave. Got a lot of spit on me too.

Met Slughter at a Sam Goody or something at the Mall of America in the early 90s. Nice guys, but the scene had changed. They were there for a CD release signing and nobody cared. I kinda felt bad for them. I heard one costumer say something like “these fags are blocking the Pantera CDs!” I was funny; but I couldn’t help but feel bad for them.
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cmd24
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by cmd24 »

Sold cds to Robert Smith of the Vikings, Duante Cullpepper, and David Dixon. Helped Kenny Chesney find some music, before a concert.

Hung out for a bit with the guys from Eye Empire, at Busters in Mankato, when they opened for Sevendust.
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Dude
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Dude »

Posted in another thread:

I was at the Mall of America back when Limp Bizkit was in their heyday walking on the fourth floor between the movie theaters back to the restaurant area (if you remember, there's a weird long corridor that connects the two areas).

There were a couple guys walking towards me - huge black guy and a short chubby fella with a flat-brimmed Yankees cap and an oversized puffy jacket- and I remember saying to my girlfriend who was with me, "jeez, this douchebag thinks he's Fred Durst."

It was Fred Durst.
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Mandatory »

A couple of the guys from Jimmie's Chicken Shack were at a family friends one year for Thanksgiving. They were friends of a friend of their kids. My mom made those pickles wrapped in cream cheese and ham. They really liked them. This was in Maryland and I guess that's kind of a midwest thing.
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cmd24
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by cmd24 »

Mandatory wrote: Mon Feb 10, 2020 4:02 pm A couple of the guys from Jimmie's Chicken Shack were at a family friends one year for Thanksgiving. They were friends of a friend of their kids. My mom made those pickles wrapped in cream cheese and ham. They really liked them. This was in Maryland and I guess that's kind of a midwest thing.
That would've been cool. I was huge mark for the Shack back in the late 90's.
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Angry Waters
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Angry Waters »

cmd24 wrote: Sun Feb 09, 2020 9:40 pm Sold cds to Robert Smith of the Vikings, Duante Cullpepper, and David Dixon. Helped Kenny Chesney find some music, before a concert.

Hung out for a bit with the guys from Eye Empire, at Busters in Mankato, when they opened for Sevendust.
We used to open for some of the touring acts that would play Buster's in 'Kato. Nothing earth-shattering--of course, if it was they wouldn't have been playing a 500 seat club. One of the bands, The Veer Union (a sorta grungeish? rock band from Canada) played there and we were hanging out backstage after we were done and right before they took the stage. While having a few drinks I was chatting with their singer--he kept asking me if 'MAN-KAY-TOE' was the right pronunciation. Of course, I said it was. But...the eternal 7th grader in me thought it would've been hilarious to say it's pronounced 'Mahn-kah-toe' or something of that ilk.

I'm sure everyone here will be snickering and slightly rolling their eyes about another Buster's show I'm about to discuss. First of all, I've mentioned several times here that my 2 favorite bands were, are, and always will be Guns N' Roses and Pantera. Well, we had the opportunity to open for Adler's Appetite 10 years ago when he played in town. I still pinch myself to this day that I had the chance to open for an original member of Guns--a guy who played on my favorite album of all-time! I can't begin to tell you how important Appetite For Destruction was to me in my formative years. Obviously he's become a punch-line and a caricature of himself. But, he was a genuinely nice guy. And considering what he had went through, seemed damned fortunate and appreciative to still be playing. It was pretty damn special to spend 5 or 10 minutes chatting with him--had him sign 'Appetite' and my beer stand I have onstage. His performance was outstanding, too!
Dude
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Dude »

Angry Waters wrote: Mon Feb 10, 2020 5:40 pm
cmd24 wrote: Sun Feb 09, 2020 9:40 pm Sold cds to Robert Smith of the Vikings, Duante Cullpepper, and David Dixon. Helped Kenny Chesney find some music, before a concert.

Hung out for a bit with the guys from Eye Empire, at Busters in Mankato, when they opened for Sevendust.
We used to open for some of the touring acts that would play Buster's in 'Kato. Nothing earth-shattering--of course, if it was they wouldn't have been playing a 500 seat club. One of the bands, The Veer Union (a sorta grungeish? rock band from Canada) played there and we were hanging out backstage after we were done and right before they took the stage. While having a few drinks I was chatting with their singer--he kept asking me if 'MAN-KAY-TOE' was the right pronunciation. Of course, I said it was. But...the eternal 7th grader in me thought it would've been hilarious to say it's pronounced 'Mahn-kah-toe' or something of that ilk.

I'm sure everyone here will be snickering and slightly rolling their eyes about another Buster's show I'm about to discuss. First of all, I've mentioned several times here that my 2 favorite bands were, are, and always will be Guns N' Roses and Pantera. Well, we had the opportunity to open for Adler's Appetite 10 years ago when he played in town. I still pinch myself to this day that I had the chance to open for an original member of Guns--a guy who played on my favorite album of all-time! I can't begin to tell you how important Appetite For Destruction was to me in my formative years. Obviously he's become a punch-line and a caricature of himself. But, he was a genuinely nice guy. And considering what he had went through, seemed damned fortunate and appreciative to still be playing. It was pretty damn special to spend 5 or 10 minutes chatting with him--had him sign 'Appetite' and my beer stand I have onstage. His performance was outstanding, too!
That's awesome. I've never taken Adler's story as anything more than a tragic cautious tale, and I certainly haven't considered him a punchline.

Not only did Adler play on one of the most iconic albums in the history of rock music, but he was a part of the origin of the band. I'd be excited as hell to get a chance to chat with him for 10 minutes.

Cool story.
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by thinktank »

One for now:

Opening up for B.B. King at Orpheum w/ Mark Ledford and the New Power Generation. 21 years old. Me and my buddy only got the gig because we took it for free. Tuxedos. Thought I was pretty cool sneaking in a little J in a parking ramp. Walked back to the Orpheum to huge lines going out of the Orpheum down both sides of the block. The band I’m playing with is smoking a blunt in the MTC shelter across the street. Our dressing room was across from BB’a and when we opened our door (cuz I got there early to warm up) “Lucille” was in his doorway. I should really write that whole night down. Dinner was lobster fried chicken and corn. BB’s band was all 300 lbs +. Almost literally. We did play Let The Good Times Roll with him and a piano player afterward at Bravo next door. Surreal.
thinktank
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by thinktank »

Adler story is fucking cool. GNR are the best band of that ilk.
Angry Waters
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Angry Waters »

thinktank wrote: Thu Feb 13, 2020 5:24 pm One for now:

Opening up for B.B. King at Orpheum w/ Mark Ledford and the New Power Generation. 21 years old. Me and my buddy only got the gig because we took it for free. Tuxedos. Thought I was pretty cool sneaking in a little J in a parking ramp. Walked back to the Orpheum to huge lines going out of the Orpheum down both sides of the block. The band I’m playing with is smoking a blunt in the MTC shelter across the street. Our dressing room was across from BB’a and when we opened our door (cuz I got there early to warm up) “Lucille” was in his doorway. I should really write that whole night down. Dinner was lobster fried chicken and corn. BB’s band was all 300 lbs +. Almost literally. We did play Let The Good Times Roll with him and a piano player afterward at Bravo next door. Surreal.
Damn, dude. Opening for a true heavyweight musical icon in BB King AND playing the Orpheum the same night??? That, my friend, is bad-ass!
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by thinktank »

Angry Waters wrote: Thu Feb 13, 2020 10:40 pmDamn, dude. Opening for a true heavyweight musical icon in BB King AND playing the Orpheum the same night??? That, my friend, is bad-ass!
Thanks. I’ll add more stories at some point.

Realjazzguy has some good ones, I would bet.
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by thinktank »

When I was about 23 I went to see Guided By Voices at First Avenue on the Earthquake Glue tour. My ex-gf had a couple of their cassette tapes and my brother had Alien Lanes, I think. I just fell in love with that band. They had a couple different singers, and I thought that was pretty cool. The one singer sang with a British accent and then when I asked my gal where they were from she said "Dayton, Ohio" and I was even more mystified and intrigued by them. Not to mention the music itself is FUCKING FANTASTIC. Best American band since 1980, if you ask me.

So I go to the show. They play for three hours (like always). Everybody is trashed (like always). Show gets done and Robert Pollard, the lead singer, walks off the front of the stage into what was left of the crowd (they're a tough band to make it all the way throw the set!). He walks up to the bar where I'm waiting for my umpteenth can of beer. So I'm next to him and I say, "Hey man, I really get it." He immediately puts me in a big bear hug. What famous band is like this? None that I know of.

So then I tell him in his ear (it was super loud in there, whatever music they were playing to get people to leave) "hey I've got a song I wrote that I think was inspired by you." Without pause he earnestly says "sing it to me." So I start singing it into his ear. Without missing a beat he starts harmonizing with me as he's hearing it for the first time--the most perfect Beatle-esque harmonies. I was fucking floored. When I'm done singing he says "that song was about a girl"--mind you, we're both wasted and he is doing what he does--ALWAYS being aware and in the moment, asking questions, riffing, etc.--this guy is just amazing. And he was right. It was a breakup song about a girl, even though I had a gf--that's the magic of songwriting. Then he says, "Never write a song about a girl". Which I thought was his legitimate advice, but I now know, after coming to personally know him, that it was another subtle Robert Pollard joke.

More to come on Robert Pollard/Guided By Voices stories...
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by ocsid »

Met a lot of the late 80's, early 90's hair bands back in the day. Slaughter, Firehouse, Enuff Z'nuff, but among the nicest people I've ever met were the guys in Warrant. Hung out back stage multiple times and on their tour bus as well. A friend had gotten to know them pretty well, and I usually tagged along. They treated us like old friends every time. The late Jani Lane was once of the nicest guys ever - it was sad as hell that he drank himself to death, if he'd been able to keep it together, he likely could have had a second career as a songwriter in Nashville. People trash them as the "Cherry Pie" band, but I'd put "Uncle Tom's Cabin" up there as one of the best songs of the era, and really, any era for that matter, and I have a pretty eclectic taste in music.
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ocsid
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by ocsid »

Got to open for and hang out backstage with the Kentucky Headhunters. Great guys, if you could understand anything they were saying. Talk about backwoods hillbillies.

Funny thing is though, a few years later, I went to see them at a county fair, and the drummer was wandering around the livestock area, and I went to say hello. He actually remembered our band, which was cool, because we were nobodies.
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Angry Waters »

thinktank wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 1:44 pm When I was about 23 I went to see Guided By Voices at First Avenue on the Earthquake Glue tour. My ex-gf had a couple of their cassette tapes and my brother had Alien Lanes, I think. I just fell in love with that band. They had a couple different singers, and I thought that was pretty cool. The one singer sang with a British accent and then when I asked my gal where they were from she said "Dayton, Ohio" and I was even more mystified and intrigued by them. Not to mention the music itself is FUCKING FANTASTIC. Best American band since 1980, if you ask me.

So I go to the show. They play for three hours (like always). Everybody is trashed (like always). Show gets done and Robert Pollard, the lead singer, walks off the front of the stage into what was left of the crowd (they're a tough band to make it all the way throw the set!). He walks up to the bar where I'm waiting for my umpteenth can of beer. So I'm next to him and I say, "Hey man, I really get it." He immediately puts me in a big bear hug. What famous band is like this? None that I know of.

So then I tell him in his ear (it was super loud in there, whatever music they were playing to get people to leave) "hey I've got a song I wrote that I think was inspired by you." Without pause he earnestly says "sing it to me." So I start singing it into his ear. Without missing a beat he starts harmonizing with me as he's hearing it for the first time--the most perfect Beatle-esque harmonies. I was fucking floored. When I'm done singing he says "that song was about a girl"--mind you, we're both wasted and he is doing what he does--ALWAYS being aware and in the moment, asking questions, riffing, etc.--this guy is just amazing. And he was right. It was a breakup song about a girl, even though I had a gf--that's the magic of songwriting. Then he says, "Never write a song about a girl". Which I thought was his legitimate advice, but I now know, after coming to personally know him, that it was another subtle Robert Pollard joke.

More to come on Robert Pollard/Guided By Voices stories...
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Angry Waters
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Angry Waters »

ocsid wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 8:47 pm Got to open for and hang out backstage with the Kentucky Headhunters. Great guys, if you could understand anything they were saying. Talk about backwoods hillbillies.

Funny thing is though, a few years later, I went to see them at a county fair, and the drummer was wandering around the livestock area, and I went to say hello. He actually remembered our band, which was cool, because we were nobodies.

The 'Good Stuff' II & III

I believe I mentioned this in my initial thread post, but I don't have many stories. The good/decent ones I have, though, revolve around GN'R (the Adler story) and Pantera (and Phil's spinoff bands). I'll post a Pantera story here soon.
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by cmd24 »

ocsid wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 8:47 pm Got to open for and hang out backstage with the Kentucky Headhunters. Great guys, if you could understand anything they were saying. Talk about backwoods hillbillies.

Funny thing is though, a few years later, I went to see them at a county fair, and the drummer was wandering around the livestock area, and I went to say hello. He actually remembered our band, which was cool, because we were nobodies.
Richard Young’s kid is an extremely good drummer for Black Stone Cherry. Watched him do about a 7-8 minute drum solo with his bare hands. Dude can play!
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Angry Waters
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Angry Waters »

This story isn't earth-shattering, but it's by far-and-away the most transformative night of my life--musically speaking. It was bitterly cold, late March of '92. The long-since defunct Mirage Nightclub in south Minneapolis. Pantera was there for the first of a two-night stay. Vulgar Display of Power had been out for about a month. It was a clear departure from Cowboys From Hell so it really hadn't "taken hold" for me...yet. And it was this night when it all changed.

The show itself was beyond anything I'd ever witnessed as an 18 year old kid from southern Minny. There was a real good punk scene down in 'Kato at the time, so of course I'd been in some pits with some occasional stage diving. Well...this Pantera show was like nothing I'd ever seen. At some points it seemed like there were more people on stage getting ready to launch themselves than there were in the crowd to catch them--and the place was packed!!! You literally had to have your head on a swivel if you were anywhere near the front of the stage. Complete mayhem. And I will go to my grave saying this band was the greatest live band in the history of metal during this time frame. Phil could still hit the high notes. Their musicianship was second-to-none. Energy levels off-the-chart. So, the show was absolutely great. But, again, at this time I was still really just a casual fan.

After the show, just for shits and giggles, my friend and I decided to go back by their bus. Phil and Vinnie signed a few things and then went their separate ways. Dime comes out of the club and before getting on the bus says, "Give me a couple of minutes." And this is where my "relationship" with Pantera changed. A few minutes later, Dime comes out with a cooler full of Coors Lights. He handed each of us (there was only about 5 or 6 of us) a beer and proceeded to bullshit for about a half-hour--keep in mind I'm just 18, so when any adult hands you a beer they've already earned a few points! Quite honestly, I don't think I even said a word other than "thank you". And the only thing I remember Dime talking about was Rocky George from Suicidal Tendencies. But, this was the night Diamond Darrell Abbott became "Dime" to me. And I'm not even sure why this moment had a such a profound impact on me--maybe because I was an 18 year old screaming for impression--really in that "sweet spot" where a young mind can be transformed and influenced. And influenced I was! He wasn't yet the living legend he'd soon become--but he was clearly a beast on the axe. And it was abundantly clear he was a fun-loving and kind individual willing to spend some time hanging out with his fans--even in the Minnesota cold. So, the guy some of you may have seen on the Pantera home vids...well, that's EXACTLY who he was.

After that night, I swear to God that Vulgar absolutely dominated our CD player all the way through summer of that year. (And VDOP clearly stands the test of time.) Pantera went on to become one of the biggest heavy metal bands in the world. I believe I still would've been a big Pantera fan if I hadn't had this encounter with Dime. I know, though, that my absolute love of the band wouldn't be quite what it is without this show in particular. And maybe that shouldn't matter when looking at a band objectively. But, it did matter!!! Big fucking time!
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Qman65
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Qman65 »

Whitesnake, 1991. Got to go to their concert at the Rapid City arena through a friend who one a radio contest. tickets, limo to and from the show, backstage passes and dinner at the best restaurant which for the time was rotating over LOL the city. Bad English opened. LOL!
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Re: Cool Stories

Post by Slap Shot »

Sat in a fatty circle with Phil Lesh, Bill Kruetzmann, Bob Weir and Brent Mydland backstage at Alpine Valley.

Partied in Minneapolis with REM (although I think Stipe wasn't there for some reason), as well as Paul Westerberg and Chris Mars from the Replacments after an REM show at The Orpheum in 1984.

Stage dove near the end of the first Lollapolooza in 1991 which I think was at Harriet Island.

After having been to literally hundreds and hundreds of shows since I was a kid I am sure I'm forgetting a few.
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