Shows of the decade

 
The Flaming Lips at the Uptown Theater: They handed out lasers and we played with them. 

Here are a few handfuls (40 in all) of live shows from this decade that I'll never forget. (If I've forgotten something unforgettable, remind  me.) Keep in mind, it's not always about who is playing; it's about the show: the crowd, the performance, the set list, the mood, the transcendence.

No. 1: Radiohead in  St. Louis (August 2003): My favorite show ever.

And the rest, slightly random order:

The Pixies at the Uptown Theater; Sigur Ros at the Uptown (first show); Leonard Cohen at the Midland; Neil Young with Lucinda Williams at Starlight Theatre;

Arcade Fire/LCD Soundsystem at Starlight; the Flaming Lips at the Uptown; the Swell Season at the Uptown (first show); Bob Dylan at the Uptown (October 2000); Robert Plant and Allison Krauss at Starlight;

David Bowie at Starlight;  Foo Fighters at Kemper Arena; Green Day at Sprint Center; AC/DC at Sprint Center; Garth Brooks, show No. 6 (Saturday night) at Sprint Center;

the Raconteurs at the Uptown;  the Pogues at the Midland; Springsteen at Kemper (April 2000); U2 at Kemper (November 2001); the Dixie Chicks at Kemper (May 2003);

David Byrne at Memorial Hall; the Roots at the VooDoo Lounge; Snow Patrol at the Uptown (first show); Phoenix at RecordBar; Wilco at the Beaumont (September 2002);

Bill Goffrier of the Embarrassment, Liberty Hall. 

Prince at Kemper; Metallica at Kemper; the Embarrassment/Mortal Micronotz at Liberty Hall; TV on the Radio at the VooDoo; the White Stripes at Memorial Hall; Coldplay at Memorial Hall;

Neko Case at the Uptown; Beck at the Midland; Springsteen at Sprint Center; Aerosmith at Sandstone (when Steven Tyler had the leg cast); the Dirtbombs at the Brick;

R.E.M. at Starlight; O' Brother Where Art Thou tour at Starlight; Patty Griffin at Liberty Hall; Devo at SXSW; Van Morrison at SXSW ... I guess I could keep on going.

Comments

[michael]

I was at that Radiohead gig in St. Louis as well - pretty damn fine choice for numero uno.

[JumpinJack19]

Excellent list and variety. Here a are a few more from the decade:
Elvis Costello at the Uptown 2005
The Cure at Starlight 2008
Lyle Lovett with k.d. lang at Starlight 2007
Tool at Kemper 2002
Cracker at the Beaumont 2002
Peter Gabriel/Blind Boys of Alabama in Minneapolis 2002
Frank Black with House of Large Sizes at the Bottleneck 2001
Echo & the Bunnymen Minneapolis 2005
U2 with PJ Harvey Denver 2001
Steve Earle Liberty Hall 2005

[Mark]

Great list... only omission that jumps out for me would me My Morning Jacket at the Uptown (August, 2008).

[gsp]

agree on MMJ, when did Beck play The Midland? He played The Uptown this year.

[Sam]

I went to several of your favorites and agree. The LCD show was incredible. Don't remember Beck at the Midland but I saw him and MGMT at the Uptown recently. Very good show. The one local show that I would add would be the Ween show at the Granada in Nov 2006 or 2005. Anybody that was there would understand.

My favorite shows of the decade:
Phish Big Cypress millinium show in the everglades, Keller Williams Incident midnight show at the first Bonnaroo, Phish the last time they played Sandstone, I loved the Franz Ferdinand show at the Beaumont, the first Phish show at Alpine Valley this year. I could go on, its been a good decade.

[Sam]

One I forgot was Kanye West at Bonnaroo in 2008. Nothing like watching the glow in the dark tour as the sun is coming up.

[Scott]

Radiohead in STL 2008

[Zach B.]

Gillian Welch w Old Crow Medicine Show at Liberty Hall, 2006 (?). Old Crow Introduced themselves as various members of the 1985 World Champ Royals and produced to almost steal the show. Gillian and Dave put on an unbelievable show, ending moments prematurely when Dave had an onstage meltdown about a videocam in the audience. His tantrum ruined a "no amplification" version of "Long Black Veil." Great night with a weird ending.

[Nivek9]

I missed a lot of the shows listed but agree with the inclusion of the Bowie show at Starlight for sure, among others on the list. Some others I attended and remember fondly: Decemberists at the Granada 9/05; Zappa Plays Zappa @ Hard Rock Live in Orlando 12/9/06; Reverend Horton Heat with Nashville Pussy @ the Granada 1/08; Todd Snider @ Voodoo Lounge 1/09; Toad the Wet Sprocket/Sister Hazel @ the Uptown in July of some recent year. Suffice to say there is a wealth of great music to be heard and KC has great places to hear it.

[Ronnie]

Dysrhythmia @ The Replay Lounge, Battles @ The Record Bar, The Life and Times CD release @ The Record Bar, Sigur Ros @ The Uptown (1st show), The Mars Volta @ The Pageant St Louis, Tortoise @ The Beaumont, Russian Circles and Pelican @ The Record Bar, Primus @ Memorial Hall, Muse at The Uptown (2nd Show), TV on the Radio @ Voodoo Lounge...

[mankvill]

I only started going to concerts this decade, so it won't be hard to pick my favorite!

1. Celtic Frost in October 2006 @ The Bottleneck. One of the most legendary metal bands of all time? Yes plz. Also: My first metal concert.

2. Obituary w/ Unleashed in October 2008 @ Beaumont. Some of the first death metal bands ever and I was right up next to the stage. Amazing night!

3. Ben Folds November 2009 @ Liberty Hall. My first Ben Folds show was just him on a piano, so it was really refreshing to see him without a band again. And Liberty Hall is surprisingly intimate!

4. Suicidal Tendencies w/ Terror, Whole Wheat Bread November 2008 @ Beaumont. Closest I'll ever get to seeing an old-school 80's punk show. Stage diving galore, but one of the most positive crowds I've ever been a part of.

5. Skeletonwitch: Manhattan KS February 2008 or KC, MO July 2009. Best live metal band period. So much intensity and they give their all whether they're playing to a room full of 50 or a theater full of 500.

:) More metal and/or Ben Folds in 2010, please!

[mankvill]

Oh, and Flaming Lips @ Wakarusa and Peelander-Z @ Jackpot are the two funnest shows ever.

[Mr. Jason]

Bright Eyes @ Uptown for the Digital Ash tour. That was the opening night of that tour, they had special guests rare to other dates like Nick Zinner from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, I thought that you could feel the excitement and energy from the band for the debut of their elaborate stage setup.

My Morning Jacket, a night to remember, no openers, 2 and 1/2 hours just killed it.

[JO]

Tough to do over an entire decade, but worth a shot... In no particular order. Ryan Adams at the Blue Note ( Free Show in 2001 ). Raconteurs at the Uptown. Dylan at the Uptown (2000). The Knitters with Dead Rock West at Davey's Uptown in 2008. Derek Trucks Band at VooDoo lounge 2009. Lucinda Williams VooDoo Lounge 2009. Steve Earle Liberty Hall 2005. New Pornographers (with Neko Case) at Granada in 2005. Springsteen's show at Sprint Center in 2008 was worth the wait. What an encore with Rosalita -- finally... Hadn't heard that one since 1981.

[Steve]

I hope to get to see LCD Soundsystem someday. I just could not fork over money for an opening act, when I do not like Arcade Fire at all.

[Musical Justice]

Looks like we were at about half of your top 40. Here's my list...

Top 40 Local Shows of the 2000's (first 10 in order):
U2/Garbage @ Kemper
Marah @ Replay Lounge
Wilco @ Beaumont (YHF tour)
Springsteen @ Sprint Center
The Hives @ Grenada
Alejandro Escovedo Orchestra @ Davey's Uptown
Paul Westerberg @ Grand Emporium
The Hold Steady @ Bottleneck
The Jayhawks @ Grand Emporium
Franz Ferdinand @ Liberty Hall

Yeah Yeah Yeahs/Ssion @ Grenada
X @ Madrid
The Greenhornes @ Replay Lounge
White Stripes @ Memorial Hall
Foo Fighters @ Kemper
Green Day @ Sprint Center
The Strokes @ Grenada
Drive-By Truckers @ Grand Emporium
Neko Case @ Bottleneck
Art Brut @ Bottleneck (2009)
Richard Thompson @ Liberty (1000 Years)
Lucinda Williams @ Voodoo Lounge
The Paybacks @ Hurricane
The Kills @ Grenada
The Go! Team @ Grenada
The Flaming Lips @ Uptown
Beck @ Uptown
Th' Legendary Shake Shakers @ Davey's Uptown
Bowie/Stereophonics @ Starlight
Arcade Fire/LCD Soundsystem @ Starlight
Social D @ Beaumont
Old 97s @ Bottleneck
Pearl Jam @ Sandstone
Patty Griffin @ Liberty Hall
Over The Rhine @ Grand Emporium
Of Montreal @ Liberty Hall
NIN @ Kemper
John Doe @ The Farm
Gogol Bordello @ Liberty Hall
Chuck Prophet @ Davey's Uptown (2009)

Honorable Mentions: Travis @ Liberty Hall, Sigur Ros @ Uptown, Sleater-Kinney @ Bottleneck, Snow Patrol @ Uptown, Sonic Youth @ Uptown, Steve Earle @ Beaumont Club, Aimee Mann @ Liberty Hall, The Killers @ Grenada

Great Out-of-Town Shows: REM/Wilco @ Red Rocks, U2 (360) @ Norman OK, Radiohead @ STL (In Rainbows), Kaiser Chiefs @ The Vic (Chicago), Alejandro Escovedo/Marah @ Irving Plaza NYC, Elvis Costello & the Imposters @ Fillmore Denver, Springsteen @ Target Center (Minneapolis)

Great SXSW Performances: Iggy & The Stooges, Metallica, World Party, The Woggles, Morrisey, The Yayhoos, The Ting Tings, Gallows, The Frames, The Crimea, X, New York Dolls, Van Morrison, Public Enemy

[Sin City Disciple]

*The Old 97's at the Crossroads (despite the "It's great to be in Kansas!" blunder)
*Paw at the Bottleneck 2008
*Neko Case at Liberty Hall
*Green Day at Sprint Center
*U2 (w/ Garbage) at Kemper
*The Drams at Davey's
*George Strait at Arrowhead (not normally my cup o' tea, but he did draw about 60,000 people)
*Social Distortion @ Beaumont (2007)
*Reverend Horton Heat w/ BR549 @ River Market.

For an out of town show I'll throw in Social Distortion w/ Bullets and Octane in DC a few years ago.

[Mike Reed]

This is a tough one. I'll list my personal top ten, which are:

Jane's Addiction / NIN - Starlight

Flaming Lips - Uptown

Alice Cooper / Blue Oyster Cult - Missouri State Fair

Kiss - Sprint Center

AC/DC - Sprint Center

Deep Purple - Verizon

Pearl Jam - Verizon

Iggy Pop - Uptown

The Cramps - Madrid

Van Halen - Sprint Center

[Jameson]

I was at a bunch of those. Glad you said Beck at the Midland and not the Uptown - the more recent show with MGMT was terrible compared to his last one.

[K-Rocket]

My favorite 5 shows this past decade where:

1. Paul McCartney, Denver 2002
2. U2, Omaha 2005
3. Green Day, Municipal Auditorium 2005
(loved the show in 2009 as well however the show in 2005 slightly edges out 2009)
4. Mute Math, The Granada in Lawrence 2007
5. The Swell Season, Uptown 2008

Sorry to hijack this thread however can someone please inform the good folks at 96.5 - The Buzz there are a couple of other alternative bands other than The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters and Stone Temple Pilots. Every time I happen to listen to the Buzz they always end up playing one of these bands. Every single time. They are all fantastic bands but there are so many other bands they could mix into their play list. See the above thread for plenty of examples.

[tim finn]

Don't know how I forgot tool at kemper.

[tim finn]

That beck show at the midland might have been in 1999. If so I pick beck and flaming lips at lied center in 2002

[jjskck]

The Beck show @ Midland was 1/28/00, and it was in support of Midnite Vultures. High energy, great stuff.

The show @ Lied Center was November ??, 2002 in support of Sea Change. Flaming Lips opened and blew my mind, Beck came out and played several songs Dylan-style (acoustic guitar, barstool, spotlight), then in the middle of "The Golden Age" the Lips kicked in, the curtains opened, and they played the rest of the show together. Brilliant.

[H]

Here are my top ten for the decade:
U2 in St. Louis Savvis Center 2005
David Bowie at Starlight 2004
Prince at Municipal 2001
NIN at Starlight 2009
Dwight Yoakum at the Beaumont 2005
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at Verizon 2002
Steve Winwood at the Uptown 2005
The Flaming Lips at the Uptown 2008
Muse at the Uptown 2006
Lenny Kravitz at Memorial Hall 2005
Honorable Mention: Black Sabbath/Manson at Ozzfest 2001

[scottspy]

Tom Waits - Fox Theater-St.Louis 2008

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club --Granada-Lawrence-Blue Note-Columbia 2008

Arctic Monkeys- Uptown- 2007

Phoenix - Record Bar 2009

[Mike Reed]

A couple more memorable shows of the last ten years:

David Bowie - Starlight

Jethro Tull - Midland Theater

Gary Numan - Record Bar

B-52's - Legend Shopping Mall - a freebie

Ozzfest - Verizon, 2006 - Ozzy looked thirty years younger (show, band and sound was great, setlist could have been a lot better)

Sammy Hagar / Diamond Dave - Sandstone

[Dexter Morgan]

Here's a few, in no order...

The Mother Hips @ Slim's, San Francisco - 2003
Chuck Prophet @ Davey's Uptown - 2009
Beck & Flaming Lips @ Lied Center - 2002
The Raconteurs @ Uptown - 2008
Rolling Stones @ Ford Center,
Oklahoma City - 2003
Phish @ Big Cypress - NYE 2000
Wilco @ The Pageant, St. Louis - 2001
Prince @ Municipal Auditorium - 2001
Chris & Rich Robinson @ Fox Theatre, Boulder - 2006
Black Crowes @ Levon Helm's Barn, Woodstock, NY - 2009
Little Milton @ Warren Haynes @ Mississippi Grace's, KCK - 2001

[Rick]

Definitely agree about the Woggles at SXSW in 2006; also The Bats from New Zealand played an incredible set on the same night.

Also:

Wire, The Metro, Chicago, 5/00

Patti Smith, Liberty, 7/00

Low, Bottleneck, 9/00

Queens of the Stone Age, Bottleneck, 10/00

Meat Puppets, Bottleneck, 11/00

The Soft Boys, First Avenue, Minneapolis, 3/01

Bob Dylan, Kansas Expocentre, Topeka, 4/01

Guided By Voices, Bottleneck, 6/01

Belle & Sebastian, Liberty, 2004?

The Finn Brothers, Liberty, 2/05

Paul Westerberg, Grand Emporium, 3/05

Gang of Four, Crystal Ballroom, Portland, Ore. 5/05

John Doe, Mike's Tavern, 7/05

Jazz bassist Ron Carter, Gem Theater, 1/06

The Fall, Record Bar, 5/06

Calexico, Bottleneck, 9/06

Radio Birdman, Double Door, Chicago, 9/06

Neko Case, any and every time

And many previously mentioned.

[Penny]

Mark Knopfler at Red Rocks
Tori Amos at the Midland
Ben Folds at Beaumont
NIN at Kemper
Don Henley at Red Rocks
Tool at Kemper
Bonnie Raitt and Jackson Browne-Vote for Change tour at Midland
Sarah MacLachlan at the Midland
Pearl Jam at Sandstone
Peter Gabriel in Chicago
Steve Winwood at Uptown
Tears for Fears at Casino
Sting and Annie Lennox at Sandstone
El Vez at Grand Emporium
Poco at Liberty Hall
Krauss/Plant at Starlight
Eagles at Sprint Center
Carolyn Wonderland at Knucklehead's

[Rick in PV]

Sylvain Sylvain at the Brick, circa '02
Super Furry Animals at Granada, circa '06
King Khan and BBQ at Record Bar, '07
Trampled Under Foot, every Tuesday night at BB's Lawnside BBQ

[Rolling Stones]

ROLLING STONES.
The greatest rock and roll band in history.

The only reason they are so over looked is because they are still going. If they had QUIT, like the fly by night quitter band , TheBeatles, then people would love them, but you dont knopw what you got until it is gone, and The Rolling Stones are still rolling, mthrfkrs ........ but they are not on the list? what a joke.

STONES DUDE!!

[pellboy]

I don't want to think back that much (and many have already been mentioned) but I'll offer up a few that I especially enjoyed over the past decade...

Crossroad Guitar Festival - Dallas, especially the Saturday night show in the park featuring EC mostly backing up the likes of JJ Cale, Hubert Sumlin, Buddy Guy, etc.

Gov't Mule w/ Grace Potter - Voodoo Lounge

Dave Mason - Voodoo Lounge (Can't wait for his return show next month)

TwangFest - St.Louis featuring BR549,Scott Miller, Bottlerockets,etc.

Springsteen - Kemper (The Rising Tour)

Split Lip Rayfield - Liberty Hall (Kirk's last area appearance, I believe)

moe. - Liberty Hall

Hamilton Loomis - Knucklehead's

The Subdudes - Knucklehead's

[Sam]

Don't know how I forgot the Roger Waters show in Omaha. Freaking blew my mind.

[Steve]

Pellboy, I notice that moe is listed for Liberty Hall again in March.

[Scorp]

my shows of the decade

1. Springsteen ~ St Louis '08
2. McCartney ~ Tulsa '09
3. Springsteen ~ Harleyfest ~ Milwaukee '08
4. Billy Joel ~ Sprint Center '07
5. RUSH ~ R30 tour ~ Sandstone '04
6. Aerosmith ~ Sandstone '01
7. Bob Seger ~ Kemper '06
8. Keith Urban ~ Omaha '08
9. Springsteen ~ Rising tour ~ Kemper '02
10. Springsteen ~ Reunion Tour ~ Kemper '00

should actually be alot closer to the top of the list, Springsteen ~ Buffalo, New York 11/22/2009

[pellboy]

Thanks for the info, Steve. I'm not necessarily a huge jamband guy (love the Crowes and Mule but consider them as more than just jambands)but I really do like moe. They seem to rock harder than most of that genre and the whole band is just so versatile. Mule @ Liberty in Feb. and now moe. in March...good start to 2010.

[Tim Finn]

um ... because i didn't see the stones this decade

[Tim Finn]

yes, that patti smith show was great. so was gary numan at recordbar

[Pandy Fackler]

Any Ween show
Beck at the the Midland with Hank III
Tool at Kemper
Mars Volta at the Beaumont
Social D at the the Beaumont
NIN in Columbia
Mike Dillon's Go Go Jungle at the Brick
Modest Mouse at the Madrid
Orbital at the Madrid
Mr Bungle at the Bottleneck

[GB]

Muse, Queens of the Stone Age and Arctic Monkeys --- ACL

Foo Fighters- The Joint LV, NV

Raconteurs- Uptown

White Stripes- Starlight

Prince-- Kemper

John Fogerty-- Summerfest in Milwaukee

[Stones Rule]

Isnt missing The Stones, when they come within a 300 mile radius of you, a jailable offense?

Sure they skipped KC (but who doesnt)(at least they did not pull "a Springsqueen") They did grace wee-chit-a, and it was the best show in these parts of the decade, they even played "Sway". It was the 100th show of the Bigger Bang tour, and they kicked it up a notch, of course there was also the Omaha (and other) shows, but they were not as good.

btw-
The Stones opening night in Boston at Fenway Park was too awesome to even discuss here.

[Ronnie]

Tim,
I forgot the Tool show at Kemper as well. I believe that was the show shortly after 9/11, where they had the 2 "acrobats" swinging from the stage right?

[Scorp]

are you seriously kidding me Stones Tool? Springsqueen? your comments on this thread are null and void, you're obviously a tool. Bruce canceled a show due to a death, other than that he's the hardest working man in show business. 3 hours a night, after night, after night

[Scott]

You can't knock Tool, they always puts on a great show, every tour has a new look and vibe, the last time I saw them they had a completely white stage and the roadies / techs all had white doctor coats on. In all the shows I've seen, there are a lot, I have never seen anything like that. Another thing thats great about them is the performance itself, they hit all the notes, the songs are all played so well.

[kmoon]

Umphrey's McGee was really great at Grinders....

[Slash Duff]

how about "Velvet Revolver" at Memorial Hall. Sure they have evaporated now, but at the time, it was really cool. That show was their 2nd touring show EVER.

[Duff Slash]

PS
The VR show at Memorial hall was more cool for being the 2nd ever, but for an all out "BEST OF" ..... I will say ..... when we saw VR play at the Gibson ampitheater.
They had just come off a break, due to a caneled Auusie tour,and this was a makeup for a canceled show s ( true perfomers do that, you know ) and VR ripped it apart that night, it one of the best shows ever. Those men know how to rock, and they nailed it, rocking out in LA.

[robert]

surprised no one has mentioned jane's addiction's 'final' show at the beaumont in 2004

[Matt]

Many of mine have already been mentioned...

In chronological order:

Frank Black @ The Bottleneck 02
Beck/The Flaming Lips @ The Lied Center 02
The Soundtrack of Our Lives @ The Bottleneck 03
The Mooney Suzuki @ The Bottleneck 03
Drive-By Truckers @ The Bottleneck 05
The Decemberists @ The Granada 05
Ween @ The Granada 05
Of Montreal @ The Bottleneck 06
Drive-By Truckers @ The Beaumont 06
Broken Social Scene/The Black Angels/The Secret Machines @ Bleeding Kansas Festival 06
Wolf Parade @ The Granada 06
The Hold Steady @ The Bottleneck 06
Cold War Kids @ The Bottleneck 07
TV on the Radio/Subtle @ Voodoo Lounge 07
Explosions in the Sky @ The Bottleneck 07
The Black Angels/Vietnam @ The Bottleneck 07
Hot Chip @ The Granada 07
Dan Deacon @ Jackpot 07
Battles @ Record Bar 07
The Veils @ The Replay 07
Arcade Fire/LCD Soundsystem @ Starlight 07
Midlake @ Jackpot 07
Holy Fuck/A Place To Bury Strangers @ Record Bar 08
Blitzen Trapper/Fleet Foxes @ Jackpot 08
My Morning Jacket @ Uptown 08
Cut Copy @ Record Bar 08
The Gaslight Anthem/Heartless Bastards @ Beaumont 09
The Antlers @ The Jackpot 09

Best out-of-town shows:

DJ Shadow @ Park West, Chicago 02
My Morning Jacket @ Blue Note, Columbia 05
Marah @ ACL 06
Massive Attack @ ACL 06
TV on the Radio/What Made Milwaukee Famous @ Emo's , Austin 06
Tom Waits @ The Fox, St. Louis 08
Grizzly Bear @ Lollapalooza 08
Radiohead @ Lollapalooza 08
Saul Williams @ Lollapalooza 08
The National @ Lollapalooza 08
Kanye West @ Lollapalooza 08
Bon Iver/Megafaun @ Slowdown, Omaha 09

[pellboy]

Best out-of-town shows:

DJ Shadow @ Park West, Chicago 02

Posted by: Matt

This reminds me of a show that I left off that also happened at Park West (interesting venue btw). An event called Hopefest in 2004 that included the likes of Hubert Sumlin, Honeyboy Edwards, Pinetop Perkins, David Johansen and David Hidalgo and Cesar Rosas of Los Lobos. Freaking Studs Terkel even showed up. Awesome show.