Tell us about a "warm-up band" that blew you away.

I was listening to Camper Van Beethoven yesterday and remembered when I saw them warm-up for 10,000 Maniacs in Richmond, VA. The only song I had ever heard by them was "Take the Skinheads Bowling". I thought that song was clever, but figured the band was a "one hit wonder".

Boy, was I wrong!! CVB was so great live; I was bummed when they finished their set...I wanted to hear more!! The songs were great and the band was tight, and David Lowery had a great rapport with the audience.

I love being surprised like that. One more for you. When I was in 9th grade, I went to see the band, Rush. Someone named "Max Webster" was the warm-up act and none of us had ever heard of him. We figured that it would be a guy with an acoustic guitar.

Well, we couldn't have been more wrong on this one. "Max Webster" is actually a band -- and a pretty rockin' band at that. The leader, Kim Mitchell, is a great guitar player and quite a showman. Check them out if you get the chance.

Anyone else?

They warmed up for Ozzy. It was awesome!!

It's a bit fuzzy, but I think it was at the Riverside Theater in Milwaukee. Sometime during the mid-80's.

Oddly enough, one of my roommates at the time ended up getting drunk with several Motley Crue members the night before, and I think I talked to Tommy Lee on the telephone that night (IIRC -- nobody involved was sober at the time and it was about 1:40 am...).

I do remember thinking that Motley Crue was a better opening act than Motorhead was on Ozzy's last tour through Beertown. Fucking Lemmy purposely fed-back his bass amp at the end of their set to the point where my ears almost literally bled...

Ah, the go-go eighties...:)

back in the 70s his first band was the opening act for the Small Faces. They were far better than Rod was.

Metallica was just on the verge of some great things...

I've heard great things about Van Halen opening for Black Sabbath in '78, but was too young to go.

opening for Radiohead

Scorpions and Priest opening for Heart.

Maria McKee opening for U2.

Soundgarden opening for Danzig.

Dirty Dozen Brass Band opening for the Black Crows.

RL

Placebo was incredible (as was Orgy).

Awesome band.

opened for Crowded House. Blew them away.

They disbanded a year or so later, which was a shame. They only made 3 albums.

Before fame Cheap Trick opening for Uriah Heep.

the next generation, if you will, of CVB. They were supposed to open for the Counting Crows, who wound up no-shows that night, but Cracker (who I knew only from the MTV hit they had at the time, can't remember which one it was) was fantastic.

J. Geils opening for Golden Earring

at the time they were two young bands with something to prove and boy howdee did they!

Both Buddy Guy and the Stones put on a fantastic show.

Seriously, I had a Canadian housemate for awhile who got me into Max Webster, and I saw Kim Mitchell on the 'Go for Soda' tour. It was really solid 'rock'. I was always surprised they didn't catch on in the US.

"April in Toledo...talking to myself -- talking to myself" :)

warm up for Rush, twice. I grew up on the Canadian Border and listened to Canadian radio and they played a lot of Max Webster. Get their greatest hits collection if you can find it. :headbang:

opened for Robert Earl Keen.

RODEOHOUSTON appearances: 2003, 2006
Grady Cross, Cody Canada, Randy Ragsdale and Jeremy Plato are the foursome that makes up Cross Canadian Ragweed. The four have known each other since childhood, growing up in the band’s hometown of Yukon, Okla. They have collectively sold more than 70,000 albums of 1998's “ Carney,” 1999's “ Live at the Wormy Dog,” 2001's “ Highway 377” and 2002's “ Live at Billy Bob's Texas.” The band makes an average of 200 performances a year. http://www.crosscanadianragweed.com/

:)

1968. They opened for Vanilla Fudge, a sort of drugged out heroin band that was popular in the 60s. I'd never heard of them before I walked I the door of the Electric Circus in Chicago.

Vanilla Fudge sucked. And well, as far as Led Zeppelin, the rest is history.

Mz Pip
:dem:

I saw them at their very first concert in the US in Denver, same year, 1968, I can't remember what month. We got the tickets to see Vanilla Fudge and Spirit - never heard of Led Zeppelin since it was before the first album was released. My God, they blew us away. I'd never heard anything like that. The altered state of consciousness didn't hurt. :hippie:

They were great. :)

Check it out.

he blew me away, especially when he turned out to be fourteen or fifteen years old!

very talented young man.

Little Feet, and Black Sabbath. Black Sabbath's guitarist got sick after the second song and the whole concert ended after a 30 minute delay. But Captain Beyond blew me away.

Ever heard Family?

When and where were they performing?

England. Very good. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:5jdovwzva9yk

They kicked ass when they warmed up for The Allman Brothers. That's only time I've ever hated to see the opening act end. MTB came back out to do an encore as The Allman Brothers left the building. They were the headliners the next year.

I got to meet them on the airplane flying west... Sat a seat over from the Drummer. I couldn't belive it, should have gotten an autograph.

Yes, you should have asked for an autograph.

Anyone can claim they are with a famous band, had I had my cassette at the time with all their faces on it,it would have been a confirmation. Oh well, live and learn.

But the back up band for "YES" with Rick Wakemen was a band called "Uriah Heep"..featuring the fantastic Mic Box on guitar. Yes, this is abit dated, but those guys were fantastic in their days,
long before "Yes". Or how about CHEAP TRICK, warm up band for KISS? ...those were hot nights.
Than there was "Peter Frampton" warming up before "Jethro Tull"... talk about a winning ticket.

I liked Toots so much that I went and saw them again at the San Diego HOB!

A close second would be the band I saw opening for George Clinton a couple weeks ago - Children Of Production. I wanted to get their CD but it sold out.

I already liked Los Lobos, so I was just as excited to see them as I was to see The Clash. However, much of the audience was clueless and gave Los Lobos a cold reception. (Numbskulls!)

They were just a local NJ band then. I had known of them for a few years, but that's the first time I saw them live or heard them at all, actually. I've seen them play bars in NJ quite a few times since. I've met the drummer, Dena Tauriello, and she's really nice.

Now they're getting sort of popular. They had a CD at Starbucks and VH1 did a special on them. If you like chicks that can ROCK, check them out.

www.antigonerising.com

opened for the first rolling stones concert in chicago. they were so much better than the stones,in fact, the stones sucked ass.

frank zappa and the mothers of invention opened for cream during their concert in chicago..i still can`t decide which band i liked better but zappa was a far better guitar player than clapton

It was interesting.

And Dave Matthews might as well not have taken the stage. (I already liked Soul Coughing, but this was the first time I'd seen them live.)

Trower was a warmup for Slade (Detroit) and Lofgrin was with Grin for J. Geils (Ann Arbor).

Joan Jett opened for The Police in 1982 in Charlotte, NC, and I was totally blown away by her! :) She was phenomenal---even better in person than on an album! :) And REM opened for The English Beat in Chapel Hill, NC, in 1983----what an incredible concert! REM played for a LONG time and did all the stuff from their albums AND some new tunes (which came out on the next album!). :) Man, those were the days...