Must be David Bowie in 1996 at the Torhout Festival in Belgium … amazing sound and what a great performer!
Too bad he passed away …
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Apart from many at St George’s, Bristol where the sound is rarely below par, the stand out concert was taking dearly beloved to see Jimmy Nail at the Colston Hall. The support act was execrable, screechy, distorted, vocals indecipherable to the extent that we considered leaving. The main act was a total contrast, just like listening to the album at home.
Roger Waters, Forsythe Barr Stadium, Dunedin NZ. After the concert I told my friend “If that’s the last thing I was ever going to hear I would still die happy” Thank you Roger.
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Tallis Scholars, Sainsburys Wing of the National Gallery for, their 25th anniversary. Unusual but always sound good. They were good at their 40th as well, in St Pauls.
Madeleine Peyrou at the Barbican was excellent.
Back in my yoof, Saxon had the best sounding heavy metal PA, it went to eleven at the Hammersmith Odeon. Many good band sounds at the Wardour Street Marquee, with Mama’s Boys being a particular favourite.
Phil Lynott did a gig with his ‘new’ band Grand Slam at the Royal Standard in Walthamstow. The place was crammed and he had all the Thin Lizzy PA gear with him.
Mariza has always sounded good, brilliant at The Purcell Room, and she always does an acoustic section. The exception was at the Cambridge Corn Exchange - a venue I don’t go to any more because I’ve never heard it sound any better than poor. She was recording the concert at Cambridge, but never used the footage.
The best sound I’ve ever heard was the Hilliard Ensemble with Jan Garbarek in Chichester Cathedral. Totally unamplified. The four members of Hilliard entered while singing from the four points of the Cathedral’s cross layout and joined together in front of the altar. How they coordinated that in such a huge space I’ve no idea. Garbarek then entered from the back playing his sax and the ethereal sound of the whole thing was simply stunning.
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Kraftwerk, when they played at Tribal Gathering in 1997, brought their own sound system with them.
I was right at the back of a tent packed to the gills, and still remember the feeling when the first drum note hit, and spending most of the set wondering how they had both volume and clarity, with such an analogue quality.
Big venues … Zep at the O2 was something else. But I think they spent ££££££ on the sound for that evening.
Here’s a few where the sound has been excellent:
Kraftwerk at Koningin Elisabethzaal, Antwerp in 2017
Bonnie Raitt at Birmingham Symphony Hall in 2016, but as has been mentioned, the sound there is always spot on…!
Rickie Lee Jones at the Royal Festival Hall in 2011
Camel at St Albans City Hall in 1975
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