Inspired by deb; then "some_of_us's" hubs: What was the most unusual, or interesting place you heard/saw Live Music?

[electric_blue68]

While it probably was temporarily halted during the covid years [in NYC, I'm pretty sure] - Make Music Festival: June 21st returned a couple of years ago; held in 1,000 cities across the world. It's their 20th anniversary this year! 🎉

The one event I remember most took place in Central Park; but not in the usual places: the skating rink if they still held music there, or more likely Summer Stage.
.
It was in the southern area in a "mini valley", a sloped hill: wider at the top. Above it at the bottom was partly wooden building w a walkway. But you could see it from above standing on a big out-cropping. Plenty of people sat on the hill, I was up on the rock with others.
.
Anyway they had a Classical Indian Music Ensemble; sitars, tablas, and more. It was a gloriously comfortable first day of summer late afternoon with wonderful music!
I'm going to check the festival schedule for this year. 👍
.
The other place I actually didn't see anything bc nothing was happening but it was seeing the Venue itself that was amazing!
I was visiting my cousin who was at Denver University back in '80. He took me up into The Rockies n his motorcycle!

On our way there we stopped at the Red Rocks Amphitheater. Seating, and a stage built between a set of tall, sort of part diagonal, and horizontal craggy....
...taaa daaa...
red rocks!

If you're a rock geography fan- these are a wonderful sight to see in person. I am, and it was a fabulous surprise!
U2 fans would know the vid - U2: Live at Red Rocks pretty early in their career.

So....live music fans any extra interesting venues, places?

[pfitz59]

1. Starlight Bowl in Balboa Park San Diego

Performers would stop and freeze mid-song when jets flew overhead. Strange but entertaining. https://balboapark.org/arts-culture/starlight-bowl-balboa-park/

[electric_blue68]

3. Ah! What's the big round building behind it?.......

Oh, I get it...

Waaay back in ?'69 we went to Forrest Hills Tennis Stadium to hear Simon & Garfunkle. Now, they weren't as loud as The Who would be two years later 😄 in '71 so....
.
They had to stop when a jet was heading to, or from La Guardia Airport also in Queens, NYC.

[niyad]

57. I loved going to the organ concerts there at Balboa Park years ago.

[SWBTATTReg]

2. At my Uncle's funeral, when he passed, a bunch of the family's singers/musicians

sang while playing music as he was lowered down into the grave. Very touching, moving. Lionel also wrote the song 'Swinging' sung by John Anderson. I miss him.

John Anderson Lyrics
Play "Swingin'"

"Swingin'"

There's a little girl in our neighborhood,
Her name is Charlotte Johnson and she's really lookin' good.
I had to go and see her, so I called her on the phone.
I walked over to her house and this was going on:

etc.

[electric_blue68]

5. Oh, that -is- a moving experience.

[blm]

9. I loved Swingin'

Saw John Anderson in Los Angeles opening for George Jones.

[SWBTATTReg]

25. Wow, nice!!

[Alpeduez21]

4. 100 person drum circle at a dead show into the RFK stadium parking lot

In DC. It was under the bridge. Jumps out at me

A woman playing violin in one of the plazas by the music school in Venice Italy then was joined by a classical guitarist

[electric_blue68]

6. 100 people! Love it!

Oh, how lovely a small scene in Vence!
And that reminds me of (I'll put separate post).

[johnp3907]

7. A band I was in in the 90s played in a "bubble" on an athletic field.

Similar to these:






Might not have been too weird if there had been a crowd to fill it. The crowd size could’ve been counted in the dozens! 🤣

[electric_blue68]

11. Oh, no! But I do think those "bubbles" are pretty cool.

[electric_blue68]

8. Alpeduez's post remind of 2 particularly cool music encouters in NYC's Subways....

of which there are thousands, and thousands!!

Two black women playing viloins in the '00s. There may be black violin players in our city's orchestras, but it was the first time seeing them in the subway.

In the '90s a guy was playing a digeridoo in the turning corner of a subway staircase. I passed him heading out. I think I could still hear him a bit as I got out of the stairway on to the street; but passed by the subway grating.

[some_of_us_are_sane]

10. The West Point Cadet Chapel

The ORGAN MUSIC! I was there when my son was a cadet there. AMAZING!!!!

"It houses the largest chapel pipe organ in the world which consists of 23,511 individual pipes'

(He's a Colonel now and a teacher there, but to walk around that campus and in that gorgeous chapel was a sight to behold. It made the spirit SOAR!)

[electric_blue68]

12. Wow!! Beautiful! Look at that "keyboard"!

[some_of_us_are_sane]

36. It's not a keyboard, electric_blue68

that's a city BLOCK!.

[electric_blue68]

38. I meant where the organist sits, and the rows of keyboards.....

Last edited Sat May 30, 2026, 12:37 PM - Edit history (1)

Obviously the rest (all those pipes) are in the church building!

[ProfessorGAC]

70. I Went To Grade School...

...at the cathedral school in our diocese.
They had a 4 manual organ like that.
The first time I got to play it, I was only around 10.
I could barely reach the top manual!
And like the one pictured, there were DOZENS if stops & timbral modifiers. Everywhere I looked there was a button, knob, or lever to push/turn/move. Would take 10 years to sort through all the combinations, if it was a full time job.
Around 5,100 pipes & cost over $50k when it was installed in 1954. About $620k today!!!
The one pictured is probably in that same category.

[jmbar2]

34. Wow! That's immense.

The last place I would have expected such a world class organ.

[u4ic]

13. Symphony Splash

in Victoria BC. Various musical acts, culminating with the Victoria Symphony and fireworks at the end, play throughout the day and evening on a barge in the Inner Harbour. Around 40,000 people would attend each year, was free as well. Was there 4 years running, 3 years on the BC Legislature lawn, the 4th year friends went very early to place their chairs up front and took mine. The 5th year had some health issues, so I just sat on my balcony and listened to it, as I lived only a few blocks away.

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[electric_blue68]

16. How wonderful! Cool photos! TY

And, yay, you could hear it when you had health issues that year.

[jmbar2]

33. What a cool concept! Thanks for sharing the photos

Victoria is a magical town anyway. I'd love to see this festival.

[JoseBalow]

14. I saw The Royal Ballet perform Swan Lake at the ancient Roman Amphitheatre in Caesarea

Built by Herod the Great around 30 BCE

[electric_blue68]

17. Wow! Ballet Venue on steroids! TY photo.

[jgo]

15. The Santa Fe Opera, outdoors

Saw Carmen. The opera started precisely at sundown - glorious.

[electric_blue68]

18. Lovely! Great timing!

[Harker]

19. Red Rocks, Morison, Colorado.

[electric_blue68]

20. You know how wonderful that place is 👍

[Harker]

23. Yes, magical.

A couple of the best concerts I attended were at Red Rocks.

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band on The River tour, Stevie Ray Vaughan, B.B. King, Albert King, and Bobby Blue Bland were standouts.

My mom and I saw George Carlin there in the mid-70s.

[electric_blue68]

24. Bruce, and BB King!

[debm55]

21. I saw the group America at a small park outside of Pittsburgh. And it was free!

[electric_blue68]

22. Nice!

[displacedvermoter]

26. St. Martin's in the Fields in London

Vivaldi's Four Seasons...

[electric_blue68]

28. Lovely. I see it has a bright interior.

[displacedvermoter]

37. Lovely building, with underground tombs, and right near the National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery...

[fierywoman]

27. In an old gothic church outside of Siena, Italy; the roof was long gone, no windows, lovely

grass growing inside, at night (stars, moon above), something classical.

One of the most interesting places I played was in a winterized tent in the middle of what I seem to remember was the Palais Royale in Paris. We brought "Carnevale a Parigi", and in order to enter the concert the audience had to wear a mask. You have no idea how truly weird (and strangely erotic) it was to look out from the stage (which was just a platform maybe a foot above the ground) and see an ENTIRE audience masked (-- every type of mask you could imagine --).

[electric_blue68]

39. The old church w the stars above! ....

Wow for the masked concert event in the palace!

You're a violinist, if i remember right?

[fierywoman]

46. Violist -- close enough! (I started on violin and now, in my old age, I'm teaching it)

[electric_blue68]

59. Good on you for teaching! ...

Ah, got it. Viola.

I played it in 5th grade. I really wanted the violin, but I think bc I had "sprouted up" to 5' 7" they decided to give the shorter, smaller girls the violins.

[fierywoman]

48. the old church: what I remember from then (1969) was that I could look directly out the windows

(stained glass, long gone) and see the flying buttresses ...

[electric_blue68]

49. Oh, neat. Love Gothic churches.

[fierywoman]

50. Me too! It's so interesting to me that even if you don't follow the religion,

the architecture still makes you feel exalted.

[electric_blue68]

51. Good point!

In NYC we have The Cathedral of St John The Divine. A very hig Gothc church. It's magnificent!

I also love some of the great Mosques.
The architecture, and the geometric, and floral designs are glorious!

[Walleye]

29. I saw Gene Pitney in 1962 at the grand opening of the Tastee Freeze in Milford Delaware

[MichMan]

30. Devo in early 80's at the Motor City Roller Rink north of Detroit

[electric_blue68]

40. They set up chairs in the rink?

Did see Devo in a regular club.

[no_hypocrisy]

31. Hamilton Square Park in Jersey City

Richie Haven lived in the Hood. He walked into the park with his guitar, got a milk crate, sat down, and started wailing away.

Unforgettable.

[electric_blue68]

42. Way cool!...

Yeah, I saw Richie a few times.

[jmbar2]

32. Lightnin' Hopkins in a Houston Third Ward juke joint

When I was in high school, I decided to learn guitar, and then found out about Lightnin' Hopkins, an old blues guitarist who had been "rediscovered" by Alan Lomax and some of the folkies of the 1960s. I learned that he would be performing at an after-hours dive in Houston's Third Ward, took my dad's car and went there alone - a white high school girl.

I never occurred to me that I might be in danger, because I was going to see Lightnin'. I walked into this tiny, smoky little neighborhood juke joint. It fell silent when I entered, and someone asked, "Miss, are you lost or in trouble?" I said "No. I came to hear Lightnin' Hopkins".

That's all it took. They pulled me up a chair at a table, and the rowdy fun resumed. It was a great night, and great people. I would have been grounded for life if my dad had ever found out.

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[electric_blue68]

43. What a great story!

Yes, I've heard, of him and some of the other blues players.
I'm guessing they appreciated you making your way over there see him.

Ohhh, yeah, your dad would have hit the ceiling!

[MichMan]

35. Saw the Romantics in a college bar near Michigan State

Never heard of them and didn't want to pay the $5 cover charge, but figured we were already there. They blew me away and during the set, they announced they had a record deal and to look for it later on that year.

[electric_blue68]

44. Very nice! At the early stages of their career!

[bamagal62]

41. We saw Michael Jackson

In Prague.

[electric_blue68]

45. Wow, Prague!

[bamagal62]

47. We lived walking distance

To Letna Park at the time!

[FadedMullet]

52. Blossom Music Center in Northeast Ohio, summer home of the Cleveland Symphony that also schedules other......

......great acts. It's an open outdoor venue built in a natural bowl-shaped terrain where you can bring picnics and sit on blankets on the grass. Saw a bunch of shows when we lived nearby but the Orchestra was really special. Bonnie Raitt also was one of my favorites.

[electric_blue68]

60. Looks like a lovely place to enjoy music!

[FadedMullet]

67. It really is a beautiful venue. Thanks for posting this, brings back good memories.

[electric_blue68]

68. Cool! TY. Been fun reading people's experiences.

[peacebuzzard]

53. Any old timer here from DC area heard of "My Mothers Place"?

Close to Dupont Circle way back in the early 70s, Great dive bar and even better music.
I will never forget watching and listening to Rory Gallagher for the 1st time. He rocked my world....Damn he was sooo good....
The bar shuttered long ago....

[Keepthesoulalive]

54. The Apollo theatre in Harlem

Aretha, Isaac Hayes, Arthur Prysock and many more.

[electric_blue68]

61. Alright! Especially Aretha!...

I've been there, too.

[Tikki]

55. We saw Elvis Costello & the Attractions, Rockpile and Mink De Ville at...

the Hollywood High School Auditorium on Sunday June 4, 1978.
The show was brilliant.

The Tikkis

[electric_blue68]

62. In a HS! Cool!

[Silver Gaia]

56. I saw Alice Cooper before anyone really knew who he was

at this little dance club south of Kalamazoo, Michigan called The Crazy Horse that was in the loft of an old barn.

My friend, Kathi, and I would go there a lot. It was fun to dress up in crazy outfits and dance all night! But that night I will never ever forget.

We had never heard of Alice Cooper. The word of mouth rumor was that it was gonna be Al Kooper. We just knew he played blues. Well, imagine our surprise when it was, well, the show it was, complete with Alice Cooper's now well-known makeup, a baby doll, and even a guillotine! Whoa! We were stunned. LOL

But we danced ourselves into oblivion and I have never forgotten that night! I even still have the outfit I wore (it was wild) - it was that memorable a night. This was right before Alice Cooper's first big hit song came out, "I'm Eighteen." I'm not saying I was a huge fan or anything (my younger brother was), but it was definitely not something easy to forget!

[electric_blue68]

63. A surprise for sure! Fun to see someone before they get famous.

Sounds great to have gone alot, dress wild, and dance all night!

I loved going to clubs to see bands. Now most clubs back then '70s, early '80's didn't have dancing.
Then a wonderful club called Hurrahs opened neat Lincoln Center. It had performers, and also a dance floor w a DJ. Loved to dance!

[niyad]

58. Brule, my favourite Indigenous group. They played for several

years at Territory Days. I could sit on my porch and listen without the annoying crowd, or I could get a spot right in front so that I could also watch the dancers.

[electric_blue68]

64. Looked them up. They sound great! ...

I like you had a choice for listening for afar, or going up to listen and view the dancers.

In the '80s I'd been to a few pow wows here in Manhattan, and once the big summer one in Queens. So, yes, I've seen some dancing, too.

Also was in South Dakota and the Black Hills for a environmental, Native America event.

[niyad]

65. I met them fairly early in their career, and got to know them a bit.

Still have several of their early CD's.

I was fortunate to attend one of the Gathering of Nations powwows in Albuquerque years ago. I was sad to learn that this year was its last.

When you were in SD, were you able to see the incredible statue "Dignity: Of Earth and Sky"? She is incredible.

I was just on the Chamerlain, SD fb page, and saw that there will be a tenth anniversary celebration of "Dignity" in September.

[electric_blue68]

66. Very cool!:....

I was in SD in '80 quite before she was created. I've seen photos - powerful & beautiful!

What a shame the Alberquerque pow wow is ending!

I stayed w my dad's work associates/friends in Alberquerque overnight on my '79 cross US trip. They took me to the Native American market.

[LudwigPastorius]

69. I'm a musician, so I don't get out to hear live music as much as I'd like.

However, I can tell you some of the more out of the ordinary places that I've played over the years.


Boats
Department Stores
Elementary/Middle/High Schools
Grocery Stores
Home for Unwed Mothers (since changed its name to an Adoption Center)
Illegal After Hours Club
Law Firm
Lesbian Biker Bar
Mental Institution/State School for the Intellectually Disabled
Presidential Library
Prisons
Retirement Homes
Swingers Club