I just saw Hawkwind (the 60s space rock band, still in continuous operation) a few nights ago and they utterly blew me away -- a shame their US tour is over.

The Boredoms are playing around this summer, very exciting.

The Butthole Surfers in their prime had the most astonishing shows I ever saw and I imagine I ever will see. I was quite honestly terrified, but I couldn't stop laughing.

Crash Worship (which is a parent of the Extra Action Marching Band that someone else mentioned) had shows that were almost as good, full of flame and smoke and water and costumes and blood and insanity.

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum is extremely musical and full of energy, even more so when they have their Butoh dancers with them.

Kraftwerk utterly blew me away about 10 years ago in New York. Who'd have thought you could make dial-twiddling so interesting?

But I have yet to see a hiphop show that I stayed to the end of.

Journey.

Best. Band. Ever.

Just kidding.

I agree with many of the comments from folks here about

the hassels,jerky fans,ripoffs and the lameness of most current

touted talent as performers and the Golden Age Being over

ect.(I'm 51 yrs old). Here's my .02

Richard Thompson: He never ceases to amaze me. He just

seems to get better and his new album is his best

in years. Great Great Great.

Elvis Costello: Say what you want but I've never seen

EC and His band put on a less than excellent show.

Commitment, energy and a respect for the back catalog

while never pandering. 2hr + shows from guys who

ain't youngsters.

The San Francisco Jazz Collective: If you think

Jazz is dead these guys will tell you you're wrong.

A great repertory group featuring the talents

of Josh Redman, Bobby Hutcherson and Dave Douglas.

Breathing new life into the music of John Coltrane

,Ornette Coleman and their own as well.

Randy Newman: One man One piano and 40 yrs of great songs.

Plus laughs most standup comics wish they could get.

Rosanne Cash: Deep heartfelt songs, committed but not mawkish.

and very unshowbiz for a Gal from a showbiz family.

I've enjoyed reading the recommendations, but especially enjoyed the letters about concert behavior.

It seems most of the obnoxious behavior stems from people who want to be part of the show. We get that you're with your friends, that you're cool, that you've had a bit to drink. Now just shut up and let us enjoy the show.

I also wanted to put in a plug for the Bouncing Souls. A great live band that manages to connect with the audience and each other almost effortlessly. The music's punk, but not the "I'm going to destroy society and kill you in the process" type, but more of a style based on friendship and keeping hope alive. Corny sounding, but great live.

Are The Decemberists and Pearl Jam.

I can't get enough of The Decemberists. Very engaging live.

The band changes up their set list and throws in some offbeat covers. And of course, there's "The Mariner's Revenge Song"

the ultimat audience participation song.

I saw them twice the last time in San Francisco.

I saw Pearl Jam most recently at the Gorge in Eastern Washington in 2005 and at the LA Forum during their last tour.

Both shows had 3+ hour sets.

I don't really go to too many shows anymore, the three reasons are, people talking, especially during quieter songs. Lame opening bands, and pot smoke, which I have a bad reaction to.

Aren't most venues supposed to be smoke-free?

Really, there's no discussion people. Akron/Family, on Michael Gira's Young Gods record label, is re-defining what a live show can contain. They played over 200 shows last year and I was lucky enough to attend two of them.

Here's how it went down at the Echo in LA. Playing to a hyperactively jaded bunch of eastside Echo Park/Silverlake hipsters, Ak/Fam they broke every rule, knocked down every wall, blew through more than two hours of stunnign material, and left the audience gasping for more.

"This is LA, we don't do that" a girl said from the front. Fifteen minutes into the show the band instructed the crowd to hold their arms up and create a wave that went from the front of the club to the back again, all the while making the "whoosh" sound of waves breaking on the beach in order to recreate the sound effect from the album. But in less than a ten seconds, there we were, dumbstruck, waving and whooshing, grinning from ear to ear. Jadedness melting alway with every whoosh. A miracle was happening.

Later A girl shouted a non-sequiter from the crowd. The band jumped on it, had her repeat it, then they chanted it, worked it into a rave up, and broke through into a song from their most recent album. All on the fly. All un-rehearsed. All for us. All from us. We were in this together.

The show descended into a sonic wall of sound and one by one the players left the stage, only to congregate in the back of the club to begin singing a-capella 4-part harmonies during a spiritual about love and space. The crowd caught the refrain and joined in and soon the entire club was part of the act as we held the coda and the band continued with the song, with 200 back-up singers.

Find a picture of them playing a live show on the net. See the crowd on stage? See the ecstatic look of surprise on everyone's faces? See the transfiguration of rock projected from the mountain top? It's real.

the last concert I saw was Lee Konitz & Dan Tepfer

small venue about 80 people

Konitz at 79 was in fine form on the sax

Saturday, my wife and I travel to Philly to see Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 -- hope that'll be fun

last year we saw

Gregory Isaacs

Maxi Priest

The I-Threes

Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars

they were all very good to exceptional

Seun Kuti may still be under 40 but he has been playing with Egypt 80 since Fela died in 1997

the Refugee All Stars are young but that was a free show and they are good

others all 45 +

A