Your Top 3 most seen live acts

[Heartland]

Sisters of Mercy (I was very young)
The Fall
New Order

BSP will be 5th or 6th.

What's anyone's biggest gig span? I've seen The Fall and John Cooper Clark in every decade since the 70s

[Blackout]

What's anyone's biggest gig span? I've seen The Fall and John Cooper Clark in every decade since the 70s

The Stranglers - first saw them March 1987 (only the third gig I'd ever been to), last saw them March 2013. A few times in between but not many, certainly less than 10. Largely because I lost interest in them between about 1988 and 2004. Biggest span without seeing in between times, The Damned - May 1987 / December 2012 (with The Stone Roses and Mudhoney the only other bands where I've had a break of more than 20 years, 1990-2012 in both cases).

[SPT]

I don't go to that many. Have seen BSP 10 times. After that it's probably local Sheffield bands, not necessarily my favourites, but that's what I trundle out for - Nat Johnson and Standard Fare I reckon.

In fact few enough that my songkick list is probably pretty close to be exhasutive (just missing a few random gig nights out when I lived up the road from Camden)

[blir]

BSP - 40ish?
X - 10+ (back in the day)
Sparks - 10+ (back in the day)

[Rake]

Wish I'd seen Sparks, great band.

Biggest span is REM - 80's, 90's and 00's. Biggest span in between will be Spear of Destiny when I see them in October, as last time was 1988.

Good stuff this, interesting to see what others live likes outside of BSP are.

[pomfob]

My most painful no-show was Thin White Rope cancelling their Ruby Sea tour show at The Joiners Arms in Southampton due to poor ticket sales, thus depriving me of ever seeing them full-stop. It still hurts, as I'm sure this isn't the first time I've cathartically banged on about it here.

Perhaps you, me & Kevo could form the BSP TWR Appreciation Society?

(PS - they were as good live as you imagine. Sorry. I once saw TWR supported by Ted Chippington - wildly inappropriate but totally brilliant.)

[Rake]

My most painful no-show was Thin White Rope cancelling their Ruby Sea tour show at The Joiners Arms in Southampton due to poor ticket sales, thus depriving me of ever seeing them full-stop. It still hurts, as I'm sure this isn't the first time I've cathartically banged on about it here.

Perhaps you, me & Kevo could form the BSP TWR Appreciation Society?

(PS - they were as good live as you imagine. Sorry. I once saw TWR supported by Ted Chippington - wildly inappropriate but totally brilliant.)

I'm in.

At least they released the aptly titled 'The One That Got Away' live album to give my imaginings some substance.

[bancroftboy]

Predictably mine is BSP by a mile, I don't keep a record but I would guess about 80 though I have been saying that for two years now
Second fairly easily would be Jonathan Richman who would rank somewhere between 15 and 20 by virtue of having first seen him in 1978? and almost every tour since often more than once.
After that its a scrum but I would think that its probably the fabulous My Life Story, the only band I have ever travelled outside London and Manchester to see until BSP came along, somewhere in the 12 -15 range.

When BSP played that Hop Farm Festival a couple of years ago, I was stuck for a band to see in the afternoon and went to see The Stranglers. I had seen them in 1977 at the Apollo in Manchester and never again until then, a gap of a couple of months less than 25 years. Beat that.

[kevo]

When BSP played that Hop Farm Festival a couple of years ago, I was stuck for a band to see in the afternoon and went to see The Stranglers. I had seen them in 1977 at the Apollo in Manchester and never again until then, a gap of a couple of months less than 25 years. Beat that.

Need to check, but I saw Simple Minds in Birmingham in 83. Next time was when I saw their first five albums show in Dublin in 2012. That's also 25 years. Riot holds the record though. He saw the Cure in 77 and then not again until Reading last year (?), so that's 35!

[Blackout]

When BSP played that Hop Farm Festival a couple of years ago, I was stuck for a band to see in the afternoon and went to see The Stranglers. I had seen them in 1977 at the Apollo in Manchester and never again until then, a gap of a couple of months less than 25 years. Beat that.

That's 35 years not 25... almost certainly unbeatable on here, though in the wider world my dad usually wins that one by having seen The Rolling Stones in 1966 and 2006 and not in between (it was about a month under 40 years).

I saw Simple Minds in Birmingham in 83. Next time was when I saw their first five albums show in Dublin in 2012. That's also 25 years.

Has everyone here forgotten how to do arithmetic??!

[kevo]

My most painful no-show was Thin White Rope cancelling their Ruby Sea tour show at The Joiners Arms in Southampton due to poor ticket sales, thus depriving me of ever seeing them full-stop. It still hurts, as I'm sure this isn't the first time I've cathartically banged on about it here.

Perhaps you, me & Kevo could form the BSP TWR Appreciation Society?

(PS - they were as good live as you imagine. Sorry. I once saw TWR supported by Ted Chippington - wildly inappropriate but totally brilliant.)

I'm in.

At least they released the aptly titled 'The One That Got Away' live album to give my imaginings some substance.

Fantastic band. Also one of my big 'never got to see them' regrets too.

They played Dingwalls in London sometime in the mid 80s. I knew about the gig and thought about going but, for whatever reason, didn't bother (not quite as bad as The Smiths, who I never saw even though I was once offered a ticket to what turned out to be one of their last shows).

First time I'd heard of TWR was when I saw this Whistle Test documentary on 'the Paisley Underground'. There's just a brief clip of them in one of the videos below, but it was enough to convince me I should check them out (the programme is worth a watch, btw, for anyone who was into those west coast American guitar bands of the time - even though it's presented by Richard Skinner...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liud5ZPtteI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DquJxw9UcLg

[bancroftboy]

And that's why I don't have a maths o level, yes 35 years
Beat that

[Spot]

BSP
Who
Joy Formidable

These intervals comparisons now have me sort of tempted to see a Moody Blues show, having seen them previously in 1982.

[SPT]

These intervals comparisons now have me sort of tempted to see a Moody Blues show, having seen them previously in 1982.

I suppose I could go see the Alarm again.

Nah, I'll wait til it's been 50 years. Do it properly.

[Rake]

Good stuff kevo, think I saw that documentary, was very into that scene at the time.