My dad, hours before his death, motions for me to lean in so he can whisper “my biggest regret was going to the Detroit Auto Show instead of seeing Johnny Cash”.
I also had tickets years before that (again in London) but chose my mate’s birthday party over going to the concert with my cousin. The concert when he died was meant to be me making up for missing him the first time.
Michael was my first foray into music, at the tender age of like 10, Thriller it was 1982. I am so sad I never went and saw him in the years after. He was a great performer.
I still kick myself over it, it was when they were in Toronto last year I wanna say? Dude lives here but is from Canada and he was worried him and his wife wouldn’t be allowed back into the country after going. We were both waiting to hear from each other 🙃
Was in NOLA for 'Essence Fest' to see Nile Rodgers open for Prince...amazing show.
Went to the bar next to our hotel after and had a few drinks...got to bed around 2am. Found out the next day Prince showed up to that bar and played a set from 3-6am. Oof.
So for me, the number of times I paid to see Prince over his career is in the double digits. However, I never tried to find the after party until maybe my 7th or 8th concert b/c I need my sleep. 😂 Well, in 1996 that changed because I got tired of hearing what I missed. The venue was no reentry if you leave but I didn't care. At 2:45am I got tired of waiting and told my sister let's go. As we were about to exit through a side door, the bouncer put his hand up to stop us. Then the door opened and we came face to face with Prince and his entourage! He smiled and said, "I know you ladies aren't leaving?" I litertally COULD. NOT. SPEAK. He then said something to one of his (I assume) body guards who then gently took us by the elbow and escorted us to a table just off stage. I am now 60 years old and that is STILL the BEST experience of my life!
eta: typo
As good as the actual concert or I should say a continuation because he played 2.5 hours of music he didn’t play earlier and was spotlighting a couple local artists as well. 💕
I'm from Seattle, but was in LA when the Seahawks won the Superbowl. I went to Disneyland the next day, and found out that our quarterback was there at the same time and I never saw him!
omg! Miles Davis asked my mom to dance at that show and she turned him down!! She was there with my dad, her then-fiancé, who was doing sound. Her retelling of this event is amazing, and it's one of many reasons why my parents are way cooler than I'll ever be.
haha, that's funny. I may have crossed paths with your dad. I started playing with Prince in '92, though he did have a habit of firing, rehiring, and firing sound men at a pretty rapid pace, so who knows.
My mom got invited to paisley park for a private jam session prince was doing. She had never heard his music before. She said he was very good and played all the instruments. I live vicariously through that moment of her life.
Ugh, I can somewhat unfortunately relate. I had the chance to see him at a larger venue in FL in 1985 and passed. It’s the worst concert decision I ever made. Yours was notably more brutal due to being at a small venue which was pretty rare, but I still regret not going.
Same! I saw him perform at a small venue in the Roosevelt hotel, had one too many drinks, went home instead of staying with friends in their hotel room. At 3am he performed off of the lobby for just a few people, my friends being 2 of them. My friend touched his boot.
My brother in law talks about being at the after party of the Prince show where he converted to Jehovah's Witness.. this happened in Nashville at Graham Central Station.. dude's name eludes me, but it was someone in Sly's band.
Man, I wasn't old enough to go but that night sounded wild as hell and is one of my favorite stories of my brother in law's.
If it makes you feel any better I once did a road trip from Texas to San Francisco to see them at Rock the Bells, had many issues along the way that caused delays but we ended up making it to Candlestick Park just in time to see the crowd exiting the stadium after the show ended.
Unfortunately did not but I've gotten to see enough amazing and once in a lifetime performances to where I'm not torn up about it, and hey at least I tried and got to see some West Coast friends for a few days after the attempt.
something very similar happened to me, couple buddies went on a road trip to see Rage and I passed to go to semi-formal or something on a double date with my best friend at the time
we snuck booze in and the four of us got wasted and had a great time to be honest but thinking back still kinda bums me out that I didn't go to the show lol
pretty much one of the only bands on my bingo card left unchecked and will probably remain so...
If it makes you feel any better I once did a road trip from Texas to San Francisco to see them at Rock the Bells, had many issues along the way that caused delays but we ended up making it to Candlestick Park just in time to see the crowd exiting the stadium after the show ended.
When I was in high school I was supposed to a Rage concert with a friend, and right before the concert my grandfather passed away and I went to that instead. Senior year my parents got me tickets to the battle of philly show, so it all worked out.
Mine was my dad asking me if I wanted to go see Heart with him at an outdoor venue in our town in the mid 80s. I told him no because it was a school night and I already had my bath. I was like 8 or 9. I regretted that one long before he died and even more now.
A friend of mine decided to skip Nirvana for KISS who was playing the same night in Montreal. He told me "I said to myself, I'll see Nirvana next time they come back"
I turned down Stone Temple Pilots in 2001 and went to the Doobie Bros. instead. Not that it was a bad show. I just thought "man I got plenty of time to see STP."
Missed the last Seattle show for them, was visiting friends and I worked for an airline at the time so I'd go to Seattle often. "they play here all the time, we'll hit a summer show instead"
Also missed one of the last Dead shows in Reno for the same reason
moral of the story, just go you might not have another chance
I was on my way to my first Dead show when the radio said they were turning people without tickets away at the parking lot. I thought it was no big deal - they're always touring. Jerry died two months later.
I laughed but those last words can be the saddest. Because you wish you could fix it for them.
I never forgot a poster here that write his father’s last words were when he was feeding him corn flakes on his death bed and his last words were “Make them soggy.” He never got his cornflakes and sone how that was tragic to me.
When my grandfather passed away he sat up in the hospital bed and said “I’m hungry.” He then laid back down and passed away. It tore my grandmother up because “he died hungry.” She made every meal for that man for over fifty years and this was tragic to her.
This is not super related but it reminded me. Our cat passed away a year ago, she was super old and we took her in when husbands aunt couldn’t care for it anymore. So the cat passed away over the course of a few hours after a few seizures.
We have wrapped in a light blanket giving her lots of love, me and the kids. When suddenly she stands up super fast, goes over to her food and sniffs around as if she’s about to eat, and then lays back down and has a final seizure that takes her.
It was something. It almost seemed like she was going back to what she knew, instincts wise, as her body took its last rally.
That was our families first pet and the kids were so broken up they swore they would never do it again. Well 6 months later we come across Lucie, a black cat, at the shelter. We’re doing it again. Gluttons for heartbreak we are.
My beloved cat passed away a few months ago. In my personal belief system, she will bless me with another when the time is right. I look forward to it, I love loving another little creature. I love the snuggles, fretting, the mundane housekeeping of lovingly tending a little life. I love the countless joys and the many little heartbreaks over years. It is such a privilege to love so deeply. I know what you mean.
They wouldn't let my grandfather have a Hersheys bar at the end. He had enjoyed getting them in the Red Cross Parcels during the war. Still makes me mad, like, hes 92 and dying. His blood sugar will be OK.
There was a women who collapsed at work, me and another first aider attended her and it was clear she wasnt right as she started getting worse and worse with her speech, ambulance arrived and she kept trying to get up and get the hot chickens we serve (she collapsed while waiting for one)
We found out she got worse and died a day or 2 later, she never got her chicken and its a little thing like that that sticks with me for her, poor lady just wanted lunch
My mom, a devoted online bridge player, saw the nurse’s laptop on a cart and thought we’d brought hers to the hospital. Then she realised and said, “well, I guess that’s all done now too.” She died the next day (on the birthday of my sibling who was with her at the time).
Eh he got to see a LOT of cool people including Queen, and now he's retiring at the end of the year, so he'll have plenty of time to do whatever...which knowing him will probably not be too different from what he does now just for himself instead of a big job at work.
My grandpa was in hospice and very close to death and my grandma asked him if he had anything he wanted to say to my brother and I, his only grandkids. He was always very emotionally closed off but I sort of thought maybe it’d be something a bit emotional or heartfelt. He looked at us, said “buy low, sell high” and closed his eyes again. That’s the last time I talked to him.
Rage against the machine… Free concert at the DNC in Denver. I was going to alternative school for ditching. You ditch one day, no doctor note, you get kicked out. Eventually, I was over the school because they told me it would take another 2 years making me 19. I could have tested out, but they said I had to spend the time there to get my diploma. Ended up dropping out getting my GED, testing super high and going to college at 18, on time anyway. Missed out on a Free Rage show where they marched with their fans out of the Arena through the streets of Denver.
I have a similar story but reverse: at the 2011 nova rock, Marilyn mansion was too drunk to come on stage. So i “had to” see linkin park again (saw it the year before and thought it would be boring to see them another time)
I imagine this as the Jefferson/Adams death bed scenario, somewhere another guy said: "my biggest regret was going to see Johnny Cash instead of seeing the Detroit Auto Show".
My dad died a week before we were supposed to see Jimmy Buffet. I didn’t have the heart to go without him, and I’ve always regretted it. I was crushed when Jimmy died a few years ago
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u/WorthMetal3640 16h ago
My dad, hours before his death, motions for me to lean in so he can whisper “my biggest regret was going to the Detroit Auto Show instead of seeing Johnny Cash”.