Top Ten Concerts of 2017

Well it's that time of year again to list my top 10 concerts of the year. I got out to a lot of shows this year which is making it tough to make a top ten list. I've been thinking of this list for a while now and have decided I can't list them in order of best, instead will just list my favorites in order of date. All shows were in Edmonton unless otherwise noted.

* January 23rd Joel Plaskett with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra @ The Winspear Centre.
Wasn't sure how this show was going to be but Joel pulled it off incredibly well.

* April 6th The Bronx with opener Dave Hause & The Mermaid @ The Brixx.
An awesome double bill. The Bronx killed it and Dave Hause was really good too.

* June 23rd Bash & Pop @ The Brixx.
This show was a last minute decision. Rushed out to this show right after seeing Ryan Adams in concert. I am so glad I decided to go. This show was everything I like about live performances. Intense, loud, sweaty, full of attitude, drama and most of all great rock n' roll. Tommy Stinson ex of The Replacements was in fine form, or maybe not fine form, depending how you look at it, as he was obviously tipsy yet still put on a great show.

* August 17th Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers in Vancouver, B.C. @ Rogers Arena.
This show was incredible. Petty on his 40th Anniversary Tour. So full of energy, great setlist, sounded great. And then six weeks later Tom Petty is gone. RIP Tom Petty! So glad I got to see him one last time.

* August 22nd Beck @ The Jubilee Auditorium.
An artist I have had on my bucket list for many years. And he didn't disappoint. A wicked show.

* August 30th Guns N' Roses @ Commonwealth Stadium
This show was so much fun and reminded me of my teenage years. A three and half hour party, with the venue selling beers through out the entire concert. The show started on time, Axl and the band sounded amazing. Just a fun, fun show.

* September 23rd Gene Simmons Band @ The Expo Centre.
Being a huge KISS fan this was a once in a lifetime chance to see Gene Simmons play a solo show with the rest of KISS. Great song selection, Gene was in fine form and best of all myself, my Cuz and my buddy RCD managed to score backstage passes and meet Gene Simmons. An incredible night that I will never forget.

* September 27th Lowest Of The Low with openers Jr. Gone Wild @ The Needle Vinyl Tavern.
A great double bill of two awesome Canadian bands. Wicked show.

* October 24th Roger Waters @ Rogers Arena.
An amazing show as usual from Roger Waters. Classic Pink Floyd songs mixed with new material that worked really well. Worth every penny.

* December 10th Mike Plume @ The Almanac.
One of my favorite singer/songwriters ever in a small intimate venue and a local artist at that. Mike's shows are always so much fun, full of great songs and lots of laughs. I never tire of seeing Mike Plume in concert.

So hard to pick my favorite shows this year as there were others that could have made this list, but I wanted to keep it to my top ten. Honourable mentions go to Leeroy Stagger, Blitzen Trapper, Diamond Head, Elliott BROOD, Nik Turner of Hawkwind and Parker Millsap.

Looking forward to a busy 2018 concert schedule. Good times!!!

Mike Plume Live at The Almanac Dec.10th 2017

Last Sunday night my buddy Buzzard, Char, Cuz, Janis and I went to the Mike Plume show at The Almanac. The Almanac is nice small intimate venue and a great place to see a show. This was my 13th time seeing Mike in concert, and again, it was awesome.

It was a solo show, with no opener, just Mike playing for two and a half hours. One great song after another, it was a great selection of songs with some requests thrown in as well. Mike also broke out a few Christmas songs from his Back Home For Christmas album (available here, as his whole catalog of music). These aren't your traditional kind of Xmas songs, as you can tell from the title of this song that he did "Merry Xmas (To My Ex Miss)", there were sure to be a few laughs during this one, another Christmas song he did that was full of laughs as well was "Gather Round The Christmas Tree".

Other songs played during the show were, fan favourites, "830 Newfoundland", "More Than A Game", "So Long Stompin' Tom", "Dimaggio" and "Hey Hey What D'Ya Say (Coming Home Again)". Then there were some songs that don't always get played unless of course it's a two plus hour show like this one. Songs such as "Life Is Funny", "Half Full Is The Cup", "Live It up Until They Lower Me Down", "Like a Bullet From a Gun", "Make It up as We Go" and "Straight Back Home" amongst many others. There was even an impromptu sing along of "California Dreamin'", Mike had the whole audience singing along to this one. Mike also brought out his wife Jenny for a couple of songs, she too has an awesome voice. The show closed out with Mike covering the Fred Eaglesmith song "Alcohol and Pills". This show was so much fun, so many great songs, lots of laughs and a great way to cap off another year of concerts and this one rates up with ne of the best I saw all year. Good times!!!

Mike Plume at The Almanac.

In concert news...After a successful Western Canadian Tour opening for Corb Lund, Mike will be joining Corb again in February for a southern Ontario tour. Also, watch for a new Mike Plume album coming in the spring of 2018. Can't wait to hear more great songs by an amazing singer/songwriter.