Since computer and phone sales have taken over, this practice is no longer used but does anyone remember sleeping
out for concert tickets. In the 70's and early to mid 80's this was the only way to get good seats at a concert. There
were no ticket agencies, Stub Hub or ebay, to get good seats you would gather up friends, grab a Frisbee and a football.
Get a boombox, load up on cassettes. Buy a couple of cases of beer and junk food and head to the venue the day before
tickets went on sale, most venues wouldn't allow a line up prior to one day, and party all night long.

When we did, the same group of people would show up for ticket sales so we became friends with various groups of people.
Being in line with them meant we also sat near them at the concert. It got to the point where we knew what each group
would bring to the show, whether it be a flask of something or some other unmetionable items. ;)

People don't do this anymore, hell, most of the good seats are gone before the actual ticket sale dates. Even at that
the ticket prices are outrageous. In the 70's and 80's I would routinely get seats in the first 5 rows and spend no more
than $8.50. I miss those days. :(

Since computer and phone sales have taken over, this practice is no longer used but does anyone remember sleeping
out for concert tickets. In the 70's and early to mid 80's this was the only way to get good seats at a concert. There
were no ticket agencies, Stub Hub or ebay, to get good seats you would gather up friends, grab a Frisbee and a football.
Get a boombox, load up on cassettes. Buy a couple of cases of beer and junk food and head to the venue the day before
tickets went on sale, most venues wouldn't allow a line up prior to one day, and party all night long.

When we did, the same group of people would show up for ticket sales so we became friends with various groups of people.
Being in line with them meant we also sat near them at the concert. It got to the point where we knew what each group
would bring to the show, whether it be a flask of something or some other unmetionable items. ;)

People don't do this anymore, hell, most of the good seats are gone before the actual ticket sale dates. Even at that
the ticket prices are outrageous. In the 70's and 80's I would routinely get seats in the first 5 rows and spend no more
than $8.50. I miss those days. :(


You're right Kev, it's not the normal practice nowadays which angers me, it's luck of the draw now as opposed to dedication. I've only ever done it three times, once for Guns n Roses, once for Metallica and once for Iron Maiden and two of those gigs were at the old Wembley stadium in London.
What annoys me is some mook who just gets lucky might get tickets, whereas me and my buddies who are perfectly willing to wait 2 days for tickets get stumped and have to buy scalpers simply because we didn't get lucky on the phone or buying them online.

we didn't get lucky on the phone or buying them online.


This really sucks, The computer makes it too easy for agencies to get their hands on tickets first. They have programs that
basically just butt in line. The ordinary computer user doesn't stand a chance at good seats, and this isn't just the ticket sales
people either. The acts themselves reserve a section in the front for people with the most money. The last time the Stones
were here the first 10 rows center was called the Gold Section where tickets were $400 dollars apiece, ridiculous.

Due to a radio shows promotion I was able to get Trans Siberian Orchestra tickets a Day before they went on sale. Even though
I got the tickets this bugs me because half the arena is sold out, all the good seats taken before the sale date. it's just not right.

Since computer and phone sales have taken over, this practice is no longer used but does anyone remember sleeping
out for concert tickets. In the 70's and early to mid 80's this was the only way to get good seats at a concert. There
were no ticket agencies, Stub Hub or ebay, to get good seats you would gather up friends, grab a Frisbee and a football.
Get a boombox, load up on cassettes. Buy a couple of cases of beer and junk food and head to the venue the day before
tickets went on sale, most venues wouldn't allow a line up prior to one day, and party all night long.

When we did, the same group of people would show up for ticket sales so we became friends with various groups of people.
Being in line with them meant we also sat near them at the concert. It got to the point where we knew what each group
would bring to the show, whether it be a flask of something or some other unmetionable items. ;)

People don't do this anymore, hell, most of the good seats are gone before the actual ticket sale dates. Even at that
the ticket prices are outrageous. In the 70's and 80's I would routinely get seats in the first 5 rows and spend no more
than $8.50. I miss those days. :(


Yes!  You would go to the ticket booth and they would show you the seating plan with the available seats and you pointed out the ones you wanted.  I saw all kinds of groups, Cream, Beatles, Doors, Who, etc. all in the first 10 rows, usually the first 5.  I was once so close to the Who I had to lean back when Roger swung the microphone or it would have hit me in the jaw.  That doesn't happen anymore.  Corporations already have holds on the best seats.  It stinks.

This really sucks, The computer makes it too easy for agencies to get their hands on tickets first. They have programs that
basically just butt in line. The ordinary computer user doesn't stand a chance at good seats, and this isn't just the ticket sales
people either. The acts themselves reserve a section in the front for people with the most money. The last time the Stones
were here the first 10 rows center was called the Gold Section where tickets were $400 dollars apiece, ridiculous.

Due to a radio shows promotion I was able to get Trans Siberian Orchestra tickets a Day before they went on sale. Even though
I got the tickets this bugs me because half the arena is sold out, all the good seats taken before the sale date. it's just not right.


Right! So many of these companies have deals with the venues, essentially guaranteeing them x% of seats in the house at every gig.

Right! So many of these companies have deals with the venues, essentially guaranteeing them x% of seats in the house at every gig.


Hannah Montana is coming to the Wachovia Center, I think, anyway her show sold out in 10 minutes. 10 minutes after that
ebay and stubhub were flooded with tickets at 5 times their face value. Here's parents hearing their kids crying to see Hannah
Montana, and unless they are willing to shell out hundreds of dollars, their kids will still cry having not seen her. The sad part is,
ordinary parents never had a shot at the tickets. The corporations sponsoring the show had all the floor seats already meted
out for the show. Radio stations had the first and most of the second levels. So that left very few tickets for sale to the public.

It's not just Hannah Montana, it is every show that comes to town. It's easy to sell out fast when only a few hundred tickets
are up for sale.

It seems funny now but the last concert I lined up for was Live Aid. I remember complaining, very loudly, about having to shell out
a $35 for a ticket. It didn't matter to me that it was an all day concert, it didn't matter how many acts were in the show, $35
for a ticket was outrageous.

$35 for a ticket was outrageous.


110 Pounds for Iron Maiden. That's $230.

But occasionally you can get lucky.  In July we bought tickets for The Police on the afternoon of the concert through Ticketmaster.  Before the concert started we were talking to someone just in front of us and she bought her tickets the day they went on sale.

I never queued up to get tickets in advance.  I used to go to lots of concerts at the local students union where you just paid on the door.  I would get there early so I could stand at the front during the concert.

There is one queue to be seen every year in Oxford without fail! It starts about two days before the tickets go on sale and consists of little old grannies waiting for their Daniel O'Donnell tickets.  ;D

Hannah Montana is coming to the Wachovia Center, I think, anyway her show sold out in 10 minutes. 10 minutes after that
ebay and stubhub were flooded with tickets at 5 times their face value. Here's parents hearing their kids crying to see Hannah
Montana, and unless they are willing to shell out hundreds of dollars, their kids will still cry having not seen her. The sad part is,
ordinary parents never had a shot at the tickets. The corporations sponsoring the show had all the floor seats already meted
out for the show. Radio stations had the first and most of the second levels. So that left very few tickets for sale to the public.

It's not just Hannah Montana, it is every show that comes to town. It's easy to sell out fast when only a few hundred tickets
are up for sale.

It seems funny now but the last concert I lined up for was Live Aid. I remember complaining, very loudly, about having to shell out
a $35 for a ticket. It didn't matter to me that it was an all day concert, it didn't matter how many acts were in the show, $35
for a ticket was outrageous.


I tried to get tickets to see Hannah Montana (for my daughter, of course).  We're not going because I don't have $1500. to spend per ticket. 

I've never camped out for tickets  but have stood in line at a store. I once cut my 3rd period class in HS to get tickets for a Supertramp concert.

Yeah, you don't see this nearly as much as you used to, with the growth of the internet and all.

I never waited in line for concert tickets, but me and a few friends did wait in line for over 6 hours to get an Xbox 360 when it came out a couple of years ago. We didn't have to sleep out that day, but it still seemed like forever.

There is one queue to be seen every year in Oxford without fail! It starts about two days before the tickets go on sale and consists of little old grannies waiting for their Daniel O'Donnell tickets.  ;D


I can just picture old ladies rushing the stage at his concerts ;D

His CDs sell pretty well with the old crowd.  One time I went to Wal-Mart on New Release Tuesday, and one of h is CDs had just come out.  I saw all kinds of old ladies with copies of it in their carts ;D

I can just picture old ladies rushing the stage at his concerts ;D

His CDs sell pretty well with the old crowd.  One time I went to Wal-Mart on New Release Tuesday, and one of h is CDs had just come out.  I saw all kinds of old ladies with copies of it in their carts ;D
It's go so bizarre to see little old ladies in deck chairs knitting camping out for tickets.  ;D

It's go so bizarre to see little old ladies in deck chairs knitting camping out for tickets.  ;D
Would these be queueing for Cliff Richard tickets?

When I started going to concerts in the '80s, general admission prices ran from $18 to $25.  To get "orchestra pit," you generally had to know somebody.  I bought Depeche Mode tickets for the Orpheum in '86 half an hour after they went on sale and I was dumbly alarmed at how many seats were already spoken for.  Wake up time, Maxwell!  Helloooo!  Soon I got into "alternative" artists that played stinking dives where you stood there drinking beer for two hours because the band was busy shooting up in the back.  And then I realized I thought rock/pop/industrial shows were totally boring because for me loud did not equal exciting and most of those artists needed a producer to mill every track through the mix a dozen times to get it to sound halfway decent. 
::)

That's when I turned to classical...

Would these be queueing for Cliff Richard tickets?
I doubt he would play anywhere as small as the New Theatre but I would imagine if he did they would be rioting!  ;D