The Disconnect Between Die-Hards and The Band
 

As I peruse this board, I notice that many are like me and love albums like 'These Days.' We wonder why they don't play songs from this album and other rare songs live. We moan about set lists and wonder why they don't play Song X and wonder where the "magic" (so to speak) has gone this past decade (I would argue, however, that 'The Circle' is the best album since 'These Days' but that's not really the point of this post).

I think it can all be summed up with this quote from the "When We Were Beautiful" documentary.

"I want to play the desert and sell it out ... more than once."

We want the band to be artists and make music that moves us and them. It seems, on many levels, that they want to play the proverbial desert and sell it out a bunch of times. This is the disconnect.

(Side note: For the time being, we will put aside thier "artistic" "This Left Feels Right" abomination. Pretending that never really happened).

How awesome would it be for them to do a theater tour and announce that it would be a tour featuring rarely played songs and fan-favorites and that, for this tour, they wouldn't HAVE to play "Bad Medicine" and "It's My Life" and "Prayer," etc. but instead they would play "My Guitar Lies Bleeding In My Arms" and "Thorn In My Side," etc? (i.e. like Clapton did on his "From the Cradle" tour where he announced beforehand that it was a blues tour and that you wouldn't hear "Layla," etc.

This won't happen unless the band stops obsessing about having the biggest tour in a year or being on Billboard's top-whatever list for the year and starts obsessing about writing music that moves them (and us) again. Their "honest" music doesn't sell because the general public wants good-time party music and will turn out in droves to hear it live but will sit on their hands during "Love's The Only Rule" (and tell the die-hard sitting in the upper-deck seat to sit down because he is blocking thier view during a song they obviously don't know or care about - but I digress ;-).

I guess, ultimately, that this is the price we pay for being big fans of a band that has had as much success as this one has.

Thoughts?

I agree with Sexx. Sure, many of us love These Days, and probably would love to relive that tour, but they can't just leave out Prayer and Bad Medicine. I never get tired of hearing Prayer or Bad Medicine or Bad Name or Wanted, the classics. (I could live without IML, though). I think the o2 residency thing was great for those who wanted rarer stuff. We all have our different tastes.

I have one request for the band regarding this, though. I wish they would bring Wild In The Streets back into the regular rotation. I love that song, and the band seems to love playing it.

These Days was their last meaningful output. It's not overrated on here, just respected for what it is.

the general public know Medicine and Prayer, thats what they expect to hear, thats why they still sell tickets thankfully.... die hards "songs" wouldnt be enough for them to tour on and cover the cost of the venue... I think they are trying to find an even balance and for me they found it on 2nd night at the O2.

We are lucky as fans we have had 3 excellent mind blowing albums SWW, NJ, TD , and then ok to good albums with the occassional hit maker to keep them writing songs and touring... I will take more of the same... :D

Dawn

Add that to the fact that it was just as Huge as Crush on an international level. Seems they only judge a failure if it fails in the US.

Id never thought about this before...... its a very good point.... is most of their touring /revenue stateside ?

Dawn

Since 2001 it has been. Basically from 50 to 65% of any specific tour is being done in the states now. I would guess it has a lot to do with being cheaper to move the stage from one place to the next, and as long as the tickets are selling well..........

Just a thought, wasnt the boxset trying to connect with the die hard fans ?

Dawn

Yep, and distract from the tanking of TLFR.