If you think that''s high, stay away from New York:

ORCHESTRA PIT SEATING
US $355.00
US $355.00 Ticket + US $40.05 Fees =
US $395.05

ORCHESTRA LEVEL SEATING
US $104.00 - US $130.00
US $104.00 Ticket + US $19.00 Fees =
US $123.00
US $130.00 Ticket + US $21.80 Fees =
US $151.80

1ST MEZZANINE LEVEL SEATING
US $104.00 - US $130.00
US $104.00 Ticket + US $19.00 Fees =
US $123.00
US $130.00 Ticket + US $21.80 Fees =
US $151.80

2ND MEZZANINE LEVEL SEATING
US $89.00
US $89.00 Ticket + US $17.50 Fees =
US $106.50

3RD MEZZANINE LEVEL SEATING
US $74.00
US $74.00 Ticket + US $17.15 Fees =
US $91.15

... and at my age, third mezzanine at Radio City Music Hall requires oxygen .

Man, Lee you live in a great place for music. What stands out in your prices are the Buddy Guy tickets. You Chicagoans have it made. He plays the Birchmere every year but the cost is around $80. One of the most expensive of all Birchmere seats.

Still I plan on catching him next time he rolls in to town. Last time I saw he sat in with Winwood and Clapton at the United Center. I haven't been to one of his shows in more than a decade. He ain't getting any younger.

Bonamassa's ticket prices have gone through the roof in recent years. First saw him on 07, ticket cost £17. Saw him in 2013 and they where £50. This year in London the cheapest standing tickets are £55. Cheapest seated tix are £75. So I am giving it a miss this year, and probably for the foreseeable future.

Agreed. It's not that I wouldn't want to check him out again, but not at these prices. I just spent all day at the Sunshine Blues Fest for less than his cheapest seat.

Living in Chicago, I get emails from Ticketmaster with local concerts. Normally I just delete the emails but Joe Bonamassa was mentioned and I have been on a kick of his lately so I opened it.

I looked at the prices for some of the shows they suggested for me(and before fees):

Dave Mason $22
Robert Cray $30
Steve Winwood $32
Buddy Guy $40
REO Speedwagon $45
String Cheese $49

And Bonamassa? $82! Really?

Lucky you Buddy Guy tickets went on sale in Ottawa this past Friday all were $80.00 + service charges
Joe was here last spring at $180.00 for good seats.I like Bonamassa, but I like $200.00 in my pocket better. I really don't understand his ticket prices compared to others. Until he comes back to earth I won't be going.

Living in Chicago, I get emails from Ticketmaster with local concerts. Normally I just delete the emails but Joe Bonamassa was mentioned and I have been on a kick of his lately so I opened it.

I looked at the prices for some of the shows they suggested for me(and before fees):

Dave Mason $22
Robert Cray $30
Steve Winwood $32
Buddy Guy $40
REO Speedwagon $45
String Cheese $49

And Bonamassa? $82! Really?

Lucky you Buddy Guy tickets went on sale in Ottawa this past Friday all were $80.00 + service charges
Joe was here last spring at $180.00 for good seats.I like Bonamassa, but I like $200.00 in my pocket better. I really don't understand his ticket prices compared to others. Until he comes back to earth I won't be going.

Joe is a hot act right now so not surprised his ticket prices are climbing. considering artists make basically no money on new music due to illegal downloading and most of their money touring I don't blame him for getting it while the getting is good.

But I am with you as I would rather see the North Mississippi Allstars for around $30 then Joe for $80+ these days

Joe is a hot act right now so not surprised his ticket prices are climbing. considering artists make basically no money on new music due to illegal downloading and most of their money touring I don't blame him for getting it while the getting is good.

This comment is about why artist make no money on new music... I don't think it is because of the illegal downloading. I think people don't want to spend money on recorded music because the medium is not tangible. The music industry pulled off a huge scam when they moved from vinyl to CD's. CD's were never a tangible work of art like a record album. (IMO)

I remember buying an album as an event. CD's quickly were realized to be exactly what they are -cheap plastic discs in fragile crappy cases. I have thousands because I love music but it isn't as tactile an experience as an album.

Downloads? Nothing tactile about them. Nothing to hold, no great cover are or printed lyrics to enjoy and yet still a very expensive commodity.

Then there is the whole discussion about concept albums and the question of artists just releasing songs, not albums...

I think there are many more reasons for musicians not making money off albums besides folks stealing and sharing the product.

Not trying to pick a fight, just my opinion.

Joe is a hot act right now so not surprised his ticket prices are climbing. considering artists make basically no money on new music due to illegal downloading and most of their money touring I don't blame him for getting it while the getting is good.

This comment is about why artist make no money on new music... I don't think it is because of the illegal downloading. I think people don't want to spend money on recorded music because the medium is not tangible. The music industry pulled off a huge scam when they moved from vinyl to CD's. CD's were never a tangible work of art like a record album. (IMO)

I remember buying an album as an event. CD's quickly were realized to be exactly what they are -cheap plastic discs in fragile crappy cases. I have thousands because I love music but it isn't as tactile an experience as an album.

Downloads? Nothing tactile about them. Nothing to hold, no great cover are or printed lyrics to enjoy and yet still a very expensive commodity.

Then there is the whole discussion about concept albums and the question of artists just releasing songs, not albums...

I think there are many more reasons for musicians not making money off albums besides folks stealing and sharing the product.

Not trying to pick a fight, just my opinion.

No worries Billy I understand where you are coming from but based on the what I read on the other music forums I belong to and the people I work with they are either illegally downloading music, buying downloads for their IPODs or just listening to music on services like spotify and not bothering to even buy the music. The younger forum members openly brag about stealing music and when confronted do not feel it is stealing and justify it by claiming that they are getting back at the music industry for over charging for music

I work for an Audio company and music is my #1 love. I happen to still like physical product myself and burn copies of my CD's to play in the car so as not to damage my ordinals and the group of Engineers who work for me laugh that I still buy and use CD's.

I also to love the experience and packaging of vinyl and the convenience of CD's but from my experience the younger generation just does not see the need for physical product. From my observations they are happy downloading MP3's for there ipods and or phones as there main source of music these days.

JMO but I think you underestimate the amount of illegal downloading going on these days.

Man, Lee you live in a great place for music.

Some people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them this, but one major reason I moved from Michigan to Chicago was for the music. I can listen to live blues seven nights a week here for instance. Every major act comes through here when they tour, which isn't the case in Detroit. There are several theatres in the city where I live and you can get to them without driving. Pretty cool if you live in the city as I do.

Man, Lee you live in a great place for music.

Some people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them this, but one major reason I moved from Michigan to Chicago was for the music. I can listen to live blues seven nights a week here for instance. Every major act comes through here when they tour, which isn't the case in Detroit. There are several theatres in the city where I live and you can get to them without driving. Pretty cool if you live in the city as I do.

I agree. I live down in Indy and I keep an eye time to time
on the Chitown area and I always thought it would be cool
to live near there. Plethora of music available.
I think Indy has a fair share, but
nothing like the Windy city.

leads me to this....
I think Indy gets skipped over sometimes in the
midwest whether its a national act or maybe
an artist who is kinda indie or flys under the
radar. It's either Chicago,Columbus,Detroit,Louisville
Example, Steve Earle. It seems like when he has
came through this state the last couple of times and he stops in
Bloomiton which is a small city about 1 1/2 hrs south of here.
It seems like he would have a bigger population to draw from here
Maybe it has something to do wiht it being a college town.
Greg came this way about a year or so ago. He was in Wabsah
Indiana, which is a small college town a few good clicks north of
here and a good shot out of Ft Wayne. I know it has
a nice theater, but to me it seems like you would have bigger
pull in this market of close to a million people.
Rush's 2015..not stopping here.
It seems like it has always been that way.

Back to ticket prices.....dont go . Plain and simple.
If you want to get the point across dont feed it and
sure as heck dont feed Stubhub ,brokers,scalpers.
Hit them in the wallet. We rarely go to shows anymore
due to that issue. Usually its local or some of the artists
who are of the indie/flying under the radar stature
who arent asking for a kidney. There is good music
to be found at great prices. You just gotta dig.

Bonamassa still managed to pretty much sell out Radio City on Friday and totally sold out on Saturday. I went both nights (orchestra pit on Friday) and I got my money's worth. He put on a great show, especially Saturday. Both shows are on dime, excellent quality recordings.

Edit to add: Both shows were filmed for PBS and (hopefully) a video release.

[Edited on 1/26/2015 by ralphie53]

The younger forum members openly brag about stealing music and when confronted do not feel it is stealing and justify it by claiming that they are getting back at the music industry for over charging for music

That as certainly the case when CDs were $15...and I think that's already become a bit of passe thinking. I've got an 11 year old daughter and her and her friends are quite adept at listening to music on YouTube...she's never even gotten to the point of paying a lot of money for it, or any money for it. It's just...there.

Speaking of prices, my wife recently purchased Taylor Swift tix for her and the kiddo...2 lower level seats in an arena...$276.50 with fees. I bought two tix to see the Foo Fighters at the same arena for $91 with fees...love that Dave Grohl guy... 😛

This was concidentally the same week that Miss Swift pulled all her music off Spotify for not enough compensation...

Speaking of prices, my wife recently purchased Taylor Swift tix for her and the kiddo...2 lower level seats in an arena...$276.50 with fees. I bought two tix to see the Foo Fighters at the same arena for $91 with fees...love that Dave Grohl guy... 😛

This was concidentally the same week that Miss Swift pulled all her music off Spotify for not enough compensation...

Tell me about it My wife bought 3-tix to take our two daughters to see Ariana Grande and the tix cost more then our 4 tix to see ScoGovt Mule and NMA with money to spare for dinner.

JMO but I think you underestimate the amount of illegal downloading going on these days.

I probably am. I still buy music although I pay for a couple music services. I'm sure a combination of factors have damaged the ability of musicians to make money off recorded music. Too bad since it impacts an art form I grew up with - an album as a cohesive work of art.

Some people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them this, but one major reason I moved from Michigan to Chicago was for the music. I can listen to live blues seven nights a week here for instance. Every major act comes through here when they tour, which isn't the case in Detroit. There are several theatres in the city where I live and you can get to them without driving. Pretty cool if you live in the city as I do.

I moved to New Orleans when I was 18 and quickly became obsessed with the amount of music available. I don't think you are crazy at all. I have incredible availability of music within an hour's drive to Richmond, DC, or Charlottesville. Yet I don't have the convenience of grabbing a cab, mass transit, or walking to an incredible theatre. I've seen some fantastic shows in Chicago. The Chicago Theatre and the Chicago Auditorium are two of my favorite venues. The restaurants and vibrancy of the city both add to the attraction and make that town one of my favorite vacation destinations.

Speaking of that - Knopfler ticket pre-sale for the Chicago Theatre is tomorrow at noon central time.

[Edited on 1/26/2015 by BillyBlastoff]

Some people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them this, but one major reason I moved from Michigan to Chicago was for the music. I can listen to live blues seven nights a week here for instance. Every major act comes through here when they tour, which isn't the case in Detroit. There are several theatres in the city where I live and you can get to them without driving. Pretty cool if you live in the city as I do.

I moved to New Orleans when I was 18 and quickly became obsessed with the amount of music available. I don't think you are crazy at all. I have incredible availability of music within an hour's drive to Richmond, DC, or Charlottesville. Yet I don't have the convenience of grabbing a cab, mass transit, or walking to an incredible theatre. I've seen some fantastic shows in Chicago. The Chicago Theatre and the Chicago Auditorium are two of my favorite venues. The restaurants and vibrancy of the city both add to the attraction and make that town one of my favorite vacation destinations.

Speaking of that - Knopfler ticket pre-sale for the Chicago Theatre is tomorrow at noon central time.

[Edited on 1/26/2015 by BillyBlastoff]

If you have never been to The Chicago Blues Fest in June, do yourself a favor and make plans.

They don't bring in the big names like they used to but it is still great. The main reason is financial; the city can't afford it and it is free to the public. They cut it from four days to three a few years ago.

Last big names I saw there were Johnny Winter with James Cotton. Neither could really walk and James couldn't sing but it was still neat.

Great way to spend a summer weekend. And you never know who might show up at Buddy Guy's Legends. The only time Stevie Ray played Blues Fest he went in there.

Sound advice.

If you think that''s high, stay away from New York:

ORCHESTRA PIT SEATING
US $355.00
US $355.00 Ticket + US $40.05 Fees =
US $395.05

ORCHESTRA LEVEL SEATING
US $104.00 - US $130.00
US $104.00 Ticket + US $19.00 Fees
US $123.00
US $130.00 Ticket + US $21.80 Fees =
US $151.80

1ST MEZZANINE LEVEL SEATING
US $104.00 - US $130.00
US $104.00 Ticket + US $19.00 Fees =

US $123.00
US $130.00 Ticket + US $21.80 Fees =
US $151.80

2ND MEZZANINE LEVEL SEATING
US $89.00
US $89.00 Ticket + US $17.50 Fees =
US $106.50

3RD MEZZANINE LEVEL SEATING
US $74.00
US $74.00 Ticket + US $17.15 Fees =

US $91.15

Yeah, it cracks me up when I see people from other states bitch about ticket prices like the ones posted above by Lee which are far less costly than what we pay in NYC and Long Island.

[Edited on 1/27/2015 by sixty8]

Some people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them this, but one major reason I moved from Michigan to Chicago was for the music. I can listen to live blues seven nights a week here for instance. Every major act comes through here when they tour, which isn't the case in Detroit. There are several theatres in the city where I live and you can get to them without driving. Pretty cool if you live in the city as I do.

I moved to New Orleans when I was 18 and quickly became obsessed with the amount of music available. I don't think you are crazy at all. I have incredible availability of music within an hour's drive to Richmond, DC, or Charlottesville. Yet I don't have the convenience of grabbing a cab, mass transit, or walking to an incredible theatre. I've seen some fantastic shows in Chicago. The Chicago Theatre and the Chicago Auditorium are two of my favorite venues. The restaurants and vibrancy of the city both add to the attraction and make that town one of my favorite vacation destinations.

Speaking of that - Knopfler ticket pre-sale for the Chicago Theatre is tomorrow at noon central time.

[Edited on 1/26/2015 by BillyBlastoff]

If you have never been to The Chicago Blues Fest in June, do yourself a favor and make plans.

They don't bring in the big names like they used to but it is still great. The main reason is financial; the city can't afford it and it is free to the public. They cut it from four days to three a few years ago.

Last big names I saw there were Johnny Winter with James Cotton. Neither could really walk and James couldn't sing but it was still neat.

Great way to spend a summer weekend. And you never know who might show up at Buddy Guy's Legends. The only time Stevie Ray played Blues Fest he went in there.

My wife and I have talked about going to that for years now. I might make it a priority this time. My sister lives up in NW Indiana and she has beena few times and said it is a great time.

[Edited on 1/27/2015 by jszfunk]

Some people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them this, but one major reason I moved from Michigan to Chicago was for the music. I can listen to live blues seven nights a week here for instance. Every major act comes through here when they tour, which isn't the case in Detroit. There are several theatres in the city where I live and you can get to them without driving. Pretty cool if you live in the city as I do.

I moved to New Orleans when I was 18 and quickly became obsessed with the amount of music available. I don't think you are crazy at all. I have incredible availability of music within an hour's drive to Richmond, DC, or Charlottesville. Yet I don't have the convenience of grabbing a cab, mass transit, or walking to an incredible theatre. I've seen some fantastic shows in Chicago. The Chicago Theatre and the Chicago Auditorium are two of my favorite venues. The restaurants and vibrancy of the city both add to the attraction and make that town one of my favorite vacation destinations.

Speaking of that - Knopfler ticket pre-sale for the Chicago Theatre is tomorrow at noon central time.

[Edited on 1/26/2015 by BillyBlastoff]

If you have never been to The Chicago Blues Fest in June, do yourself a favor and make plans.

They don't bring in the big names like they used to but it is still great. The main reason is financial; the city can't afford it and it is free to the public. They cut it from four days to three a few years ago.

Last big names I saw there were Johnny Winter with James Cotton. Neither could really walk and James couldn't sing but it was still neat.

Great way to spend a summer weekend. And you never know who might show up at Buddy Guy's Legends. The only time Stevie Ray played Blues Fest he went in there.

My wife and I have talked about going to that for years now. I might make it a priority this time. My sister lives up in NW Indiana and she has beena few times and said it is a great time.

[Edited on 1/27/2015 by jszfunk]

It is really a great time. Though you can spend a lot of money. As you probably know, there are tons of things to do here. There will probably be more than one great blues show at one of the venues. Larry McCray often plays at a club near me each year during the fest.

Mark Knopfler - Beacon Theater

US $166.00 Ticket + US $26.35 Fees = US $192.35

US $66.00 Ticket + US $15.95 Fees = US $81.95

Yep, Knopfler.

I just paid my personal, all time high for concert tickets.

I'm slightly embarrassed about it to be honest, but Knopfler has been on my "really would like to see" list for years now.

Right before shelling out for those tickets, I bought tickets for North Mississippi Allstars and Anders Osborne - $36.25 per ticket.

Now THAT is the right price !

i just paid $25 a ticket to see Soulive at Brooklyn Bowl with George Porter Jr. guesting.

I think that the $20 - $75 a ticket will be my range for some time coming.

These are shows at the 500 seat Birchmere I'll be attending:

Arlo Guthrie (50th anniversary of Alice's Restaurant) - $59.50 (Sold Out)
Stanley Clarke - $45.00
North Mississippi Allstars w/Anders Osborne - $39.50
Gaelic Storm - $35.00
Tommy Emmanuel - $49.50 (One show sold out, I've got to move if I want in on this)
Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys - $35.00
Eric Krasno, Lee Fields, Irma Thomas, Alicia Chakour... (At the Howard Theater $35.00)
Ginger Baker's Jazz Confusion - $42.50 (At the Howard)

These are the kind of shows I most often attend. I think these prices demonstrate what an excellent value Gov't Mule continues to provide. The Mark Knopfler, Stevie Wonder, and even TTB shows are an extravagance, but I'm usually going solo and find the hobby to be less expensive than golf.

At least that's what I tell the wife.

I spend $35 - $85 on Nationals and Orioles games.

$125 if I buy my neighbor's extra season ticket for the Redskins. This year I bought tickets on Stubhub for the Redskins at $29.50 for lower bowl and was given club level for 2 games.

The Redskins sucked this year.

All those shows are the Washington DC area. Richmond is comparable in price but Richmond shows come with less traffic.