They just played an hour and 20 minute set ahead of Lynyrd Skynyrd here in St Louis.

quote:

Originally posted by ugeesta:
I thought 120 minutes was the norm. Anything less and I'd feel cheated.

Dave Matthews Band has been my primary show for a number of years and they play a 2 1/2 hour set.

Have seen DMB a ton of times. 1st time I saw them was in High School.
Guster (who sucks terribly opened) at 8:00 and went till 9:00. DMB played from 9:30pm to 1:30am.
They had a number of just awesome jam sessions added to some songs.
It was a great show. One of the best I have been to.

As for ZZ Top that would be about acceptable considering their age.
However saw Elton John last year and he went almost 3 hours.

Bo Diddly lasted ten minutes. It was a free concert. He was old and loaded. Died within a year. Tyrone Davis' band lasted one hour. He was on for 15 minutes and had a bad attitude. He too was dead within a year.
Smokey Robinson at 83 lasted 90 minutes.

Saw Paul McCartney in Tampa in 2017 and he played about 1.5-2 hours.

I remember reading the Beatles would run through a show in 25 minutes.

Saw Rush in 2013 for the Clockwork Angels tour. No opening band and they played 3+ hours. If I remember correctly it was Geddy Lee’s 60th birthday. One of the best concerts I’ve ever seen live.
This summer I saw Chris Stapleton and each of two openers played about 45 to an hour and Chris about 90 or more. Great show.

Last concert I attended was Guns & Roses in Louisville, November 2017. No opening act and they played for 3 hours and 45 minutes! But they did have several slow songs and cover songs where several band members took a break while Axl or Slash had extended solos.

I’ve seen AC/DC 5 times over the years (last one was in 2010) and every one of their concerts were 2-2.5 hours. But AC/DC and slow songs don’t belong in the same sentence! Their shows are always 2+ hours of fast paced, hard charging Rock N Roll. I’m exhausted after their concerts. I don’t see how Angus does it especially at his age now!

I wish I could afford to go to Power Trip Festival October 6-8 in California. Guns & Roses with Iron Maiden Friday, AC/DC with Judas Priest (JP replacing a still recovering Ozzy Osborne) Saturday, and Metallica with Tool on Sunday. Tool I have no desire to see but the other 5 bands would be right up my alley!

Saw the Eagles last November in St Louis and they played over two hours not including breaks.

Did a search of ZZ Top set lists for 2023 concerts, and they have been playing almost exact lists since April as they played at Starlight Theater August 16. The show lengths have been similar also, often 80 minutes, likely including a break.

I strongly suggest Googling recent setlists as you described. Most artists are pretty consistent over the course of a tour.

quote:

Originally posted by Aglifter:
Willie Nelson used to play until his audience collapses, if he’s having a good night.

Willie is doing 60 minute sets now, sitting down. But the man is 90 years old. I won't even live that long. The idea of being on tour at that age is insane to me. Although in his case, it's probably keeping him alive.

I think 75 minutes for ZZ Top is within reason. These guys are probably in their mid-70s now, and that's not an easy lifestyle to maintain at any age. If I'm going to see any artist who's been at it for 50+ years, I'm prepared to cut a lot of slack and usually just grateful for the chance to see them again.

You can pretty easily find setlists for any touring act now (if you want to see it ahead of time, anyway, some people don't). As well as YouTube clips of their performances if you're concerned they've lost it and aren't worth seeing anymore.

Z Z is in my top ten bands,
But the haven't been close to their best for ten years .
( in concert maybe 14)

Well my first thought was... isn't the ZZ Top band a little short themselves these days?

Billy Gibbons is 73... it's amazing arthritis or something else medical related hasn't pushed him off stage. There are a lot of 73 year olds that can't make it to the bathroom without assistance.

At his age, a 75 minute concert would be pretty good for me.

I don't think people understand what it is like to perform like that. It takes a lot of energy to make great music and on top of that the environment, moving and dancing around, stage lights in your face, sound blasting behind you, it's not like sitting in your den with your Gibson acoustic and picking some notes for the kids.

I also get the fact that most bands that last this long won't be as good as they were in their prime. But they are legends and the opportunity to see them live, even if off a bit before they are done for good would be a treat.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Saw Paul McCartney in Tampa in 2017 and he played about 1.5-2 hours.

I remember reading the Beatles would run through a show in 25 minutes.

I've read a few biographies and autobiographies on different bands in members from the Punk Rock early days, and 30-40 minute shows were apparently common, in England, not sure about the US,

never timed the shows I attended here (Black Flag, Dead Kennedies etc)

Just saw Metallica in NJ a few weeks ago. They did two concerts, one Friday and one Sunday. Both were about 2 hours each.

quote:

Originally posted by Blume9mm:
Well my first thought was... isn't the ZZ Top band a little short themselves these days?

Probably
At least an inch shorter,
It happens to old people.

I don't think it's shrinkage so much as it is settling

i saw ZZ Top in Mobile, Al, it was the last show of their 'I Wouldn't Touch Her With A Ten Foot Pole' tour (40 years ago?... what..)
no opening act, it was the last show of the tour and they played for at least 2 1/2 hours

it was great

Last show I saw was Guns and Roses in 2017. They started at 7pm on the dot and played for nearly 5 hours straight. I was apprehensive going in because I wasn't sure they would still be any good live, but it ended up being a really good show.

I expect a 1.5 ~2 hour show.
Seems it always was that at all the concerts I have attended.

quote:

Originally posted by 6guns:
I would have hoped for 90 minutes+, though I've never seen ZZ Top. Now that Dusty is gone, I think I'd pass anyway.

This is my thought. Seventy-five minutes isn't absolutely out of bounds, but it is short-ish.