'Ageing Rockers' who've still got it...

[ClaRK! Kent]

Yeah.

So, last night I caught Ray Davies and his band live in Brighton, thanks to a friend who accidentally double-ordered tickets on the interweb, and I've got to say it was fucking amazing. The man was onstage for nearly 3 hours all told, and apart from a lot of stuff from his recent solo album Other People's Lives (which is damn good and well worth a look) and some unreleased new stuff, he basically played every Kinks hit you can think of. I mean all of them. Even the ones you don't know that well, really. The band were tip-top, in great form, and Ray himself was probably the best live act I've seen in a good few years. I guess it may be the nostalgia factor, but seeing All Day and All of the Night live sent the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end for about half an hour. Not to mention that the man holds an audience in the palm of his hand effortlessly, and his rock'n'roll anecdotes are fucking hilarious.

"I wrote this song last time I was in America. I got shot. It's about getting shot."

Anyway, all of this has gotten me thinking about just which of the 'ageing rockers' still have it, either live or in the studio. So yeah, share your opinions, live experiences, disappointments, and those which exceeded your expectations or whatever.

[METALMAN]

If his recent live albums and DVD's are anything to go by, Paul McCartney is still phenomenal. His most recent album was a good listen too, and I think there's another coming out soon.

Manic Street Preachers also released a wonderful album recently.

Morrissey, Bob Dylan and Sting(lute album not withstanding) have all had credible releases recently too. Then there's David Bowie, James Taylor, Prince...

There's still quite a lot of older artists releasing quality music.

EDIT: There's The Who and The Rolling Stones too. Although I'm not a huge fan of the latter, they've both done well to be able to headline major festivals after forty years together.

Edited May 27, 2007 by metalman

[ClaRK! Kent]

The Stones? Last time I saw them, they were too busy worrying about the giant inflatable lips and stuff to actually play any songs.

Dylan's great when he's on form, although half of the times I've seen him he's been basically going through the motions and having the band carry him to an average night, which isn't what you want out of the coolest man in rock. Davies' live show far outstripped the last couple of times I've seen Bob, which really pains me to admit as everybody knows what a massive hard-on I have for the guy at the worst of times.

Me and my dad saw Roger Waters live last year, he was really good actually. Much better than Pink Floyd's cacker-than-cack reunion thing at Live8 a couple of years back. That was just silly.

[Number of the Breast]

I can't say enough good things about how fantastic Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Alice Cooper, Whitesnake, Thunder and the Scorpions are live. Seriously, they just have something that the majority of 'young' bands don't, it's hard to say what it is really. I guess in a lot of cases, music is like a fine whisky - just gets better with age. I say that as a musician and an alcoholic

EDIT: Velvet Revolver and Dio too.

Edited May 27, 2007 by Charlie Pace

[The Sultan of Swank]

Maiden. They can still go. Period.

[Skummy]

Tom Waits says "Hello, I'm better than everyone you just mentioned".

And Grinderman's performance on Jools Holland proves that Nick Cave still has "it", as if there were any doubt.

[mikevandam]

Maiden. They can still go. Period.

[Skummy]

Oh, and Motörhead are like a fine wine; quite good.

[tristy]

He may not be 100 like Mick Jager, but at 42, Trent Reznor can still go with the best of 'em.

[GhostMachine]

Sephiroth Clone, one question about the Ray Davies concert:

Did he do "Come Dancing"? That's one of the first Kinks songs I ever heard, and still one of my favorites.

As for aging rockers, Eric Clapton may be doing more bluesy stuff than actual rock, but he still kicks all kinds of ass on the guitar.

[ROC]

From what I've heard of the new Rush CD, goddamn can they still rock the shit out.

[gunnar hendershow]

James Brown could go up until the day he died.

[ClaRK! Kent]

Sephiroth Clone, one question about the Ray Davies concert:

Did he do "Come Dancing"? That's one of the first Kinks songs I ever heard, and still one of my favorites.