What is your favorite live concert memory?

I'm old. For me it was Michael Jackson, Wembley stadium, London, 1988. A hot, humid summer night. We ended up crushed up at the front, against the barrier, with 90,000 people behind us. Safety standards that just would not be acceptable today. People were fainting around us, and they came out with hoses and paper cups of water to keep the crowd as cool as possible.

With all the weirdness surrounding MJ since, its difficult to describe the anticipation and excitement that surrounded his '87-88 world tour. That was palpable in the crowd. Up in a box behind us somewhere, Prince Charles and Diana looked on.

Then a moment I'll never forget: a rumble of bass,; a long, growling roar, and a wall of lights, inding and confusing, filling our field of view. The crowd surging, crushing us and forcing people over the barrier, but we held firm. Then an explosion of light, pyrotechnics and sound, as the drums kicked in to "Wanna be Startin Something", and out of haze and noise, there was MJ, doing his thing, a few feet away from us.

/r/LetsTalkMusic Thread