From Bitterness To Gratitude

[hesperides23]

Two hundred and fifty dollars for good seats. Seventy dollars for the cheapest seat in the theater, rear balcony. Give me a goddamn break. I mean, if you are really that greedy, or financially bad off (yeah, I know Leonard got ripped off by his manager or some shit, and he needs to recoup his losses), then go ahead and charge a fucking arm and a leg for front-of-house or floor seats, but at least stagger the ticket prices so POOR FANS who love your work can afford to go see you perform. I'd have coughed up the money (i.e. put it on my credit card which I can't afford to make the minimum payment on since losing my job and trying to survive on $452 a month unemployment benefits) for a $25 seat in the back of the theater just for my last opportunity to see this legendary artist give a great show. But I have to draw the line somewhere. A few years ago I cried and complained when Iggy and the Stooges charged $45 for tickets and I refused to pay it... but this is beyond ridiculous. AND THEN if you add on the exorbitant 'service fees' that Ticketmaster charges, you'd probably end up paying closer to $80 or $90 for that $70 ticket. NO. I will go illegally download a bunch of Leonard Cohen albums off the internet and stay home and listen to them instead of going to this concert.

Okay people, let the hate mail fly now, before the moderator hits the delete button.

[Pomona]

Charming.

[leonardmtl]

An aristocrat!!

[mwaldman]

Sad to see someone so consumed with anger and hate.

[Actually]

A German band once had a song with the lyrics Du musst deinen Selbsthass nicht auf andere projizieren, which would be something like You don't have to project your self-hatred onto others

[Myra]

It fucking sucks when you want something soooooo bad and you can't have it.
It sucks even more when you have no control over it. $452 dollars is not enough to live. It's not fair, it's not right, it's not your fault and it's not Mr. Cohens, it's just the current shitty reality and it blows. It's total bullshit to be honest $452 dollars - Christ
I know that you don't want to hear any Pollyanna bullshit right now - but the fact is things will get better and maybe you won't get to see Leonard Cohen - but in the grand fucking scheme of things - what the hell does that matter.

I hope your luck turns around sooner then later and I'm sorry that right now it doesn't look like you'll be able to go to the concert.

[vern.silver]

Well, I guess its all in your point of view.

I live in a community which is hundreds of kilometers from any venue that he is playing. If the tickets were free it would still cost me a considerable sum to see him. If you happen to live in a community where he is playing and you had to pay $250 for a ticket, at least you'll see him - I view this as a bargain. On top of that $250, for me, will be transportation costs, hotels, meals, etc (about $1500 for the Beacon concert not including tickets.)

If you decide that your limit is $45 then you must resign yourself to the fact that you will not be going to his concert or to anyone elses. All of the concerts have been sold out, so the marketplace obviously can bear these prices regardless of all the complaining that is going on.

You make a choice and you live with it. It is your choice, and if your anger makes you feel better, then good for you.

I myself have made the choice of sacrificing several things so that I will have the joy and pleasure of seeing Leonard in concert in what will likely be his final tour. And if it continues into next year I will make more sacrifices and see him again.

Vern

[blue_94_trooper]

If you're only getting $452/mo in unemployment benefits what were you making before? I'd hazard a guess you couldn't afford this show even if you still had your job.

Instant sell-outs prove these shows weren't overpriced (btw - it's still a free market economy).


Where do I go to cry about not being able to afford a vacation home on my current unemployment payments?

[hesperides23]

Yep, you're right. It's all in one's perspective, or point of view. Which has a lot to do with one's circumstances of fortune and practical necessities. Four years ago, I paid $75 for a ticket to see Dead Can Dance play at the very same venue LC is playing at in Oakland CA, the beautiful Paramount Theater. At the time, I was working a full-time job earning $16 an hour (far from a six-figure annual income here in the US, but enough for me to live comfortably), and although I thought $75 was a lot of money (I'm old enough to remember paying under $7 to see Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Lou Reed, Bowie, or pretty much any major jazz or rock star in the 70s, when $4-$7 was the going rate for concert tickets), I paid it without complaint because DCD is one of my favorite bands, and the concert as it happened was well worth it. But that $75 (including the $10 service fee) bought me one of the best seats in the house, in the front orchestra section, left center. The idea of paying the same or more to sit in the back where I would have to have binoculars to see the faces of the performers, plus the fact that I would likely have to sell my personal belongings on eBay to help pay for my ticket (which I am doing at this point anyway, not to pay for a concert ticket but to raise enough money that I'll be able to make my credit card minimum payment next month, and my utility bills)... these considerations led me to make the choice to miss out on my last chance to ever see LC perform in concert. And I said to myself in consolation, as someone else opined, 'what does it really matter in the grand scheme of things if I go see Leonard Cohen or not?' And it does help to vent my anger, somewhat. Self-loathing? Sure, I've got no shortage of that. I'll be discussing that with my therapist tomorrow, most likely.

Perspective, and point of view. I recently paid $15 to buy an advance ticket to see Bohren und der Club of Gore when they come to San Francisco next month. They're coming out all the way from Germany and I doubt they'll be making much money on this tour since they're only playing a handful of US dates. But I'll be seeing them in a small club where I can make eye contact with the performers, and while this band isn't in the same league as LC, I'll enjoy that more than sitting in the back of a huge auditorium witnessing a legend.

Yes, I am bitter, and spiteful. And if anyone wants to provide some persuasive justification for the OUT-BLOODY-RAGEOUS ticket prices that LC and other big-name pop stars are gouging their fans with (never mind the ticket agencies and the fucking scalpers), I'm all ears.

[blue_94_trooper]

I'll be discussing that with my therapist tomorrow, most likely.

How are you affording that?

[hesperides23]

I'll be discussing that with my therapist tomorrow, most likely.

How are you affording that?

I live in San Francisco, where we have publicly funded free/sliding scale mental health care for low-income, homeless and disabled residents. Thank heaven for the "free market economy" and the welfare state!

BTW, I know what you all must be thinking: If you were going to rock concerts in the 1970s, you must be 50-something at this point. How come you're not all cushy and comfortable, with a nice corporate career and a home in the burbs with a two-car garage and a 401K and all the comforts live has to offer, like the rest of us middle-aged boomers? What are you, some kind of fuckup?...

Mea culpa.

[jarkko]

Marie and I have posted some comments on the ticket issue in a new thread at viewtopic.php?f=32&t=14031

[Greg Ross]

My friend, I'm really sorry that things are not going well for you financially - it would be silly to pretend they're going to get better any time soon and I understand your initial anger at the ticket prices, however as some have already said, it's not the fault of any one particular person - the cost of touring any band is astronomical - just have a look at how much it costs you to live in your place each day, let alone travelling around.

Here in Perth (Western Australia), my friends and I paid $205.00 per ticket, a lot of money, but without doubt, it was the greatest concert we've ever been to, so much so that I'm coming over to see the Red Rocks concert. Most music acts are on stage for about an hour and a half, Leonard Cohen is on for THREE HOURS - twice that of any other band / act I've seen.

it also bears mentioning that Leonard and his management donated around $200,000 (from memory), to the Victorian Bush Fires Appeal - the fires were sweeping through towns outside of Melbourne just before he gave his last concert there. He won enormous respect from Australians everywhere for the magnificent gesture.

None of this will ease your burden, but I hope it will help you see things from a slightly different perspective, be well my friend.
All Good Things
Greg

[hesperides23]

...I understand your initial anger at the ticket prices, however as some have already said, it's not the fault of any one particular person - the cost of touring any band is astronomical - just have a look at how much it costs you to live in your place each day, let alone travelling around.

Here in Perth (Western Australia), my friends and I paid $205.00 per ticket, a lot of money, but without doubt, it was the greatest concert we've ever been to, so much so that I'm coming over to see the Red Rocks concert. Most music acts are on stage for about an hour and a half, Leonard Cohen is on for THREE HOURS - twice that of any other band / act I've seen.

it also bears mentioning that Leonard and his management donated around $200,000 (from memory), to the Victorian Bush Fires Appeal - the fires were sweeping through towns outside of Melbourne just before he gave his last concert there. He won enormous respect from Australians everywhere for the magnificent gesture.

None of this will ease your burden, but I hope it will help you see things from a slightly different perspective, be well my friend.
All Good Things
Greg

All good points, Greg, thanks for mentioning these aspects.

It used to be rock & roll or "popular music" concerts were priced so 'the masses' (including anyone with a minimum-wage job) could afford to go to them. Nowadays, it's gotten like the opera or the ballet - you've gotta be fairly well-heeled (or willing and able to make personal financial sacrifices) if you want to attend. If this Leonard Cohen tour had happened four years ago when I wasn't in such a state of terminal unemployment and relative poverty (or even four months ago, when I was working a steady job and making enough money to cover my basic living expenses with a little bit left over), I'd have paid for my tickets, grumbled a bit and enjoyed the show. My only hope at this point is if one of my local radio stations might have some tickets to give away in the next few weeks (unlikely given the fact the shows are sold out) and I could get lucky. I saw a great performance by John Zorn's Masada String Trio last night, $50 tickets I received for free thanks to a KPFA on-air giveaway...

[Walsh75]

With all due respect, for ppl complaining about the ticket prices, outside of the VIP seat, the "regular priced" tickets are the going rate for concerts. $250 for main floor is usually the norm.

Again, I've said in other posts, when I went to see Van Morrison at The Fox in Detroit last year, his main floor went for $300, but if you wanted VIP, those cost you $100 extra. Still nowhere close to Cohen's $550 and you could by them single (as I did, going alone) But FYI, Morrison only played his standard 90 mins. for those prices.

I can only speak for concerts that have come to my area this last decade. The only quick sell outs (aside from Cohen here now) in Detroit have been Miley Cyrus and The Jonas Brothers. They played at the near by Joe Louis Arena a couple years ago. It seemed like most of those tickets sold out in pre-sale with a passcode you had to get from some Disney website. On the day of the regular sale, I tried getting some tickets for my uncle and his kid. Not even a chance.

Dont know how it is around the rest of the country but a LC song has NEVER aired on Detroit radio in my lifetime. When I talk about him to most ppl of various ages their reply is "Who? Never heard of him"...I would have never dreamed he had this much following to sell out so quick among city goers. Maybe it's ppl coming from out of town or we're still not getting the full story.

I'm sure managers never lie. Right? That will be up to the Attorney General to investigate and decide. IF the office does anything at all since the RIAA is a big supporter of the Obama Admininstration.