2023 - Jordin’s Year of Concerts

If you know me at all, you knew this was coming. The much deserved “year in review” of perhaps one of the more rigorous and ridiculous missions I’ve ever gone on.

This quest was really born out of me wanting to reclaim my life, my happiness, and the very essence of what had made me, me! Part of that was making it a personal mission to say yes to the things that made me happy, and taking some risks along the way - believing that the right thing would happen for me when the right thing would happen. Is it cheesy? Sure. Is it hella risky? Also sure. But I’m a Sagittarius and life is worthy of being splendidly happy.

And Remembering to Live.

Memento Vivere.

The first thing to make it back into my life had to be events. And that began with music. And a concert slate that I am including back to Halloween 2022. It spans 387 days. Over 4000 miles traveled. 10 venues. 15 Shows. Even more artists. Legends. Those blossoming. Musical Lazaruses (I made up that word). And those at their literal peaks. Some were for the first time. Some were for the dozenth. At the end of the day, even the shows that weren’t as good were all part of this magical ride. Getting to experience many of these shows with some of my best friends in the entire world? Priceless.

So as we start, some of these are in no particular order. And some are. I will call that out. I’m going to use buckets. LFG.

Tier 5 - Wouldn’t Go Again/Once Was Enough

The Strokes

This concert was underwhelming to me in every sense of the word. Probably started with me not really being a big fan, ended with the artist clearly being off the wagon and playing for under an hour. Red Rocks is always stunning and worth the trek, especially with people who are experiencing it for the first time. I did see a really good extended performance from an up and coming artist called Superfan so that was worth it.

Foo Fighters

Would I have paid to see Foo Fighters? No. Did I get to go for free while at Salesforce’s Dreamforce? Yes. They certainly bring a lot of zest to their performances, but I have always thought many of their songs sound the same. Still appreciate their passion for performing.

Dead & Co.

Seeing a concert at Folsom Field is truly special. That being said, 90% of the way through the concert I was bored. Then Dave Matthews appeared on stage like a gift from the heavens. I mean…that itself was WILD. The music that was made at that point was absolutely stunning, and worth every moment in memory. Something I will never get to see again.

Shania Twain

Was it awesome to get to see Shania and belt out some of her biggest hits, of which there are oh so many? Yes. Unfortunately, Shania is well past her prime in terms of her stamina to put on a show. I can appreciate that she is so well connected to the crowd and we were clearly willing her along throughout the night.

Tier 4 - Pleasantly Surprised/Would Go Again

Maggie Rogers

In the “never again will I get to experience this artist in this way” category, we find Maggie Rogers. I was maybe 10 feet away from her as she performed a good amount of tunes from her catalog. I hadn’t heard of her (whoops) but was reminded by many of my friends that I should have. Charming stage presence. Excellent songwriting. Unique voice. All hallmarks of my favorites yet to come on this list.

Greta van Fleet

There’s a lot of knocks on Greta. Like the age old argument that they are simply a Led Zeppelin rip off. To that, after seeing them live, I say WHO CARES. The stage presence of the entire band is absolutely electric. I couldn’t understand 95% of the songs that were being sung, but that didn’t matter. I couldn’t look away. It was fun and unexpected.

Tier 3 - A Party on Stage & in the Audience

The Head & The Heart

This was the first of six concerts I went to in a 30 day span back in July. And man, it rung it in with a bang. This was just so good. I adore this band, all 3 of the vocalists have what I like to call “main character energy”. The harmonies are sublime. A deep catalog. And a willingness to interact with the fans that goes well beyond the average. Also - wtf. How on earth did I get to see them at the tiny Fox Theatre in 2023?

Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa

I don’t know if I will ever go to another concert quite like this in my life. Unless it’s another Snoop headlined show. This was so good and so ridiculously fun, I don’t know what else to say. There was opulence at every turn. Cars. Girls. Money Guns. Green. It had it all. And all of the hits. So so so many hits. Warren G. I rest my case.

Tier 2- All Time Favorite Artistes - Exceeding the Hype

Lizzo

I don’t want to ignore the significant controversy that has followed her this year. But this concert is the concert that started them all. If not for that, I don’t think I make the series of buying tickets in advance that I did. She was so good. Engaging. It was like being at a giant dance party. On Hal-lizzo-ween. She was quite literally on top of the world in that moment. And made a 20,000 person arena feel like you were the only fan in the room (well, of course your friends too).

Nickel Creek & Monica Martin

When you buy tickets to a show mostly to see the opener, anything that happens after that is just the cherry on top. And this was an epic cherry on top. Nickel Creek was of course fantastic, but this show for me was to show my friends who Monica was. And damn, she did not disappoint. I still adore her after more than a decade of being a huge fan, and over a dozen times seeing her live, it never gets old.

Lauryn Hill & The Fugees

In as late as September, my dream artist to see living or dead was Lauryn Hill. And I often attributed her to the dead category because she just doesn’t perform. And she certainly would never play a show with the Fugees. But the musical gods spoke, and somehow absolute chaos broke loose and they played a show together. And they played two of my favorite albums live, The Score and Miseducation. Lightning in a bottle in the best way possible. Likely never to be seen again. A moment 25 and 30 years in the making.

Tier 1 - Straight Legendary

Audra McDonald

Besides the two shows I saw for free courtesy of a work trip…this concert should have costed me a lot more than it did. It was so good. She is a living GOAT. Her performance was amazing. Her voice filled the room. Her presence is warm, kind, and she loves the audience. She sang us lullabies and belted out Broadway classics. In a tear jerker moment, Pure Imagination ripped the hearts out of everyone in the theatre and she nicely put them back together throughout the rest of the night. Audra gets the crown of best live voice I have ever seen, and probably will ever see.

Beyoncé

I traveled to Chicago for this one. And dang, was it worth it. To get to see an artist like Beyoncé live when she is still close to her peak, well, you can’t pass it by. Her voice is right up there with the best live voice performances I have seen. The hits intermixed with her new album was nice. The stage and the dancers, almost unmatched. It was unfair to see her a week after Taylor Swift, but timing is timing.

Mariah Carey

The Queen of Christmas returned to take her rightful place on the thrown, and man, was it glorious. Spectacular time, and the first time I splurged for floor seats. I’d do it again. The Christmas decorations adorned the stage and dancers twirled about like sugar plum fairies. A show with choreography done by Debbie Allen, it doesn’t get much better. Oh, and she can still sang. This was the bucket list concert to end all bucket lists of concerts. The perfect blend of diva antics and whimsical sets. All on the eve of my birthday. And the end of my 1 year adventure in sound.

Taylor Swift

I am tempted to say “There are no words, just Reputation”. But that wouldn’t be fair. Once upon a time when I saw Taylor, back in 2009, she was the worst performance I had seen live. And it frankly wasn’t close. To say I was a Taylor hater would have probably been accurate. But as soon as I somehow was lucky enough to get a presale code for her Denver show, well, I had to at least dive back in to the music and properly prepare myself. Fake it till I make it. And boy, am I glad I did. A lot had changed since those times in which I decided I didn’t like her. Her genre exploration. The songs. The style. The artistry. Her. So for a brief period of time, she held the title of “Best Concert” and “Worst Concert” simultaneously (she only held both titles for a month, she finally shook worst concert in August 2023 after 14 years).

That’s right. It was not just my best concert of 2023, it’s the best concert I have been to, period. 3.5 hours of a tour de force of a concert that spanned performances from her entire career. Being lucky enough to be at a night where she played a song from Debut (Picture to Burn) as a surprise song? Even better. If I never see a better show, I am perfectly OK with that. But it excites me to think that someday I may just be lucky enough to see something that exceeds it, because dang, that would be truly special.

Perhaps more than anyone else on this list, Taylor has found a way to make herself a significantly improved performer, especially when it comes to her voice. The showmanship was always there - even when it was her at a much less polished point in her career. Now, it comes all together to make her a true Songwriting/Performing/Vocal triple threat. And I await Eras Round Two in October 2024 - New Orleans!