The best of the best, for now, from a life full of concerts.
I keep thinking about Sade’s 2011 concert at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
It was an evening of pure elegance, performed by a master artist, and the show is even more memorable for Sade’s rarity as an artist: she hasn’t performed a single concert since her tour ended in 2011, meaning that an entire generation has now never had the chance to see her live.
I feel incredibly lucky to have been there that night, and through my work at The News I’ve been able to see hundreds of concerts that I wouldn’t have been able to attend otherwise. And I usually get to see those shows from some pretty extraordinary places.
I filed the Sade concert that night away as one of the best shows I’ve ever seen, and included it in an amorphous list I keep of concerts that stood out for some reason or another. But I never sat down and fully fleshed out that list or put it on paper.
Until now.
The criteria: There is no formula that determines what it takes to make the list. It’s really about how I felt at the concerts and the memories I associate with each show. It’s not about the setlist (but it could be), it’s not about the venue (but that makes a difference), it’s not about the precision of the performance that night (though that certainly helps), it’s about all of those factors combined, along with all sorts of additional, immeasurable factors that make a good night a Hall of Fame night.
When I decided to make this list, I wanted to limit it to 10 entries because 10 is a good, clean, round number and the ideal number for making short lists. I could have easily gone with 11 or 14 or 21, but I wanted the list to mean something and be exclusive. Not every concert is going to be one of the best nights of your life.
In the end, this list came together pretty quickly. There are a few shows that came close but didn’t quite make the cut, and those will have to settle for being incredible nights that I’ll never forget.
But these concerts are the absolute best. They are listed in no particular order, except for the last entry, which I don’t think will ever be topped, although I’m more than happy to take on the challenge on any given night.
Sade, the Palace of Auburn Hills, August 3, 2011
It was the first local concert by the British band (Sade is the name of the group and the singer) since 2001, and there hasn’t been one since. I’ve been as close to experiencing pure poetry in motion as I’ve ever been. I still talk about that night when I meet someone who was there, and I’ve found that everyone else thinks as highly of it as I do. I’m sure we’ll get another Sade show at some point: demand is too great for the band not to do a blockbuster farewell tour. But this night will be hard to top, full of breathtaking moments with a singer who seems to float slightly above the ground. I remember even being impressed by Sade’s grace. Truly an unforgettable night.
Leonard Cohen at the Fox Theater, May 9, 2009
Leonard Cohen was a spry 74 when he sprinted onto the stage at the Fox Theater as part of his first concert tour in 15 years, and it was a special pleasure just to be in the same room as his deep-sounding voice and incredible songbook. Sitting in the balcony at this concert, I was there with my father, a longtime Cohen fan known for quoting him frequently (“There’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in” from “Anthem” is his favorite quote), and it was an understated evening of grace, beauty and humor from the legendary Canadian poet, who died in 2016 at age 82.
Queens of the Stone Age in the Shelter, June 5, 2002
Sometimes the biggest concerts are the smallest. On a muggy June night in 2002, about 400 people packed into the Shelter, located beneath Saint Andrew’s Hall, to see Queens of the Stone Age, who were preparing to release Songs for the Deaf that year and were touring at the time with Dave Grohl on drums. It was dark inside and the room was so cramped that you couldn’t see much of what was happening on stage, but occasionally you could see Grohl raise his arms above his head before he came crashing back down on his drums. (I could be wrong, but I remember Mark Lanegan also singing “Song for the Dead” that night.) I’ve seen QOTSA several times since then, but never better than this time. A hot show in more ways than one.
Big Sean at the Palace, December 1, 2012
The night was a triumph for the Detroit rapper, his first major arena concert in his hometown, and featured a host of special guests including Mike Posner, J. Cole, Common, Pusha T and Kanye West, whose surprise appearance late in the night sparked a sudden rush to the dance floor like I’d never seen before. The cameos were the cherry on top of a night that marked Big Sean’s rise through the ranks in the city, and he was so overwhelmed onstage that he couldn’t hold back his tears. It was a night that made everyone in the building feel like they were part of something special.
Daft Punk at Lollapalooza (Chicago), August 3, 2007
The robots took the stage on the first night of the 2007 Lollapalooza festival – LCD Soundsystem played “Daft Punk is Playing in My House” right in front of them across the field, making it a perfect introduction – and they stunned people with their pyramid stage, dazzling production elements and robotic theatrics. To date, this was their third-to-last concert in America, which nobody knew at the time, but only made the show even more legendary in the minds of those who were there. Long live the robots!
Kanye West and Jay-Z, the Palace, November 26, 2011
Two masters at the peak of their powers. The duo’s collaborative album, Watch the Throne, had been released just three months earlier, and the rap superstars performed their collaborative songs and their own material to an enthusiastic crowd on the Saturday night after Thanksgiving. I remember Kanye watching Jay perform on stage at one point, and he seemed like a fan, like the rest of us. The production elements were incredible – I remember them both standing on giant pillars with LED screens, one of which projected images of a shark swimming in deep blue water – and they ended their nearly 40-song set with a then-record seven reprises of “Paris.”
Hole at the State Theater, May 26, 1999
Hole and Marilyn Manson (performing Celebrity Skin and Mechanical Animals, respectively) were scheduled to tour together in 1999, but that didn’t go so well and the outing was canceled long before arriving at the Palace. So Hole hit the road on their own, playing smaller venues, including this stop at Detroit’s State Theater (now the Fillmore), which featured a couple of cheeky Madonna covers (snippets of “Holiday” and “Express Yourself”) and a rendition of the Temptations’ “Get Ready” that gave me a whole new appreciation for the song. Courtney Love eventually made it onto one of the knight statues on the sides of the stage, and the glitter falling from the ceiling during “Dying” is a moment I still think about whenever I’m in the building. A lovely evening.
Nine Inch Nails at Pine Knob, September 2, 1994
I was in 11th grade when I drove to Pine Knob with some friends to see Nine Inch Nails (Hole and Marilyn Manson were opening), and we weren’t prepared for the sheer intensity of Trent Reznor’s live performance. Keyboards were smashed, bodies were thrown through instruments, and the shots of nature, explosions, and decaying animals shown on the giant cheesecloth curtain above the stage during “Hurt” were beautifully haunting. I liked Nine Inch Nails before the show, and I’ve loved the band ever since.
Taylor Swift at Ford Field, March 9-10 June 2023
When Taylor Swift took over Detroit for two nights in 2023, the energy was so electric that it took me several days to come down from the high. I can’t remember ever being in a crowd so enthusiastic or so genuinely in love with an artist so much. I’ve seen plenty of boy bands, girl bands, and teen pop idols, but nothing compared to the excitement experienced in the 60,000-strong crowd at the Eras Tour. That Swift nailed every facet of her performance seemed almost secondary; the stars of this show were the fans, and Ford Field (not to mention the downtown streets surrounding the venue) pulsed long before and long after Swift took the stage. It was phenomenal.
Smashing Pumpkins at the State Theater, June 30, 1996
My personal favorite concert of all time, and I can’t imagine it will ever be topped. The short version: The Smashing Pumpkins were touring in support of “Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness,” their massive 1995 double album, and were the biggest band in the world at the time. They booked two nights at the Palace, but the second night didn’t sell out so well, so the show was moved to the much smaller State Theater. Massive band, smaller space? You know the rest. The Smashing Pumpkins were and somehow always will be my favorite band (any Pumpkins fan knows the complications that entails), but this concert was epic in every way imaginable, right down to the three encores and the closing version of “Silverf—,” which was advertised (with warning?) as being 45 minutes long and, at least in my memory, lasted every glorious second.
