Summer Concerts by Roy Opochinski

At those prices, is it any wonder that many bands have trouble filling seats? Christina Aguilera recently canceled a scheduled tour allegedly due to troubles with her voice; however, more than a few outlets have reported that the reason for the cancellation of the tour was due to financial concerns. Most of the venues had sold no more than 40% of the available tickets.

During my formative years, I went to plenty of concerts. Lawn seats at my local shed were often available for less than $15 including service charges. You could go to shows for the opening act and not stay for the headliner and not feel cheated. You saw many bands. You discovered many bands. Bands built a following.

While the situation is undeniably dire, there are some artists out there who understand that they can still become wealthy while not fleecing their fans. The best seats for Prince’s summer tour cost less than $100 and that price includes service charges and a free copy of his new CD. Bands like Phish and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are known for their three-hour-plus shows and their tickets rarely crack the $80 mark for the best seats in the house.

And one cannot overlook the festival circuit for bargains. The Vans Warped Tour rarely cracks the $25 for a full day of punk rock goodness. General admission tickets for this year’s Lollapalooza tour, which will stop for two days in each city, will not top $50 a day, and the lineups for each day are nothing short of amazing.

There are bargains to be had out there. You just need to look. Vote with your wallets. I would love to see Madonna, but I refuse to spend more than $1000 for a show that will likely run well under two hours.

Wondering why the music industry is in trouble? Look no further than your local box office.