Concerts in the 80s

[billyboyz]

Just watching Billy Joel in concert on TV and remembering going to see him post A levels at the NEC in 1987. Happy times!
But I have zero recollection of how we bought tickets in those days. We lived miles from Birmingham so didn’t buy them at the venue. Obviously no internet etc. where could we have bought them?!
Just random Saturday night questions!

I’ve just watched him too and wondered the same thing! I saw Bruce Springsteen in 1986 in Newcastle when I was a student in Glasgow-no bloody idea how I got that ticket! 🤣

Also not really a Billy Joel fan but really enjoyed that concert on the telly!

You used to either phone up the venue, get the tickets from Our Price / HMV or get them from a local coach company that advertised tickets + transport in the paper. Happy days.

We'd buy them in the local record store.

I think you just went and queued up, I can remember that at local venues for all sorts of acts even big names. For the big venues I don’t know.

I can remember sending a letter with a postal order or cheque and an SAE, or if it was for a band I really loved, then queueing at the box office to get front row tickets. But I lived in London, so that was feasible for me.

i’m still in touch with the girls I went with and one of them remembers EVERYTHING so I’ll see if she can remember! I do remember we slept in Birmingham Airport after the concert as didn’t have anywhere else to sleep..didn’t tell our parents till afterwards but they thought it was quite sensible!

We used to have a local record shop. When I say local it was a goid bus ride away. We used to go and buy tickets. It sort of helped to build up the excitement.

Record shops in regional towns or Star Green tickets near Oxford Circus where you could check out the latest listings and get tickets. It was exciting and less stressful than online. I also remember ringing up to get Glastonbury tickets from a phone box on holiday.

I remember going to the box office of the venue to buy tickets.

I saw Michael Jackson Luther Vandross, Bobby Brown, Kajagoogoo, Five Star and more

I saw some of the Billy Joel concert too.

ETA:
I also recall phoning the box office a paying with a credit card. The tickets were posted via royal mail

I used to phone the box office. You used to have to try a few times and eventually got through. They just posted the tickets out to you. At some point a phone queuing system was started up at most venues.

God I miss those simple times, the only third party sellers were the ticket touts outside the venue on the night.

I used to get mine from a local record shop or a travel shop in the bus station that sold the ticket and travel combined. It was so much easier than online is now!

I remember the queues at the Apollo Manchester went on forever. At least in a physical queue you could actually get tickets 😂

Ironically I'm in Edinburgh as I was supposed to be seeing Billy Joel here tonight but obviously he's cancelled. Had paid for flights - and accommodation was free so we came up anyway and used the refunded ticket money to see Moulin Rouge instead.

Fortunately I saw him in 1997 and 2013 so I'm not feeling too aggrieved.

Back in the day, I think we would send a cheque to Ticketmaster or even the venue?

Star Green tickets near Oxford Circus

Yes!

We went to loads of concerts in the 80s and still do quite a few , some we sent someone to queue for tickets and others we phoned the box office . We live in the SE so it was quite easy to go queue at Wembley etc for Live Aid , Springsteen , Queen etc . I did see Billy Joel but I think it was the 90s and we weren’t impressed .

Got them by ringing the venue & ordering over the phone, I think?

What few people knew, and I only knew by knowing someone in ENTS at university, was that in the 80s venues had to keep a number of tickets back for sale on the door. Which is how I got to a large number of gigs, and had great seats, at the NEC just by turning up on the night.

Used to buy them in the tourist information office of my local city.
I vaguely remember that the upcoming bands / concerts were advertised in the window so that's how we knew who was touring and where they were playing.

Different times!

Happy memories of queueing outside local venues, sometimes overnight, to get tickets in person from the box office. Jumbo records in Leeds had tickets to everything, I think we bought Glastobury tickets from there in the 80s.
I wish it was still like this, currently having a nightmare trying to transfer tickets bought on Ticketmaster as a gift to the recipient. So much easier to hand over a paper ticket.

According to my friend we had to write off for a form and then send it back with a cheque! I knew she’d remember!

Yeah, I'd always go to the box office at Wembley arena or wherever.

In the 90s when I went to gigs, I used to get tickets from HMV or local indie record shops, occasionally I used to ring ticketmaster with my Mum's card.

I bought my Reading festival ticket from HMV, they had pads of tickets in their tills.

Loved getting actual tickets. I have them all framed on the wall in my office. Also used to get the band to sign them.

I think I wrote off for a few tickets once or phoned up the ticket box office ? I can’t remember to be honest!

Our local independent record shop used to put on tickets and a bus. Bands never played West of Cardiff so we had to travel everywhere to see anyone. First big gig was Bon Jovi at Milton Keynes Bowl. Europe Skid Row and Vixen supporting in 1989. Tickets were about £15. I was 16 bloody brilliant.
Then a mate of mine started putting on buses undercutting the record shop. Good old Simon.

It seemed fairer I think.
Hearing Scott mills last week telling people to have ‘ every tech device open ‘ at 8.30 am for radio two tickets in September seems hard work to me , plus you may need more than one person having tech on the go to get them if your after more than one ticket or whatever!