For the sake of a friend who was celebrating their birthday I agreed to go to a Madonna gig and pay for my own ticket. Despite anything else it promised to be a good show (and I quite liked some of her material circa Ray of Light). We were travelling to get there so we arranged a hotel for after the gig, train to get there and back, etc.

We turn up at the venue and it turns out our tickets were for the previous night.

A few years ago 2 colleagues of mine went to see John Mayall at a local venue.

The following day, they expressed their disappointment at the shortness of the gig but said that Mayall was not wearing well for his age. Having retired to a local hostelry following the show, one of them got chatting to a few people who had been at the gig and had arrived at the same hostelry after them. My colleague expressed his disappointment that Mayall had not played any songs from the "Blues from Laurel Canyon" album and subsequently got into an argument with one of the other people in the bar who claimed that he had played at least 3 or 4 of those songs.

Later that day I met another friend who told me he had been at the gig and I passed on the views of my colleagues on both the length of the gig and the material played. This person reached the following conclusion:

My colleagues had left the gig after the support act and co-headliner, Stan Webb's Chicken Stack !

I took great pleasure in informing both parties that, having paid £50.00 to see John Mayall, they had not in fact actually seen him. The pair were rather embarrassed by the whole event but did comment that, at the time, it had seemed unusual that Mayall would close his set with a "cover" of "I would rather go blind"

Went with a couple of work colleagues to see Cowboy Junkies at the Union Chapel last year. My (then new) boss confessed afterwards that he'd been expecting the music of Fairground Attraction. Don't ask me how.

I have always wondered how much the name "Cowboy Junkies" may have detracted from a possible enlarged audience. The name might lead one to expect gothic stoners, playing hardcore noise: the reality could be no further.
Similar thoughts about 10,000 Maniacs, who sound as if they are an L.A. ska-punk band.
Trades description?
Whilst we're at it, in the throng of "The" bands redolent over past years, how fare those who don't fit the average indie expectations, the Thrills, the Thorns and the "somethingorothers" (help me here, folkish first track on a coverdisc 2 or 3 months ago)? As an example, if I could remember their name, I might have bought some further product, rather than having to recall yet another "the" name from the ether......

different but worth telling (I think!) Myself and a mate bought tickets to see the reformed Janes Addiction at a gig in London a few yers ago. I decided to travel over from Ireland a few days before him so that I could get a bass lesson from a prominent jazz bassist (it's hard to find good teachers in Ireland, and it was paid for by college!).
So, I had my lesson, saw some jazz gigs, bought some cds and got excited about seeing the Janes! The night before the gig I decided to check that my ticket was there....no luck!! I searched everywhere, started to panic and then phoned my girlfriend. She went to my flat and, with my flatmate, proceeded to tear the place apart! No ticket!
The day of the gig I tried in vain to get tickets so I ended up, on the night of the gig, in Tower Records trying to cheer myself up by buying loads of cds while my mate went to "one of the best gigs I've ever seen"!

However, it doesn't end there! One night, a few weeks later, I was at home and decided to read a book I had purchased before I went to London. I opened it up and, yes you've guessed it, my Janes Addiction ticket fell out! The name of the book? "Don't Sweat The Small Stuff"!! Proof that there is a God and he/she/it(!) does take the piss!!

Years ago I went to see Emmylou Harris. Two friends - one a long time fan, the other not noticeably so but keen enough to pay the then hefty £20 for a ticket - came along. About 4 songs in the second friend leaned across and said sadly "She's not Stevie Nicks is she?"

I was young and foolish ended up at a Sawdoctors gig thinking it was the levelers ( yeah i know I did say I was young and foolish) my friend was even more perplexed as they thought it was the oging to be The spin doctors.....

A friend was rather surprised at Birmingham Town Hall in the late 70's to find a very elderly couple sitting next to him. They left very quickly. I'm not sure if this was during the support or main act. However it seems they had purchased tickets for Alberto Y Lost Trios Paranoias expecting to see a flamenco act.

No, but my parents often tell the story of how they went to see Some Like It Cool, expecting a sequel to the Wilder/Curtis/Lemmon/Monroe comedy. It was a film about naturists.

once told me about the time she went to the town and country club in the early 90s to see a band that turned out to be Sonic Youth. My ex was most disappointed as the band took the stage. She was expecting a bunch of black schoolboys to come on and start singing "Pass The Dutchie"

Doh! She thought she was going to see Musical Youth!

This is a true story by the way. Honest!

has been marked by regular cries from the audience of "Get on with it and play 'You've Got A Friend'!"

was often the cry from the crowd at Ryan Adams gigs.

I think originally it was a case of mistaken identity, but beause Ryan got so pissed off about it folks would shout it out just to wind him up.