Aleck
5603
I love that the quote re: gas and concert tickets comes from a 63 year old retired handyman living in Livermore, CA – one of the most expensive areas of the country to live in (according to Wikipedia, it’s the third wealthiest mid-sized city in the country). I suspect that the quote it, shall we say, not especially representative.
Which isn’t to say that gas isn’t five bucks in Livermore, but gas is always expensive in CA (relative to the rest of the country) and especially expensive in the Bay Area (relative to the rest of CA).
They corrected the $90 bottle of wine story, and now it’s a $12 burrito story:
Alstein
5606
We shouldn’t be pooh-poohing , but this guy’s wealth makes it hard not to.
Menzo
5607
Burritos have been $12 in California for years. News flash! California is expensive as fuck.
ShivaX
5608
“Average American” now means “average for a well-off person in California who is buying overly expensive shit.”
It’s like the CNBC graphics levels of disconnection.
Menzo
5609
Seriously. “After I spend $100 on a concert it’s hard to make ends meet when I also have to pay $12 for a burrito at a restaurant!”
RichVR
5610
Do you have any idea how many gallons of milk that could purchase?
The McRib I had the other day was $4.89 , when Trump was president they were $3.99 , thanks Obama Biden.
;)
Menzo
5613
Now shit’s gettin real.
And yes, it means both things.
Matt_W
5615
I find very little objectionable in the actual article. They accurately quote average gas prices in the U.S. and California and link to the BLS statistics that show CPI is at 6.2% annual inflation. Restaurant prices are higher this year than they were last, partly I’m sure because they’re recovering lost income from the pandemic. Gas prices in California hover around $5/gallon. And it’s not at all unusual to spend $100 on a concert ticket for a mid-tier band. The quote by the retired dude is pretty content-less, but I’m sure it accurately reflects his experience: “I can’t keep spending $100 on concert tickets” is something I would say too.
Maybe I’m way out of touch but how many concerts does the average person go to a year? I mean, if there’s one piece of discretionary spending that I’m OK with cutting back on it’s probably concert tickets. I guess I’m an old geezer but to me it felt like counter tickets have been way too expensive for years.
Alstein
5617
1/4th of the ticket cost goes to ticketmaster as well, and that’s a company I’d love to see go under.
Before I had a kid, I went to concerts somewhat frequently, but kid plus Covid put the kibosh on that.
ShivaX
5619
Maybe one? And that was when I was younger and went to every one that came near me.
Maybe it’s an issue if you live in a big city that has shows you want to see constantly, but even then your rent is a way bigger issue and always has been.
Pretty sure ticket prices are pretty independent of just about anything anyway. If you’re a big name band you can ask big money. If you aren’t you can ask it but no one will pay it.
RichVR
5620
In the 70s and 80s I would go to between six and ten concerts a year. Tull, Zappa, Queen, Hot Tuna, Aerosmith, Devo, Metallica, more Queen, more Zappa.
And there were drugs. You might have heard about this. :)
Thrag
5621
My 20s were the 90s and I went to a lot of concerts. A lot. Everything from big stadiums to basement bars to the symphony. Used to frequent the Grog Shop back in Cleveland to see both up and coming and down and going nowhere bands, not exactly an expensive cover charge. Maybe $10-$12 for a band with some recognition back then. Checking their site today $10-12 online tickets for a weak night up to $28-$30 for a strong weekend line up. Frankly not bad given the 30 year difference.
You don’t pay >$100 to see live music unless you want to see some huge famous act. Nobody is forcing the average American family to see the Eagles Nth farewell tour.
(I did buy a whole sheet of acid in the parking log of Dead show once. It was an interesting summer. I don’t fully remember but I think I got it for <$100. In fact the number $60 is kinda standing out in the back of my mind, all wiggly and breathing)
Edit: I should also mention the Grog Shop I frequented was a hole in the wall in an almost literal sense, the venue moved to a much larger far better location just up the street around the turn of the millennium. So given that the price increase is really nothing for 30 years.
I averaged two concerts a month from 2016-2019, and was prepping for more in 2020 until, well, you know. About one a month through college in 05-09. Only a few per year in the early 10s cuz I didn’t realize how many great shows hit Raleigh / Charlotte / Richmond.
Most of my shows are $10-30. Might see a $50 show per year on the very high end.
I’d love to be able to say I remember those days well, but…
