15 Epic Stories Behind These Huge Bands’ Final Gigs

Did your favourite classic band go out in a blaze of glory or a ball of flames? We look at some off the most memorable final shows ever, from Nirvana to the Sex Pistols.

1
Nirvana

March 1 1994, Terminal 1, Munich

March 1 1994, Terminal 1, Munich A month before his suicide, Kurt was ill with bronchitis and laryngitis – being honest, you can hear it in his knackered vocals – but played on despite doctors’ orders. The gig was reportedly a bit of disaster, dogged with sound issues, and Nirvana at the end of their tether.

2
The Beatles

30 January 1969, Apple Corps Ltd, London

30 January 1969, Apple Corps Ltd, London It’s been parodied by The Simpsons, a sure sign of The Beatles’ final gig’s place in pop culture history. A rooftop performance above their Apple Corps HQ on London’s Savile Row, the show was closed down by the police.

3
Led Zeppelin

7 July 1980, Eissporthalle, Berlin Led Zeppelin were in danger of being eclipsed by punk and new wave, so stripped back the stage theatrics to be more in-keeping with the zeitgeist, the tour fittingly named ‘Cut The Waffle’. It was the final time the original members played together, drummer John Bonham dying just a few months later.

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4
LCD Soundsystem

April 2, 2011, Madison Square Garden, New York This massive celebration of LCD Soundsystem’s career, captured in the live DVD ‘Shut Up And Play The Hits!’, sold out in just 15 seconds. With Arcade Fire turning up to sing backing vocals on ‘North American Scum’, the three-and-a-half-hour show was a fittingly extravagant send-off. Of course, they’ve now reunited.

5
Oasis

22 August 2009, Weston Park, Staffordshire Oasis’ Noel and Liam weren’t on great terms (illustrated by the fact Noel quit the following night) but ploughed through this show for the ‘Dig Out Your Soul’ tour, which Liam brought to a close by saying, “You’ve been biblical and we’re out of here. I am the fucking walrus”, before the band played the old Beatles favourite.

6
Joy Division

May 2, 1980, Birmingham University, Birmingham Bassist Peter Hook has since commented that Joy Division’s final gig was a “grim affair”, as Ian Curtis’ epileptic seizures were worsening. Curtis, who committed suicide just two weeks later, reportedly stumbled off the stage at one point.

7
Manic Street Preachers (Richey Edwards)

21 December, Astoria, London Singer James Dean Bradfield attempted to lighten to mood at this pre-Christmas show – the Manic Street Preachers’ last with Richie Edwards before his disappearance – by wearing a Santa hat and having the band perform ‘Last Christmas’ by Wham!. Richie was having none of it and smashed up his guitar (the band joined in and destroyed £8,000 worth of kit).

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8
The Smiths

12 December 1986, Astoria, London Part of the Artists Against Apartheid benefit, this show saw The Smiths play material from the album ‘Strangeways, Here We Come’ – which they were working on at the time – for the first time ever. The question of a reunion tour persist but Morrissey has ruled it out time and time – and time – again.

9
David Bowie (Ziggy Stardust)

July 3 1973, Hammersmith Odeon Theatre, London

July 3 1973, Hammersmith Odeon Theatre, London After playing a blistering set that concluded – fitting – with ‘Rock’N’Roll Suicide’, David Bowie casually remarked: “This show will stay the longest in our memories. Not just because it is the end of the tour, but because it is the last show we’ll ever do.” Ziggy Stardust was officially dead, but Bowie marched confidently into the future.

10
Grateful Dead (Jerry Garcia)

July 5 2015, Soldier Field, Chicago Grateful Dead singer and songwriter Jerry Garcia’s final 1995 show with the all-American psych-rock group was sadly was blighted with sound issues. But the story has a happy ending: the band paid tribute to him by rounding off a triumphant trio of reunion shows at the same venue 20 years later.

11
The Doors

December 12 1970, Warehouse, New Orleans LA rockers The Doors were pretty burnt out at this stage. Suffering from dependence on booze and drugs at the time, singer Jim Morrison was in bad shape and threw down the mic stand after playing ‘Light My Fire’, storming off.

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12
Pavement

November 20 1999, Brixton Academy, London Pavement bowed out (for the first time) in style with singer Stephen Malkmus playing guitar behind his head while shaking his arse at the crowd. Quite impressive and the set list wasn’t band either – they played fantastically catchy songs ‘Cut Your Hair’, ‘Harness Your Hopes’ and ‘Shady Lane’ in a row.

13
Queen

August 9 1986, Knebworth Park, Knebtworth Headlining the Knebworth Park festival, Queen rocked out in front of 120,000 fans, indulging them in a two-hour greatest hits show. Unfortunately, after the concert, the lack of lighting in the field was so bad that there were reports of fans taking hours to find their way out.

14
Beastie Boys

June 12 2009, Great Stage Park, Manchester, Tennessee

June 12 2009, Great Stage Park, Manchester, Tennessee New York hip-hop trio Beastie Boys gave a buoyant, well-received received show at Bonnaroo festival, despite Adam ‘MCA Yauch being ill with cancer at the time (though fans didn’t find out until later). He sadly died in 2012 and, looking back, it’s touching to see how energetic and impassioned he is, grinning to the band’s goofy lyrics.

15
Sex Pistols

January 14 1978, Winterland, San Francisco ‘Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?’ Those were Johnny Rotten’s words at the end of the Pistols’ final show of their first and last American tour, which by all accounts was a disaster, as the band were in disarray. But it’s not all bad: The phrase has gone down in rock’roll history (and they did reform in the 1990s and 2000s).

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