BUYING TICKETS THE OLD WAY....NOSTALGIA?

[giovanni]

Today I had to buy some tickets for some friends of mine...

I went to a ticket seller nearby...

Walked in knowing what I wanted to buy...

Approached the ticket seller...

Asked for THE POLICE tickets...

Four...

Got my wallet out and paid...

Got the tickets in my hand...and read THE POLICE LIVE IN CONCERT!


My friends, call me old fashioned, call me whatever you like, but this 'old-fashioned-way' to buy tickets is such a charming and joyful act that brought me back to when I used to buy them years ago...

I have nothing at all against internet policies, and I'm glad is exists now; I remember when I had to do tons of phone calls (and spend ££$$) to reach someone on the other line to get tickets to see shows somewhere around the world; now if I want to see the band in Tokyo I just have to take care about what time to connect and have my credit card ready...as easy as that!
And thank God we have a fanclub then we have no problems about getting easy availability....

Said that...it doesn't change my mind, or my feelings about buying a ticket this 'old-fashioned-way' of mine...I was not anymore used to it...I felt like a little child buying candies alone for the first time.

Giovanni
(a Warrior from the Planet of Love)

[Mrs. Gradenko]

How was the line? Did you have to get there really early? How are your seats?

[giovanni]

No, no lines... I went there by 2pm, but they said many people went there this morning.
I got lawn.

[samburusunset]

In the "old days" the ticket outlets were located in department stores. So, of course you had to wait until the store opened. People would begin lining up early, sometimes the night before, and they'd sign a list. You'd make new friends as you tried to wait patiently. Someone would always say that the lady running the ticket machine would spend the first half hour grabbing the best seats for her family and friends. We were at her mercy. {I guess it was an urban legend similar to everyone in the Baltimore area being positive Frank Zappa had gone to their high school.} I vividly remember dashing through empty department stores as soon as the doors opened. We'd fly up escalators and snake around the aisles until we got to the customer service counter where the ticket station was. We'd wait anxiously as the lady would tell us what seats were available and we'd look at the little laminated seating chart to decide if they were OK. Then we paid with a twenty dollar bill and got change back!!! Success!!

Those were the days.

[mardee]

I remember buying my first set of tickets this way. Those were great memories. Not to mention, not having to worry the tickets got lost in the mail, or that your computer will crash at the wrong time. I agree Gio, old- fashioned is the way to go.

[conroy]

I agree, I still prefer the old fashioned method and still use it whenever I can. I walk by a ticketmaster outlet on a almost daily basis and have used it many times. And I still love going to low-key shows, even world famous venues like the 9:30 club in DC or the Birchmere in Alexandria, and buying my tickets at the door on the same night as the show I'm going to see.

[Mrs. Gradenko]

When I was a kid I thought it would be really fun to camp out with my friends in front of a ticket station, to get the best seats... I think that's just something a child would think. Sleeping in a comfortable bed and waking up just intime to buy tickets on Ticketmaster is so much better.

[DirtyMartini]

Sounds so quaint, Gio.

The New System really is a double-edged sword. I appreciate the fact that I now have access to tickets all over the world. But at the same time, there was a certain amount of fairness that you could rely on back in the day that has been lost.

Yeah, you knew that most of the first couple of rows would go to the radio stations. (Bastards.) And you always had to be extra-extra-nice to the ticket-counter-person. (So glad to hear it was a universal fear, Sunset!) But you also knew that if you were willing to get up uber-early and sit outside in the freezing cold/boiling hot, you'd have a fair shot at a really good seat. At some locations, you'd even have a cash-only line. No electronic ticket brokers; no blocked connections or pages timing out; no "searching the system" timer that goes up instead of down. Not a practical situation for anyone with a job or responsibilities certainly, so I guess that system favored the young -- but damn it, if you really wanted a primo seat, boy howdy, you earned it.

Plus, some of my best memories are of waking up at 4 am, packing the car with blankets and food, and camping out with a friend at a ticket window. Met some really cool people that way -- and were often then able to recognize those people at the event. We even managed a couple of times to be the first ones in line -- which means we were the Keepers of The List. Mwuhahahaha.

Ahh . . . good times . . .

[Rusty James]

Gio, you hit this one on the head. Old school is the only way I know how to do most things and buying concert tickets is no exception. Doing this in Vancouver involves having to do battle with the elements 10 out of 12 months of the year. It rains like hell here and I can recall spending numerous all-nighters waiting in endless lines with soggy, cranky people hoping to get that all important ticket to their favourite performance. Now, with the advent of online ticket purchasing; one can do this from the comfort of their own home without even having to get dressed (naked in front of your PC?!) and go down to the local ticket vendor. I was working the day tickets went on sale for the second Police show in Vancouver (May 30) so my wife got in line (bless her heart!) with the rest of those fans in their lawn chairs and sleeping bags and the rest is history. The personal touch coupled with a wad of cold cash does work..........sometimes