In 1981 I saw Van Halen at The Checkerdome in St Louis, decent seat, for $8.50. In 1984 I saw Rush at The Arena (the renamed Checkerdome) in St. Louis, decent seat, for $12.50.
On October 5, 2026 I saw Rush at Ball Arena in Denver, decent seat, for $375. Wow.
Looking at my concert tickets from 1981 to 2026, The prices from 1981 until just about 1994 the prices started to escalate, not a lot, but some. I saw Lynyrd Skynyrd in 991, front row, for $25 and thought that was very reasonable. Then I saw The Eagles (lawn seats) in 1994 and those tickets were almost $40 and, at the time, I thought that was pretty expensive.
Then around 2000 the prices started jumping significantly. prices seemed to land around $80 to $100. I really stopped going to concerts because, honestly, I could not justify spending that for a concert. I had a family, bills to pay, and top see a band for a couple hours for that price was unrealistic.
My first concert I decided to splurge on was The Allman Betts Band in 2019. I even got the VIP package (front row and got to meet Devon Allman, Duane Betts and Berry Oakley Jr backstage). $150 was the price. Justified in my mind. But other bands by then were charging upwards of $250 for regular tickets.
Yeah, no….
The only other concerts I saw after that were Larry Carlton (twice in Cincinatti plus visiting a long time musician brother who lives there) at the famous Ludlow Garage (The Allman Brothers recorded a live album there) and the tickets were only $40 for really decent seats. I also saw Winonna Judd’s final “Judds” tour (I only went because my ex-wife wanted to go) and tickets were not horribly priced for average seats.. I think they were like $80.
I saw Floyd Nation (Pink Floyd Tribute) and Buddy Guy’s “90” concerts as gifts from a couple friends. Floyd Nation was reasonable, Buddy guy, however, had it not been a gift, I probably wouldn’t have gone, since tickets were well over $100.
Then there was Rush in Denver. I had family help paying for that concert because I knew it would be the last time in this life I would see a band that defined my youth.
But all this leads to the question of “what the hell happened after 2000?”
Apparently, quite a few things happened. And it turns out my memory of when prices started getting ridiculous isn’t far off. Economist Alan Krueger found that average concert ticket prices rose 82 percent between 1996 and 2003, while overall consumer prices rose just 17 percent. So this was already happening before the pandemic and before today’s streaming services. It wasn’t simply everything getting more expensive. Concert tickets were getting more expensive considerably faster.
Part of it was a change in how the music business made money. As downloading and eventually streaming undermined the old business of selling albums and CDs, live performances became increasingly important as a source of income. That doesn’t explain every expensive ticket, but it helps explain why the industry became more interested in how much it could earn from the person sitting in the seat.
Then there is the way tickets are sold. Premium seats, VIP packages, demand-based pricing, resale markets, and fees all create opportunities to increase what someone pays. And while Ticketmaster is an easy target, artists and their business teams also have a role in setting prices and deciding whether to use dynamic pricing. There isn’t just one person with their hand in this.
I understand that touring costs money. Transportation, hotels, equipment, production, and the people who make a show happen all have to be paid for. Rising costs have made touring difficult for plenty of smaller bands, too. An expensive concert ticket doesn’t automatically mean every musician is getting rich.
But with the big legacy bands, I think there is something else going on. They have an audience that is getting older and knows there may not be many opportunities left. I certainly felt that with Rush. I wasn’t just paying to hear a set of songs. I was paying for another evening with music that has been part of my life since I was young.
That explains why I went. It doesn’t mean I am comfortable with the price.
My $375 Rush ticket cost thirty times what my $12.50 ticket cost in 1984. Those are different shows, different venues, and different circumstances, so that isn’t a scientific measure of concert inflation. But it is a pretty substantial measure of what attending that band’s concert cost ME.
And the Larry Carlton shows are what keep sticking in my mind. Forty dollars. Great musician, great music, good seats, and an intimate room. Obviously, a club show and an arena production have different economics. But from my seat, the musical experience didn’t feel like it was missing anything.
I don’t expect 1981 prices in 2026. I am a musician. I want musicians and crews to be paid fairly.
What bothers me is that seeing a favorite band used to be something I could work into my life. Now, for some of those same bands, it is something I have to build a budget and a trip around, justify to myself, and occasionally accept help paying for.
I am glad I saw Rush. I will always be glad I saw Rush.
But I miss when going to a concert was a night out, not a major financial decision.
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