C a n c e l THIS .

I suppose this belongs in the OTHER ARTISTS category, but since this subject has come up on this forum recently, I thought I'd put it here. My feeling won't be hurt if the 'forum gods' want to move it.

About a month ago I phoned the Rococo Theater in Lincoln, NE to purchase a ticket to last night's LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM gig. I scored 3rd row center. The Rococo is a GORGEOUSLY restored  1920's movie theater. Seats were removed, terraces were installed, as well as tables & chairs, and booths. Has a COOL upscale nightclub vibe. I've seen several memorable shows there. Having been a F-MAC fan since youth, I was psyched. Drove an hour to get there only to find the crew 'loading-out'. The marquee had a digital message stating that LINDSEY had canceled. The lobby & box office were locked-down, so I wasn't even able to  find out why. Hopefully they'll credit my money back. I WAS bummed, but I didn't let it ruin my whole life. I told myself there must be a good reason.

Today this appeared on Lindsey's site:

Lincoln, Nebraska  04.11.2007

A note about the show cancellation

"Lindsey Buckingham’s show tonight at the Rococo Theater in Lincoln, NE has been cancelled do to technical difficulties related to sound. The venue has its own in-house sound system but today, when Lindsey’s sound engineers assessed the quality of this system, they determined it to not be adequate for Lindsey’s show to be properly presented. When it was suggested to the venue by Lindsey’s audio team to allow them to bring in additional sound-reinforcement gear from Lindsey’s truck, the venue turned them down. The venue clearly stated to Lindsey’s tour manager that Lindsey must use the existing sound gear as is. Even when Lindsey’s tour manager explained to the venue that the sound system in the building was not what was represented to Lindsey’s audio technicians when doing their "advance" on the show; they still refused to allow the additional gear to enter the building. Lindsey was at the venue when all of this went down and ended up returning to his hotel.

This is the first time this has happened and Lindsey has been on tour promoting his new album "Under The Skin" since October 2006 and this is the first and only date that had to be canceled. Lindsey is very upset that his fans in Lincoln, NE will not get to see his show. Lindsey prides himself on delivering the very best performance and production for every show but in this case he wasn’t able to do so. Lindsey hopes his fans in Lincoln will understand and he looks forward to returning to Lincoln but under much better conditions. "
 
And this message appeared on Rococo's site:

LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM CANCELS LINCOLN CONCERT.

"Lindsey Buckingham cancelled his Lincoln, NE concert last night (April 11,
2007) sighting issues he had with production due to his own management and
sound crew. Rococo staff and management were put off by his diva-like
behavior in declaring our beautiful facility a "f--king sh-thole" and
wondered if he always felt it necessary to be so rude to people who are
simply trying to put on a good show.
After an hour of sound check (and only one hour before doors) Lindsey
Buckingham rehearsed a couple of songs and proclaimed that he was done. I
can only speculate as to the disappointment of the six hundred and some odd
fans who arrived (from some very far away places) to find the show
cancelled.

As Director of Events I want to apologize on Lindsey's behalf. The Rococo
Theatre has never had a performer cancel a show. NEVER. Sound system and
the physical layout of the theatre are well known to the promoters that
brought Lindsey to Lincoln and any misrepresentation was not on the part of
the Rococo staff. In an effort to notify fans, the marquee was changed and
statements were issued to local radio stations immediately.

Online purchases through etix.com will automatically be refunded within a
week. If you purchased the tickets at the Rococo Box Office a staff member
will contact you in the coming days to arrange a refund. "

Sounds like quite the 'pissing match' occurred. I don't place blame here. I don't care any more. Hopefully I'll catch Lindsey another time, another venue.

Moral of Story:

IN THE END, NOBODY WON.

Precious fossil fuels were needlessly spent.