Chastain Amphitheatre

10/13/08

HASSLE, HASSLE, HASSLE

by gratefuljennaroo at Citysearch

The Good: It's a beautiful venue, set in a lovely park in a rather upscale high and fancy to-do area. The acoustics are absolutely fabulous! The sound is as clean and crisp as fresh, sun dried laundry! The setting is quite intimate, with about as much total seating as the covered portion of Verizon (formerly Blockbuster) in Charlotte, NC, or Lakewood just outside of Atlanta, GA. The parking is good.

The Bad: $104 ticket price w/surcharges included. I believe this is a mid-range price, so you can get cheaper tickets on the lawn, or higher up into the arena. But, it's a very small, very steep lawn with a large lovely fence between the lawn and the seats, just in case you didn't feel enough like you came from the wrong side of the fence before you realize where you're $60 tickets place you along the Chastain food chain. An extra $12 for parking, not what I was expecting in addition to the $104 ticket price for a seat a little less than ? way up into the theater, stage left. No variety whatsoever with pricey beverages

The Ugly: On our way in, we overhead two police officers at the entrance gate engaging in a conversation about how much they'd love to "bash {some guys} face in" (the guy was being a bit obnoxious, trying to finish his beer as opposed to dumping it out in the trash can, but nothing even remotely close to warrant having his face bashed in). Long story short, my husband and I wind up being ejected from the venue for taking pictures during the concert, which we were told we were allowed to do prior to entering. To compound the situation, I was also threatened with incarceration for copyright infringement on account of my illegal photo activty by a few trigger happy, high and mighty police officers.

Too many people in authority there who get their egos stroked by harrassing the fans. Total thumbs down - I will never go back!

06/13/08

Alpharetta is betta

by monfongo at Citysearch

Dude, if you want good, loud music, Verizon amph in Alpharetta is the place to go. Just opened in May, it is state of the art for music. There will be no "tea party" at this venue because the music is so loud that you can't talk to the person next to you and be heard.

This is the way concerts should be. Saw the Eagles and Stevie Nicks, both fantastic shows. Alan Jackson is supposed to be there later this summer.

09/23/07

Outdoor venue with no smoking area!

by choochyman at Citysearch

I went to see Steppenwolf and Deep Purple a couple of months ago and was very disappointed! The sound was so low I could barely hear it from the box seats! It is not a good venue for a rock concert! The snobby people in the crowd were very disappointing even to the point where Ian Gillian from Deep Purple asked if it was a tea party! The fact that this is an outdoor venue with no place to smoke is also very disappointing! I wanted to go to the Riders on the Storm show but changed my mind remembering all those unpleasant things. You feel like a idiot here if you stand up and clap! It is a nice venue but is mismanaged and even the workers or volunteers are rude! Go see an orchestra here but stay away for a rock show. Your wasting your money because you can't hear it!

• Pros: coolers and own food
• Cons: snobby attitudes

09/08/07

Worst venue ever

by geez1 at Citysearch

Went to see ZZ TOP.Band was great,just not at this place.People hear are too snobby.Nobody would stand and have a good time.They must have an ordiance for that too.Who ever heard of a noise ordinance and curfew for concert venue.Will never go back.Would not recomend unless you enjoy snobby people with wine and cheese and candles!

• Pros: coolers
• Cons: everything else

10/01/06

Handicap access @ Chastain

by gta1950 at Citysearch

My wife and I saw Santana at chastain 9 30 06.THE SHOW WAS GREAT!Parking was about what we expected.If you've never seen Santana,and have the oppurnity to do so,please do.Carlos is one of the best guitarist/artist/performers EVER!Not to mention one of the most loving,sincere,optimistic souls on this earth. Now---Chastain needs to do more than "lip service" for the handicapped.True there are quite a few handicap parking spaces at the entrance, but they were all takem by vehicles without handicap liscence plates or permits of ANY kind.I guess their needs exceed those of my wife who is in a chair.But, all things considered,Santana was well worth the effort and then some.

07/18/06

Not a rock venue

by caseypoo at Citysearch

We traveled 5 hours to see Def Leppard/Journey this past week. We attend many concerts throughout the year and decided to try Chastain Park because of the beautiful setting and good reviews. While I agree, this is a beautiful concert venue, the parking was terrible (almost to the point of being dangerous), the lines to get a water were hundreds deep and most importantly, we feel like we wasted our money because unless you get 20 feet from the stage, you cannot hear the band because of the noise ordinance. Maybe this is a good venue for the symphony and such, but we came home very unsatisfied and were lucky enough to get seats at another outdoor venue and saw this concert again two days later. What a difference, we could actually hear the guitar solos and the upper register of the lead singers and we couldn't hear the fellow concert goers talking around us. I do not recommend this venue for any kind of rock or pop concert.

• Pros: ambience
• Cons: noise restrictions, parking, concessions

04/26/05

Elaborate picnic spreads headline at this picturesque outdoor concert park.

by Contributor at Citysearch

In Short
A mile from Buckhead sits an intimate outdoor stage, nestled in the trees of Chastain Park. This summertime standby sells tickets for tables by the stage (which seat six), orchestra seats and general admission to the lawn. The musical attractions run toward icons with a little gray in the hair: Moody Blues, Aretha Franklin, Kenny G., Santana, Elvis Costello and James Taylor. Socializing and food come first, music second. Table holders bring elaborate candelabras, tablecloths and four-course meals. Lawn dwellers spread out blankets and get comfortable with their picnic baskets and bottles of wine. Those who don't want the hassle of lugging in food can grab high-end courses from the venue's catering and even have it set up at your table for you. Sit back and enjoy the scenery and try not to get too irritated if you can't hear your favorite group above the chatter.

08/16/03

An All-Starr Venue

by fresnomike at Citysearch

Took in Ringo + his all Starr band 8-13-03....had the time of my life....seats (albeit, folding chairs) 15' from the stage....plenty + good assortment of food + drink (not that expensive either)....wonderful crowd (young + older, all who really knew how to enjoy the venue by bringing in their own food + drink)....beutiful setting....and last but not least the greatest show in the world (ok, 1/4 of it) Ringo, nuff said.

• Pros: prices, sound, area
• Cons: folding chairs

01/09/03

Rude and crude

by smithphil at Citysearch

If you want to have a picnic with music why not hire a bar band. This is no place to listen to a serious musician because of all the snobs talking all around you. Nobody really pays much attention to the artist. With the new noise restictions mandated by the neighbors you are not going to be able to hear at all.

• Pros: outdoors, good for dates
• Cons: disrepectful, loud, snobbish

11/07/02

Wow!

by LYNK24 at Citysearch

Chastain park is to Atlanta what a fine wine is to a wonderful meal.... a supreme compliment. I found the atmosphere and overall set-up to be even more than I had anticipated. Yes, there is a bit of hushed chitchat during the shows, but it only reflects the laid-back "comfortable" relaxation you will feel as soon as the evening starts there. It's no Music Midtown... and that's quite a relief.

• Pros: beautiful surrounding, great sound, great talent
• Cons: traffic, traffic, traffic