The best opening act you've ever seen & heard?

March 18, 1973 Linda Ronstadt opened for Neil Young and so began my total love affair with her. A voice that touches my soul.

@tony1954 , and Linda Ronstadt is another one of my favorites!  I remember seeing a documentary about her (I think it was on CNN) and I kind of remember that the documentary talking about that tour (Young & Ronstadt) and saying that she did such a great job as an opener that Young had her alternate with him on who would open and who would headline.  If I remember correctly, he could get some extra rest this way.

69 Boston Garden MC5 and Johnny Winter opening for Led Zeppelin 

Also caught Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers opening for Bob Dylan at Great Woods 

Not and opening act, but...

I saw Bonnie Raitt playing unannounced/unadvertised @ the Airliner Bar (Iowa City, IA) on Friday March 29, 1974 with no cover charge.

Was walking down the street, heard the music and then saw her on a little pool table sized stage through the window.

She was a backup musician for Muddy Waters who played Iowa City's Hancher Auditorium the following evening (Saturday).

DeKay

J. Geils Band opened for Humble Pie - 1972

James Gang (Tommy Bolin version) opened for Beck - Bogart & Appice - 1973

New York Dolls opened for Mott the Hoople - 1973 ("Halloween on acid")

Mannfred Mann's Earth Band opened for Blue Oyster Cult - 1974

China Crisis opened for Simple Minds - 1984

The Silencers opened for X and Warren Zevon - 1987

Richard Thompson opened for Bonnie Raitt - 1989

House of Freaks opened for Concrete Blonde - 1989

Pylon opened for R.E.M. - 1989

Hunters & Collectors opened for Midnight Oil - 1990

Wendy MaHarry opened for The Blue Nile - 1990

The Go-Betweens opened for Lloyd Cole - 1991

Sam Phillips opened for Bruce Cockburn - 1991

Dada opened for Sting - 1993

Ivy opened for Lloyd Cole - 1995

Mark Eitzel opened for Everything But the Girl - 1995

Back in Houston, E & I noticed the Blue Man Group was slated for one night at the Cynthia Woods north of town....Venus Hum the opener for the show....

Enjoyed the BMG antics on the screen since they were still new to people, new enough that the CWPavilion was 1/3 full, with plenty of ’closer locales’.

VH was a solid opener....looking ’geeky’ on purpose, but tight and a good listen.

It’s the Pre-Opener-Act that was hilarious and set the tone for the night.

On time, a pair of LED reader boards, one stage left with the other at right began to greet the crowd followed by some banter between that drew participation and laughs from the crowd. This lead to the 2 units having a hissy fit, one whining about how the other was rude, back ’n forth, finally ’making up’....
...and intro’ing VH, with BMG having one of the best concert mixes I’d heard.

With that much percussion ’horsepower’ from the band behind the Blues’, it had to be.....including this little number...

Terrific show....came back to town a few months later, this time in Houston at the city’s main auditorium for 2 shows....

...that sold out in minutes. Word had got around....

Ah, well....RIP, BMG....