I collect music. Always have. The first recording I remember owning was a 45 of Elvis singing Love Me Tender. To this day I still have over eight hundred 45s; there are hundreds of vinyl LPs downstairs and our CD collection numbers close to four thousand.
Being a collector sometimes means just that: collecting, not playing. So it was that I bought Paul McCartney’s Good Evening New York City almost three years ago (Dec 9, 2009) but only now watched it – it’s a 2-CD/1-DVD set. In truth I was a bit embarrassed that I owned it. I mean, Paul was the schlocky one, the master of pleasant sounding, shallow sweetness. The real talent had been John and the soul of the Beatles was George.
But, for whatever reason, I had ordered the McCartney set. Then I let it sit on my desk for all this time.
What a mistake that was! Over the last two nights I watched this amazing, two and-a-half hour, thirty-four song set and was simply blown away. From the opening Drive My Car to the closing Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band / The End, this was one amazing show. Paul’s band (Rusty Anderson, Brian Ray, Paul Wickens and Abe Laboriel Jr) was at the top of its game and it was clear they had spent hours honing their sound to match the original Beatles or Wings recordings. (Check this out as a good example).
Watching this concert is the closest thing to watching a Beatles concert that one can have – in some ways, it was better: at least you could hear the music! I can only imagine how exciting it must have been to be there in the flesh. (Note: the concerts took place July 17, 18 and 21, 2009 at Citi Field, inaugurating the New York Mets new home).
John and George’s spirits hovered over the stadium; perhaps the most poignant moments of the show were when Paul sang Something, Harrison's immortal classic from Abbey Road, with images of George projected on the huge screens behind the band; or A Day In The Life / Give Peace A Chance, evoking memories of the gentle pacifist, John Lennon.
For me though, equally emotional were Let It Be and Hey Jude -- I cried during both. Just as exciting were Jet, Got To Get You Into My Life, Let Me Roll It, Back In The USSR, I'm Down, Paperback Writer, Day Tripper, I Saw Her Standing There, Yesterday, Helter Skelter and Get Back. The kick-ass, OMG moment was this rendition of Live And Let Die with pyrotechnics and fireworks galore. It was intense.
This story started for me on August 15, 1966, at Washington Stadium, now known as RFK Stadium. That was the day I saw the Beatles, though to say I heard the Beatles would be a stretch. Paul McCartney’s dazzling performance in New York in 2009 brought back wonderful memories of that concert, of Ed Sullivan Sunday nights, of the summer of 1967 when Sgt. Pepper was released, of the wonderfully fun films A Hard Day’s Night and Help, of the brilliance of Abbey Road and the poignant sadness of the end, the Let It Be album and documentary.
The Rolling Stones may in fact be the "World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band" but I would argue that the Beatles were the most beloved. Thank you, Paul, for being such a diligent keeper of the flame. And forgive me for doubting you.
No comments:
Post a Comment