Kevin's Watch

the best large venue / stadium show I have ever seen.

1) Paul McCartney - On the Run
2) GNR - last year (not sure what tour it was)
3) Roger Waters - the Wall (2nd time around)
4) Pink Floyd - Momentary Lapse of Reason
5) Roger Waters - Dark Side of the Moon

all but Floyd I saw in Houston. saw Floyd in Mass.

Sir Paul? lots of energy. lots of hits. the band is amazing. the drummer Abe is an absolute beast. Paul knows how to work the crowd. and he was a Beatle!

the set list...

1) Magical Mystery Tour - great opener. brought the energy.

2) Junior's Farm - first Wings song. all the Wings' songs were powerful. makes me wish I had seen them.

3) All My Loving - wow. great to hear such a classic. and a delight to see the famous '63 Hofner bass.

4) Jet - never liked the song before seeing it live. now I love it. have no idea what it is about...

5) Got to Get You into My Life - we got this instead of Drive My Car and I was happy for it. very high energy. the band was smoking all night. how can a 70 year old McCartney keep up his energy level?

6) Sing the Changes - from the Fireman album. musically it is a barn burner. lyrically it fell flat for me. but damn it sounded great.

7) the Night Before - I did not know this song before. not sure how I missed it all these years. a good but not great song. I would have prefered Ticket To Ride from that album, as it was Paul's first that he was featured on lead guitar.

8] Let Me Roll It b/w Foxy Lady - the first was another great Wings song that was made for the stadium. then we were treated to Paul taking the lead on an instrumental version of the Hendrix classic. Paul told a great story of meeting Jimi.

9) Paperback Writer - for this song Paul brought out the Epiphone Casino guitar he played on the original recording! always loved the song and live it is even better. great opening riff.

10) the Long and Winding Road - never cared for the song. Julie says... "it was a great, moving version that tugs at the heartstrings and makes you feel a sense of longing and regret."

11) Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five - a favorite from the Wings' catalog. amazing amount of energy after the last song. got everyone up and dancing.

12) My Valentine - Paul's song for his new wife. really brought the energy down. do not like the song at all. wrong venue.

13) Maybe I'm Amazed - Rusty Anderson shined on lead for this amazing song. (see what I did there?) now this is how you write a love song for your wife. and again Abe is a beast on the drums.

14) I'm Looking Through You - another good but not great Beatles song from Rubber Soul. we lost I've Just Seen a Face for this. making a sad face now.

15) And I Love Her - slow tempo song from A Hard Day's Night. would have prefered Can't Buy Me Love from the same album.

16) Blackbird - glad to see this from a historical context. deceptively simple song.

17) Here Today - I understand it's a very personal song about John. but it killed all the energy.

18] Dance Tonight - and this brought all the energy and fun back. plus Abe did a hilarious skit before launching into his part.

Abe's Dance

19] Mrs. Vanderbilt - yet another Wings song that sounded fantastic. the "whoa" chorus was great for a sing-along. songs like this make it hard to believe that Paul is 70.

20) Eleanor Rigby - wow. actually got chills during this. drives home that we were priviliged to see this concert. I can remembering listening to this song as a kid havening no real conception that I could ever an actual Beatle live.

21) Something - started out as a sing-along / clap-along with Paul on ukelele backed by Abe's kick drum and the audience. then comes in the bass and at about 2 minutes the whole band joins in and it becomes the classic that we all love. the "I don't know" part is absolutely heartbreaking, thinking about George. lovely tribute.

22) Band on the Run perfect. does anyone write songs like these anymore? a little rock opera unto itself.

23) Ob La Di Ob La Da - I never really cared for the song much before the show. thought of it as a trifle. but live it was a fun sing along that got people up and dancing. good fun. I was wrong all these years.

24) Back in the USSR - another really fun song live.

25) I've Got a Feeling - awesome! one of my favorite songs of the night was this much underappreciated gem from Let It Be. Paul can draw from a mighty deep well. it rocked and loved hearing Rusty singing John's part. loved the outro as well, giving the band a bit to flex.

26) A Day in the Life b/w Give Peace A Chance - in my belief the best Beatles song ever. certainly the most important song they did, allowing for the progression and evolution of music. this was music that had gravity. music that was meant for more than just consumption. in Paul's hands it was more a tribute to the genius that created it, taking on the message most beloved by John. a message still mostly ignored.

27) Let It Be - beautiful. not a dry eye in the house. Paul's elegant plea. Julie's favorite Beatles song.

28] Live and Let Die - when we got to the show we were dismayed to find the roof of the stadium was open. it was cold for Houston. we found out why they had to have it open. there was a fireworks display set to the band's balls-to-the-wall rendition of the best James Bond theme. amazing for music and spectacle. they out did the Guns and Roses version I heard in concert last year.

29) Hey Jude - what better way to end the main setlist? the perfect catharsis. even Paul's showmanship seemed appropriate. (having the men sing, then the women sing.) a perfect ending - for anyone else...

encore #1...

30) Lady Madonna great rocking number. perfect to set off the encores. plus we got to see the psychedelic piano!

31) Day Tripper - perfect rock song with one of the fattest hooks known to mankind. absolutely amazing version.

32) Get Back - second "rooftop" song. (I've Got A Feeling) a joy to hear. really got the crowd moving.

encore #2

33) Yesterday - the calm before the storm. Paul by himself. another song that you can't quite believe you are hearing.

34) Helter Skelter - wow. the would have blown the roof off the joint had it been closed. the tore into this with a ferocity. even the keyboard player had an electric guitar out for this. I was stunned. Paul owned this.

35) Golden Slumbers - and now Paul sang us a lullabye, preparing to end the show in the most fitting way possible. he sang this with tenderness at points and passion in others. simply breathtaking and so appropriate.

36) Carry That Weight - he could have played for hours more. he has that many songs. he has that much talent. he is simply the greatest musician of my lifetime and likely many more. he and the Beatles changed music forever. we are so used to it that it is sometimes easy to lose sight of that.

37) the End - the perfect ending... "and in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make."

yes, I am a gushing fan who love almost all of the show. I will never see anyone of Paul's stature because there isn't anyone of his stature. the best show I have ever seen. the one all future shows will be measured against. I am so glad we went.

I'll comment in this tonight. I saw his show, in St. Louis, on Sunday night.

Sarge, I'm totally with you here.

I saw McCartney once, back in the mid-90's (the Flowers in the Dirt tour, maybe?) and it was an outstanding show. So much fun. It was an outdoor venue, and there were rain showers on and off through the show - it was like thousands of people singing in the shower together.

Where McCartney has always excelled, IMO, is in the crafting of songs that make you want to sing along. And he never runs out of them. And in a concernt venue, you get one after another, after another - songs you didn't know that you knew, but somehow you know all the words.

It's great to hear that he is still performing well. Glad you enjoyed the show. I've got great memories of the time I saw him, and am now totally jealous!

Paul McCartney once fell down the stairs and landed on a piano. By the time he got up, he'd written three #1 songs.

Seen him twice. First time in 1976 with Wings at the old Cow Palace outside San Francisco. Skipped my HS graduation ceremony to attend...totally the right choice. Second time was with Dam-sel at Memorial Stadium on the UC Berkeley campus in the early '90s.

Phenomenal talent, both as a songwriter and as a showman. Shame this year's tour was so brief; would love to have had the opportunity to see him again and take Dam-sel and Savor Rhee...who has not seen him.

Wow, sounds like a hell of a show! What a setlist.

A good friend and I saw the show in St. Louis on Sunday. I have to thank Sarge for making me aware, from his post at the Watch, that he was going. I hadn't heard that and checked on the tour and found he was going to be relatively close by. I'd never seen McCartney and thought it was time to do so. I'll comment on Sarge's comments where I find appropriate.

sgt.null wrote:the best large venue / stadium show I have ever seen.
Sir Paul? lots of energy. lots of hits. the band is amazing. the drummer Abe is an absolute beast. Paul knows how to work the crowd. and he was a Beatle!

I couldn't agree more. Abe is a beast And Paul does know how to work a crowd. Every now and then he'd take a minute and read out the signs that people brought. One stated that they had named their two year old son Jude, after the song. Paul said they were in good company since Jude Law was also named for that reason. A woman near us had a sign that read "I've driven 24 Hours to hug a sweaty Paul" He noticed and while appreciating the sentiment it was clear he thought it a little yuck.

sgt.null wrote:the set list...

4) Jet - never liked the song before seeing it live. now I love it. have no idea what it is about…

I always liked Jet as a catchy tune. I had no idea what it was about, and after looking at the lyrics the next day, I still have no idea. The next day though it was the tune that was running through my head.

sgt.null wrote: 5) Got to Get You into My Life - we got this instead of Drive My Car and I was happy for it. very high energy. the band was smoking all night. how can a 70 year old McCartney keep up his energy level?

Agreed, you got the better end of that, but Drive My Car was a nice sing a long.

sgt.null wrote: 6) Sing the Changes - from the Fireman album. musically it is a barn burner. lyrically it fell flat for me. but damn it sounded great.

Closest thing to a political statement all night. The background was for the most part a swirl of orange lights - that would occasionally vaguely come into form, two or three times of the president.

sgt.null wrote:
7) the Night Before - I did not know this song before. not sure how I missed it all these years. a good but not great song. I would have prefered Ticket To Ride from that album, as it was Paul's first that he was featured on lead guitar.

This was the seventh time my friend saw Paul in concert and it was the first time she heard the Night Before played.

sgt.null wrote:
12) My Valentine - Paul's song for his new wife. really brought the energy down. do not like the song at all. wrong venue.

I won't say I disliked the song, it was ok, not out of place as at our show it didn't follow the high tempo Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-five but was a little later, between And I Love Her and Blackbird. My Love would have been better, but Linda is not around and he was tossing his wife a valentine. What was interesting was the background. Videos of Natalie Portman and Johnny Depp signing to the song were playing simultaneously on the background. (I only learned afterward who they were) We found we were both listening to the tune and looking at the subtle differences between the two.

sgt.null wrote:
16) Blackbird - glad to see this from a historical context. deceptively simple song.

I didn't know the song's history, as a gesture of support for the Civil Rights movement.

sgt.null wrote:
17) Here Today - I understand it's a very personal song about John. but it killed all the energy.

I agree.

sgt.null wrote: 20) Eleanor Rigby - wow. actually got chills during this. drives home that we were priviliged to see this concert. I can remembering listening to this song as a kid havening no real conception that I could ever an actual Beatle live.

In third grade, we used to sing along to Eleanor Rigby during our music time. When I think about it, it's a rather depressing song for 10 year olds to sing, but those were other times, I guess. It did give me a nostalgic love for the song though, and I enjoyed it.

sgt.null wrote: 22) Band on the Run perfect. does anyone write songs like these anymore? a little rock opera unto itself.

Band on the Run:



Best picture of the night.

sgt.null wrote:
28] Live and Let Die - when we got to the show we were dismayed to find the roof of the stadium was open. it was cold for Houston. we found out why they had to have it open. there was a fireworks display set to the band's balls-to-the-wall rendition of the best James Bond theme. amazing for music and spectacle. they out did the Guns and Roses version I heard in concert last year.

The Scottrade Center is a Hockey arena. The fireworks there were pretty impressive, and we could feel the heat of the gas jets from our seats, almost halfway down the arena. The song was thunderous. It is the best James Bond theme, but as an aside the new song Skyfall, by Adele, is the best Bond theme in years.

sgt.null wrote: 29) Hey Jude - what better way to end the main setlist? the perfect catharsis. even Paul's showmanship seemed appropriate. (having the men sing, then the women sing.) a perfect ending - for anyone else...

No way better to end the set.

sgt.null wrote:encore #1...

30) Lady Madonna great rocking number. perfect to set off the encores. plus we got to see the psychedelic piano!

Birthday He played one more song in St. Louis than in Houston and this was it. And I'm glad he did.

Sunday was my friend's birthday. She was hoping that they would play the song. How cool would it be to be at a Paul McCartney concert, on your birthday, and him play Birthday? Well, as the show went on she would say "Oh, he's not going to play it!" She was getting resigned to it not being played. However some people a lot closer than us were badgering him all show to play it. So he said, "I HEAR it's someone's birthday!" I think the whole section and a good part of the main floor that we were near found out it was my friend's birthday, she was so excited. Personally, it was the highlight of the show.

sgt.null wrote: encore #2

33) Yesterday - the calm before the storm. Paul by himself. another song that you can't quite believe you are hearing.

I knew it would last beyond the first encore: "He always plays Yesterday!", I was told.

sgt.null wrote:
34) Helter Skelter - wow. the would have blown the roof off the joint had it been closed. the tore into this with a ferocity. even the keyboard player had an electric guitar out for this. I was stunned. Paul owned this.

It was massively powerful! But the roof stayed on, barely.

sgt.null wrote: 35) Golden Slumbers - and now Paul sang us a lullabye, preparing to end the show in the most fitting way possible. he sang this with tenderness at points and passion in others. simply breathtaking and so appropriate.

36) Carry That Weight - he could have played for hours more. he has that many songs. he has that much talent. he is simply the greatest musician of my lifetime and likely many more. he and the Beatles changed music forever. we are so used to it that it is sometimes easy to lose sight of that.

37) the End - the perfect ending... "and in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make."

He startled the crap out of me here. He was running down from his piano, on the higher level to the main stage to pick up his guitar when he disappeared from view. He fell. I didn't see him for about three or four long seconds, during which time I was thinking "Shit, he broke his hip!". He popped up though, making a pumping gesture skyward and continued with the finale. But you are right, it was a perfect way to end the show!

Almost three hours straight! At 70! He was moving about like a 30 year old! I've been saying this week that there must be something to that vegetarian diet of his. A great, great show!

damelon - great review/ glad Paul did not hurt himself!

I re-read my review and was overcome with such joy at having seen the show. four months later and I am shedding tears of joy over the memory.

no other artist can elicit that emotion.

I still can not believe I saw a Beatle play.

thank you Julie for bringing me. and thank you paul for such an amazing show.

I've seen Pink Floyd (Momentary Lapse tour), I've seen Roger Waters three times (DSotM, Wall twice) and I still am stunned that I saw a Beatle in concert!

Update to this post upthread:

Dam-sel, Savor Rhee (oh, very well, Menolly) and I saw Sir Paul do a three-hour set here in Seattle's Key Arena last night. Dam-sel's second time at a McCartney concert, Menolly's first, my third - the first being forty years ago for Wings Over America.

BTW, the night before that we three saw Arlo Guthrie bring his 50th Anniversary tour of Alice's Restaurant to the much more intimate Moore Theatre. His daughter, Sarah Lee Guthrie, was the opening act. Yes, a third-generation of folksinger / storyteller from that family!

Which show did I like better? Not sure...but as a child of my generation (and a firm believer in songs suited to many voices and simple instrumentation), I already knew several Woody Guthrie songs by heart before the Beatles broke onto the scene on this side of the pond. Hearing Sarah and Arlo singing those classics (as well as their own excellent material) did affect me more viscerally than hearing McCartney reprise his career from the Quarrymen to the present.

Keep in mind, "the cute Beatle" was every bit as good as Sarge and Damelon say upthread.

to each artist!

SD - glad you got to see both.

I saw Arlo Guthrie live at the Ben & Jerry Fest in Vermont, way back in (maybe) 1993.