Paul McCartney Might Have Been the Perfect Concert
A mini version of Beatlemania.
Author note: I was published in Racket. Check it out!
I try not to make a habit of engaging with billionaires too much, but on Friday I made an exception to go to the Sir Paul McCartney concert at US Bank Stadium. My logic: how many times will you get to see a living legend perform?
My partner scooped up 2nd level tickets for about $54 and I wasn’t going to complain. I am a fan of The Beatles in that, I think everyone is at least a little bit of a fan or you’ve bopped your head around to Twist and Shout. But I found myself surprisingly emotional when Paul played Now and Then (The Beatles last song, technically) and he thanked his friend John while a montage of early days Beatles moments played on the screen behind him. And then at one point he played George’s ukulele? My heart!
There were several reasons beyond the whole Beatlemania of it all why I enjoyed the concert. I loved the variety of ages of the attendees - old folks who needed canes to cross the US Bank pedestrian and I sat next to a younger kid who kept asking his parents what song Paul was playing. (Have we lost the ancient texts of setlist.fm??? Also known as my favorite hobby because I get weirdly anxious in crowds and want to know when I can leave!)
I loved how people in the upper sections sat down. I hate standing for longer than I have to because of my bad feet. First Avenue is hell for me!
I loved that there was no opener. It was Sir Paul, for 3+ hours. He started 20 minutes late, as is appropriate for a rock and roll gig, and kept playing straight through with a brief pause for us to chant “encore!” I guess I may be anti-opener? Even though you sometimes get to discover new music, I never follow up on who was playing after the concert. Is this something you experience, too?
And most of all I loved that I could sing along with a stadium of tens of thousands to Hey Jude.
It was short, sweet, and decidedly a good time. It was also, incredibly, my first concert of the year! Normally I have been to at least a few by this point, but I guess time slipped away from me.
Thanks for reading. <3 Martha