everything becomes chaos

here’s my original review of the show….

THE BAND

Paul McCartney – Bass, Electric Guitars, Acoustic Guitars, Piano

Paul “Wix” Wickens – Keyboards, Percussion, Accordion, Guitar

Rusty Anderson – Guitars

Brian Ray – Guitars, Bass

Abe Laboriel, Jr. – Drums

My Review of “Driving USA” in Philadelphia, PA – April 16, 2002

The excitement of seeing this show had been building up since the rumors started last summer that Paul would be touring to support his new album.  It took quite a while for the fact to sink in that I was going to be seeing Paul McCartney LIVE.  We (my mom and I) arrived at the First Union Center at 6:50, about 10 minutes before the doors opened.  The doors opened around 7pm and the lines moved rather fast.  As soon as my ticket was scanned, I went straight to the gentleman selling the tour programs…”I’ll take one please!”  Then we decided we would walk around for a bit.  We stopped at the second souvenir stand (much shorter line!)….”I’ll take one shirt and that hat!…Thanks!”  After buying all of my souvenirs (and changing into my new shirt and hat), it was only 7:20, so we stopped to watch some video that was playing on the concourse.  At about  7:35, I got myself a soda, and we went to our seats…Section 5, Row 6.  We sat down and I said, “Wow…this is pretty close!”

At 8:15, the lights started to go out and some music started playing.  All of a sudden some very strange looking people started to appear at the arena entrances.  It is very hard to describe the 20 minute opening sequence.  Others have called it “Cirque du Soleil”-like.  After 20 minutes of the “circus” act, a silhouette of the famous violin bass appeared on the big screen, and then a silhouette of the man himself…PAUL MCCARTNEY, with his bass held above his head.  After the screen rose, Paul and the band went straight into “Hello Goodbye,” with Paul playfully waving “HELLO” every time he sang it!  After thundering applause, the band rocked into “Jet.”  After more applause, Paul said hello to everyone, “We are here to rock you Philadelphia!”, then went into “All My Loving” with video of the Beatles playing in the background.

Paul then told us how, especially in the later 60’s, the The Beatles weren’t touring, after you write a song, if you don’t take it out on tour, how you never play it again.  He introduced the next song as being one of the songs, and the band went into “Getting Better.”  After playing “Coming Up” and “Let Me Roll It,” Paul told us it was time for some new songs, and the band played the new single, “Lonely Road” (which rocked…one of my favorites!).  Then another story, of how, while recording the new album in Los Angeles, the band had one day off, and figuring the weather would be great, rented a black Corvette.  Of course, it was pouring rain, but they still drove up the Pacific Coast Highway, and that how the title track of the new album got it’s name…”Driving Rain.”

Paul then introduced drummer Abe Laboriel, Jr. (whom I think is AWESOME….he plays with such energy).  Abe said hello, etc, then introduced Paul at the piano.  Paul said, “this next song was written for someone special in the audience tonight (his fiancée Heather),” and he started playing “Loving Flame.”

“This is the part of the show where everyone leaves me alone with you.  I can handle it…if you can.”  Paul then told us the story of how he wrote the next song, saying “In the 60’s, the civil rights thing was going on.  You may know, in England, we call girls ‘birds,’ among other things.  And I wrote this song from the point of view of a young black woman.”   He then played an awesome solo version of “Blackbird.”  Next up was a rarely heard gem “Every Night.”  Next up was “We Can Work It Out” and then a beautiful rendition of “Mother Nature’s Son,” with the accompaniment of Wix on the accordion. (Paul told us the story of how Wix bought this small accordion in Italy, because it was cheap and shiny!)

“When we were in Los Angeles, this guy asked me if I would write a song for his film, and I asked him, ‘Who are you?’ and he said ‘I’m Cameron’, so I said OK.  And we got to perform it in Hollywood at the Oscars.”  Then Paul, along with Rusty, played “Vanilla Sky.”  Then two of the circus performers (one of them being a strong man…Paul said, “I’ve told this guy to lay off the steroids.”  He then mimicked popping pills!) brought out a “bright colored box (Paul’s Magical Mystery Tour piano).”  Paul then told us about some of his experiences of getting massages around the world (He said he had a great massage that day at Rizzieri’s in Marlton).  In one massage, the guy told him to imagine his leg was a piece of hollowed bronze, and that his neck was long, like a giraffe’s.  The man asked him how he felt.  “Like a giraffe with a hollowed, bronze leg!”  Then in Japan, this lady told him to lie down on the towel, and as she was massaging him, she started to sing yesterday!  He then started to play “You Never Give Me Your Money/Carry That Weight.”  After the line “Out of college money spent, see no future pay no rent, all the money’s gone, nowhere to go,” he sang “This is the bit where I don’t remember the words but I’m not gonna bother to really learn them before the end of the tour.”  There was much laughter!  Next up was “Fool On the Hill.”

“Sometimes you don’t get to say things to someone, especially after they die.  So I wrote this song after my dear friend John passed on.  Let’s hear it for John (standing ovation).  He then played “Here Today.”  “While we’re in this mood (as a ukulele is being handed to him, and he points to it and laughs), you know George was a great ukulele player.  He gave me this one.  Whenever you would go over to his house, after dinner, the ukuleles would come out…one for you and one for you and one for you (laughs).  And when I visited him, I showed him a song I learned to play on the ukulele, and I’d like to play it for you now, as a tribute to my friend George.”  He then played a really great version of “Something.” (standing ovation).  “George told me, ‘No, it’s more like this…’ (and he played it much faster) (laughs).

Paul is then joined on stage by Rusty, Abe, and Wix, and they played “Eleanor Rigby.”  Brian then joined the rest of them, and they played “Here, There And Everywhere.”

With Paul back on his violin bass, the band rocks into “Band on The Run,” followed by “Back In The USSR.”  Paul then introduced Rusty, who told of his trip to South Street, and how great our water pressure is.  He then introduced us back to Paul at the piano, and he started “Maybe I’m Amazed.”  Next up was “C-Moon.”  After the song, we were told the meaning behind the title, “In the song ‘Wooly Bully’, there’s a line that talks about L-7, which makes a square, so I just thought, ‘what would be the opposite of that,’ and I just thought a C and a moon.  There ‘ya go!”  “This next song is for all the lovers in the audience.”  They then played “My Love.”

Paul then introduced Wix, “You already met this guy; he’s our keyboard player, Paul “Wix” Wickens.”  Wix said hi, “Hello from Great Britain.  I learned all five chords on the guitar for this next song just for you!  You might recognize this next one!”  They then played “Can’t Buy Me Love.”  “We wrote this next song especially for ‘The Concert for New York’ and it’s called ‘Freedom.’”  I must say, it sounded awesome live!

“The only guy I haven’t introduced you to is our guitarist/bass play, Brian Ray.”  He said hi and introduced us back to Paul at the piano.  They then started “Live And Let Die,” complete with three very loud explosions, with Paul grabbing his chest after the third one!  They then played “Let It Be.”  A few lighters went on in the crowd.  “Thanks for the lights,” he said after the song.  “You’ve been a great audience; we’ve had a lot of fun!  You might want to join in at some point with this next song….HEY JUDE, DON’T MAKE IT BAD…”   Then they got to the “na na na” part, and Paul stopped the band so he could hear us sing.  “Ok just the boys this time…..now just the girls…na na na”  After the song, Paul pointed to random spots in the audience saying, “You were great, and you were great, and you were great….!”  The band took a bow, and disappeared behind the stage.

After about a minute, Paul runs out on stage with a huge American flag, Rusty with a huge Pennsylvania flag, and Wix with a tiny British flag!  “I think you might still have a little bit of energy left!”  He then sat at the piano and played “The Long And Winding Road,” followed by “Lady Madonna.”  He got his bass back on, and the band rocked “I Saw Her Standing There,” with Paul saying afterward, “That one was from a few years ago!”  The band took another bow, and disappeared once again.

Back on stage again to a standing ovation.  “We really have to go…you all have to go to bed, and so do we!”  He then played “Yesterday” with Wix playing the string part on his synthesizer.  “You have been a fantastic audience…thank you very much for coming!”  They then played a rocking version of “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)” into “The End.”  “…And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make….Thank you very much…See you next time!”  Then there were some fireworks and a WHOLE LOT of confetti pouring from the ceiling!  One last bow after a standing ovation, and they were gone.

It was an experience I will NEVER forget.  The only think I could think after the show was, “WOW…I get to see this again tomorrow!”