Oakland reviews

I've had time to let it sink in. I thought I'd never get to see the Beatles but now at 53 I got my chance to hear "the music." It was awesome...the songs still ring in my mind and the image of Paul is very much alive. I can die in peace now.

(4/19/02) From Chani:

Ok I am back, I got home around 12:30 a.m.

When we first got there they had wands to look for metal. My friend's snaps set it off on her jacket, BUT she got away with sneaking a disposable camera in her bra! Plus, they hardly searched her purse and they did not even search my fanny pack.

This concert was the most incredible show I have seen Paul do. Every nuance of his musical past was touched on tonite, it will definitely take you on a tour of the past. I will not tell you how the show started or ended, but it was so breathtaking, I was screaming and laughing and dancing. Paul did great on Maybe I'm Amazed, by the way.

OK here are a few helpful hints, last night in Oakland, when Paul was rehearsing the night before his concert, people were able to get in free to hear his rehearsal. So this is a possible idea for you all! Another thing is, afterwards tonite, my friend and I were interviewed by a camera crew. Afterwards I asked which affiliate they were with and they said, this isn't for TV, this is for Paul, he wants to see this video to see how the people liked his concert! Oh man, I cannot believe it. I showed them my sign and I told Paul about what my son had said about his song Freedom, I told Paul that he had an effect even on a 4 year old boy, and I said, "Come on back again Paul". I am so excited!!!! Then when we left we got to pose for a picture of our local newscaster Don Sanchez, and he is a cutie! We just missed his newscast. Anyway Paul did sing 39 songs! So you are all in for a fabulous night! I am so lucky t! o have witnessed it.

Paul looks fabulous......wonder if he has ever had any face lifts? No? Cuz he looked fabulous dahling!

Chani

(4/12/02) From Eric Hartvigsen:

Not only was it Paul's tour opener in Oakland that night, but it was also the A's home opener in the adjacent building, and there were two other large concerts in Oakland, as well (Harry Connick & Enrique Iglesias). Locals were commenting that it was the first time Oakland ever had more happening than San Fran. And traffic was ugly...

 

As we entered the stadium, following a pretty thorough search, the first thing I noticed that was different was that there were no free programs being distributed this time. The traditional McProgram was there, complete with extensive interviews, articles on what he'd been up to since the last tour, etc., but this time the price for it was.. Thirty dollars.

 

Of course, that was cheaper than any of the tour shirts. I saw 6 different short sleeve varieties, starting at $35. There was also a funky long-sleeve tie-dye for a mere $65, a fairly conservative denim-ish shirt for only $75, and a McCartney baseball jersey for the bargain price of $125. I'm afraid I didn't catch the price for the white McCartney Nightgown (no kidding). Or you could get posters for $15, coffee mugs for $20, and so on. A bottle of Bud was a steal at $6, too. ;-)

 

So down we went towards our seats. Pretty excellent position actually. About 5 o'clock from the stage and only 8 rows up from the floor--perfect for a great view of the stage, without having to stand up the whole time. Rather odd pre-concert music played as we waited for the event to start. I think it was all Paul's stuff, but it was his "oddball" recordings. There may have been a classical piece of his, and then I definitely noticed "The Fireman" (remixed) playing. Anyway, at about 8:15, we noticed a woman enter the arena at the back, to the left of our seats. She looked like something out of 18th century France, wearing an old-fashioned blue dress, tons of makeup, and a big white wig with a small sailboat perched atop her head. Hmmmm...

 

As eyes turned towards her, we also noticed other similarly-dressed figures entering the arena from all sides. They, too, were mostly dressed in ornate, antiquated outfits. One man was dressed like Magritte's "Umbrella Man," others were less distinctly recognizable. Anyway, they headed towards the stage, slowly. Then more people entered, with large inflatable blue-ish globes, probably 5-6 feet in diameter. These made their way to the stage, as more circus-type performers entered: a man on stilts, a man made up as a "strongman," a contortionist, etc. And all this went on and on and on. As one of the reviews I read mentioned, it was whimsical for the first few minutes but became incredibly tiresome as it continued...

 

Anyway, this odd cast of characters continued cavorting onstage until about 8:30, as the "Fireman" music increased in volume; the best thing about this being that everyone was seated before the show started. Then a loud "power-chord" struck, and an enormous video screen at the foot of the stage lit up. It was all white, save for the famous outline of an enormous (left-handed) Hofner bass guitar. There was a giant roar from the crowd. In the next moment, there was the man himself, silhouetted in black behind the screen, with his own Hofner in hand, and one hand raised to the sky. A great image, I must say.

 

The giant video screen lifted, but the pose remained unchanged. A *very* youthful-looking Paul stood grinning broadly, and walked out to a rousing cheer (the following night, in San Jose, a Spinal Tap Moment occurred when the screen didn't rise, so Paul had to walk around the screen and play half the song before it finally rose and folks could see his drummer!). And then it was straight into...

 

1. Hello Goodbye. Not my favorite Beatle song by any stretch of the imagination, but an excellent way to open the show. The video screen provided closeups of Paul for much of the evening, with a clarity that was pretty damned amazing. In addition to that screen, there were a large number of smaller screens that were used very artistically throughout the evening. Sometimes they'd use archival footage, sometimes still photographs, sometimes just really cool lighting effects. Sometimes they'd use a whole array of video screens behind Paul, other times they'd only use a portion of the screens to create a cool assymmetrical effect. For this song, as I recall, it was really cool blue and white lights that had almost "neon" characteristics--quite unlike conventional concert lighting. Without pause, the band launched into...

 

2. Jet. I think Paul has used this song in the #2 slot a few too many times, now. It's there on Wings Over America and I think it was here for both the 89/90 & 93 tours. Still, it sounded pretty good, and the audience ate it up. Like many of the evening's rockers, it seemed to have a harder edge than with his previous touring band.

 

3. All My Loving really got the baby boomers smiling, as "Hard Day's Night"-era footage played on the screens. My companion cracked up at the films of young girls wordlessly mouthing "I LOVE YOU RINGO", and holding up signs saying "Elvis is Dead--Long Live the Beatles." Then, in his first real remarks of the evening, Paul mentioned that the next number was an old one, and one that he'd never played in front of an audience before. His "stage banter" is still pretty dire, though, I'm afraid: at one point early in the show, he said that "we have come here to rock you ... and you look like you're ready to be rocked!" Then he switched from his bass to lead guitar and played a note-perfect rendition (with a cool cut-back ending) of...

 

4. Getting Better. Then it was back to the bass guitar, and Paul went into...

 

5. Coming Up, which was the first song of the evening which seemed to not get a rousing ovation. It sounded quite different than the Wings version, and also different from the previous tour versions, but I've always quite liked this one. Then, the electric guitar came out again, and Paul hit the distinctive riff of...

 

6. Let Me Roll It. This was one of the few disapointments of the evening for me. I heard it in '93, and it's not one of my favorite numbers to begin with, but the crowd seemed to enjoy it. He then mentioned that he'd been playing some "older songs" and now it was time for some "newer" songs, from "our" latest album. Back came the bass, and the video screens showed the video for...

 

7. Lonely Road (which had been playing on the closed circuit monitors prior to the show). Since this was the first real "gritty" vocal of the night, I was curious to see how he'd sound, but it was also one of the noisier numbers, and his vocal was a little buried in the mix. However, the crowd certainly seemed to enjoy it more than his "Off The Ground" numbers last tour. He then talked about recording the next number in LA last winter and launched into...

 

8. Driving Rain. In San Jose the following night, he talked about how he stopped in at a restaurant while driving and had a great meal. Excited to share the news of his "find" with the band, he recommended "Marie Calendars" to everyone, before finding out it was a chain. "Great Pies, though!" said Paul, in his defense. Rather humorous. For this song the video screens had "1-2-3-4-5" and "6-7-8-9-10" pop up on the screens at the appropriate times, though synchronization was a tad off. It sounds lame, but it was actually pretty cool, thanks to those awesome visuals again. The screens also simulated falling rain with computer-diode type lighting effects. This tune featured a nifty little ending in concert that worked much better than the studio version. I'm sure it'll show up on the tour's DVD(?). He then introduced his drummer, who gave what sounded like a very scripted, awkward, greeting to the crowd. More talk about "rocking us" and so forth (and who really wants to hear him, anyway?). But as he does this, Paul wanders to the piano on the right side of the stage and then does...

 

9. Your Loving Flame. A rather tired Macca ballad, IMO, but I knew I'd be hearing it. At the end of this number, Paul said it was time for the band to leave him alone with us, so he could get "intimate with 15 thousand people." He took off his dark jacket (cue screams from the ladies) and rolled up the sleeves on his charcoal shirt (mercifully gone were the silly concert outfits of the last two tours). Then he grabbed an acoustic guitar and launched into...

 

10. Blackbird. Wow. The sound in the arena was phenomenal, and it was really impressive to hear how good he was on guitar throughout this song, and the entire acoustic set. Additionally, his vocals, which had sounded remarkably strong given his sometimes shaky "guest" concert appearances (Concert for NYC, Montserrat, etc.), really got a chance to shine solo. He sounded fantastic, rarely hitting an off-note. I'd never seen him do this one before, and it was a highlight.

 

11. Every Night was next. Another personal favorite of mine. This one also sounded great and had more of an "uptempo" feel than it did on the '93 tour, when I think he was still doing a slower, "unplugged" arrangement . A nice reception for this one, but nothing like the roars which greeted...

 

12. We Can Work It Out. His voice was a little off on this one, but I didn't care. This is probably one of my top 5 Beatle songs--the perfect blending of a "Lennon" & "McCartney" song. Though the song doesn't lend itself to it (IMO), the audience tried to clap along to it! Whatever they say about "white folks not having rhythm" was certainly valid at that show! Then the video screens turned to nature shots & still photography as he launched into...

 

13. Mother Nature's Son. Another highlight of the evening for me. It was a very nice version, with Wix on accordian (I think!). However, Paul did rework the ending just a bit, so it didn't sound quite like the White Album. Switching to a different acoustic guitar, he mentioned that a guy had come up to him in LA last year and asked him to write a song for his movie. "So I did, and then we got up on the Oscars and everything!" Wix stayed on to help him out with...

 

14. Vanilla Sky. Which would have been quite cool were it not for the scenes from the movie which played on the vid screens. Giant images of Tom & Penelope Cruise/Cruz reaching out to each other were not what folks wanted to see, methinks. Then out come the Strongman and someone else from the "preshow" and Paul makes a lame crack about steroids (to be repeated the following--and, no doubt, every succeeding--night of the tour). They are carrying "a box" says Paul, which looks remarkably like the psychedelic colored piano he used on his previous tours. He sits down behind it, plucks a note, and says, "ah, it's a musical box!" and then plays a solo, stripped-down, organ-based version of...

 

15. You Never Give Me Your Money. A bit of a misfire, this one. Without the full band, and with the organ-type sound (rather than a "piano" sound), it didn't quite work. When he got to the "any jobber got the sack, monday morning, turning back" bit he sang something like "this is the part where I forget the words, but it won't really matter, maybe I'll remember by the end of the tour" and everyone laughed. Fewer of us laughed the next night when he did the same thing. Why does he need to pull this kind of fake shtick in concert? Does he think word won't get 'round?!? Anyway, despite the fact that this seques into Sun King on the album, he continued on into Carry That Weight instead, which sounded a bit awkward to me. Since he was performing solo, he obviously couldn't do The End, so this one also featured an "unusual" concert ending. Maybe it'll sound better later in the tour...

 

16. Fool On the Hill came next, with Wix playing the "flutes" while Paul stayed at the rainbow keyboard, and Magical Mystery Tour footage played behind him. Particularly intriguing was a closeup of Paul's eye from the "original" Fool video. When projected out from dozens of the smaller video screens, the effect of lots of eyes watching the audience was visually striking! Then it was more steroid jokes as the strongman and a companion removed the "magic box" and Paul grabbed his acoustic again. "When people are around, it's not always easy to tell them what you feel," he said. "After my dear friend John passed on, I wrote this song." The following night in San Jose, he asked for, and received, a tremendous ovation for John at this point. Thus, the biggest surprise of the night turned out to be...

 

17. Here Today. I NEVER thought I'd hear him perform that one. There were not a lot of dry eyes from those who knew the song, including me, and those unfamiliar with the number were certainly won over. The "we could always sing" line generated a lot of applause. It's also worth pointing out that is was simply amazing how well he hit the "ooh, oohs" (which were awfully high notes) in this song. It seemed to me that in San Jose, he handled the end of the song differently, as though he was having a little trouble keeping his composure. I'll be interested to hear tapes of the two shows to see if it was my imagination. "Well, while we're in this kind of mood" he said, picking up a ukelele, "some of you might not know that George was a great fan of the ukelele." There was actually quite a bit about this in one of the Rolling Stone tributes to George, with Tom Petty talking about how nuts George went for ukes. "You'd go 'round for dinner at his house, and after dinner, he'd bring out the ukeleles. One for you, one for me. Anyway, not too long ago, I told him that I'd like to do a song for him, and I did this. It's my tribute to George." And so, the evening's finest moment was...

 

18. Something. On ukelele. It was just a perfect moment, I thought. As photos of George filled the visual screens, Paul sang a somewhat fast version of the Quiet One's big hit, ending with a shot of a director's chair (circa '64 perhaps?) with "George Harrison" on the back of it (perhaps surprisingly, there were no photos of John shown during Here Today). It was really moving to hear, but the "light touch" of the ukelele took away from what could have been a very sad moment. As soon as he finished, he said, "Of course, George said, 'No, it doesn't go like that!" and proceeded to play a brief reprise in quick-time, almost Python-ish style. The crowd roared once again, with laughter this time. Then it was back to acoustic guitar, with the full band helping out: the drummer up front doing brushes and so forth, for...

 

19. Eleanor Rigby. Cool graphic images of violins, as well as "muted" footage of string players accompanied this, which featured much better backing vocals than his previous band could muster. Then came the last song of this lengthy, but fantastic, acoustic set...

 

20. Here, There & Everywhere. Enjoyable, but I can't really say I remember much about this one! At the end of it, the crowd was happy to see Paul reaching for his bass once again, and the opening chords of...

 

21. Band On the Run were greeted warmly. The middle section really had a nice hard edge--I hope I can track down a tape of this soon! Footage from the Wings Over America tour played on the screens as Paul sang his biggest solo hit. Interestingly, the band footage was the night's only reference to 'Linder'. Paul never mentioned her, and aside from a brief glimpse or two, that's all she appeared in the show. Then an airline roar introduced a kick-ass version of...

 

22. Back in the CCCP, which was probably the highlight for many in the crowd that night, judging by the rapturous reception it received. Or maybe people were just thankful to hear two full-tilt rockers after a bunch of quieter numbers. As I mentioned earlier, his young band gives these numbers more of a CRUNCH than his last band, so this was truly excellent, with accompanying footage of Soviet-era photos & propaganda on the screens. Then comes introduction of band member #2, his lead guitarist. He, too, gives a lame, rehearsed-sounding greeting to the crowd while Paul ambles back to the grand piano. And then comes...

 

23. Maybe I'm Amazed. And yes, I WAS amazed that Paul was able to sing this well. I saw him do it in Chicago in '89, early in the tour, and he pretty much had to scream it, as it was too challenging for his vocal chords to do. Tonight he took it a little easier, and it sounded great (though in San Jose, it sounded like the band wasn't quite in sync to me). So, three great Paul songs in a row and then he does...

 

24. C Moon. I couldn't believe my ears. This is the "hits" section of the show, Paul!! What the heck are you doing a lame b-side for?!? Ok, so I guess this song actually was a hit, in Europe and the UK, when Hi Hi Hi got banned, but I simply can't fathom Paul's enduring fondness for it. He even went on to elaborate that it was inspired by Woolly Bully. Apparently there's a line in that one about not being "L-7", which apparently is slang for "square." So Paul thought about what the opposite of that was and came up with "C" and "moon" (the crescent variety) to form a circle instead. I think the crowd enjoyed the story, complete with Paul's hand motions, more than the song... Then it was a song "for the lovers in the audience" as he did...

 

25. My Love. Again, not one of my favorite McCartney numbers, but I can see why he plays it, though I'm still puzzled by the lack of any mention to the former Mrs. Mac. Then Paul switches to bass again, and now comes the formal introduction of band member #3. Wix, the only other Brit in the band, is at least fairly entertaining with his bit of rehearsed greeting, as he tells the crowd that he's going to play guitar on the next number and use all the chords he knows, "in the right order, too." And it's a crowd-pleasing version of...

 

26. Can't Buy Me Love, complete with lots more Beatles footage on the screens. In San Jose the next night, Paul shakes his head and says something about how "that was a few years ago, that was." Then it's back to acoustic guitar, and Paul encourages us to clap our hands and stomp our feet for...

 

27. Freedom, as the same banner used for the Super Bowl is lowered behind the band. The videos also go in for closeups on the homemade-looking banner, which gives a neat visual effect. It goes over well, and I'm quite relieved it won't be the final encore of the evening! Now comes the introduction of his other guitarist, a sort of David Spade lookalike who's the band's least "flashy" member. He gives us his rote greeting ("let's see what Paul has up his sleeve") and allows Paul to get back to the piano for...

 

28. Live and Let Die. I don't understand why, but alot of Internet McCartney fans want this one dumped from the set. I love the explosions and the fast, swirling lightshow (which was admittedly less impressive than the 89/90 & 93 outings) that accompany this song. The screens light up with images of all the Bonds--quite cool. It's as fun as always, and an obvious highlight for the audience. Showers of sparks/fireworks hail down on the crowd from the left and right of the stage at the song's conclusion. Paul's patting his heart, taking in the applause and shaking his head at the spectacle. In San Jose, he mentions that "we always do the bangs" on Live & Let Die, and that, several years ago, as he started the song, he was horrified to see a woman, "who was like 80 years old" in the audience. "We're gonna kill her, I thought, but there's nothing you can do about it at that point. So I look up, after the bangs, and she's going 'YEAH!'" in the audience." This little story was quite entertaining, especially because he hadn't told it in Oakland, and it seemed spontaneous. I wish Paul would ditch his scripted banter more often! Still at the piano, next up is a serviceable...

 

29. Let It Be. Not very many lighters in the crowd tonight. And Paul's drummer seems to want to over-complicate this one, but it's still a great tune. Enter Strongman with the rainbow piano again, and then Paul asks us all to join in with him at the end of the next tune and it's...

 

30. Hey Jude. Same as on previous tours. This time, the video screens are showing the audience, as viewed from the stage, singing along. Paul still does his "ok, only the men" and "only the women" and "you were great" stuff. Then a group bow, and the band's gone. Back after a very short break for an ovation, Paul's back at the rainbow piano (or was it the grand?) for...

 

31. The Long & Winding Road (with filmed footage of--you guessed it--a long & winding road). And I had hoped he'd skip this one. Maybe it's because it's not my favorite song, but this seemed to be the wrong slot for this one in the show. After a number of ballad-y numbers (Let it Be, My Love, Hey Jude, etc), I thought he needed to come out rocking. But I'm sure the greying boomers were happy to sit back down and feel nostalgic. Is it back to guitar next? Nope, it's...

 

32. Lady Madonna, which still sounds more like the Wings/1993 version than the Beatle version, but it's another hit with the crowd. I nearly crack up as I note a visual of Mother Teresa on the screens--she's not the first that comes to mind when I hear this song! But it turns out to be sort of a tribute to women, in general. Athletes (Mary Lou Retton), Singers (Tina Turner, Aretha), and various other famous females (the just-departed Queen Mum) turn up throughout the song, but once again, no Linda Mc! Then off goes the rainbow piano, and out comes the Hofner. Paul asks if we have just a little more energy and "1, 2, 3, 4..."

 

33. I Saw Her Standing There finishes off the first encore, to a wild reception. As Paul returns to the stage with just an acoustic guitar, it doesn't take a genius to realize that...

 

34. Yesterday is next. The Thirty-Fourth tune of the night. This breaks the record for most songs I've heard in concert by a performer (set by Paul in '93). I have no idea what he's saved for last, but I guess "Pepper" and I'm pretty close. Paul grabs his electric guitar, does a quick count-in, and we're hearing...

 

35. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise), complete with groovy acid-blotch effects on the video screens. "We hope you have enjoyed the show," sings Paul, but "it's getting very near The End." And it certainly is, as his drummer launches into the familiar Ringo Drum Roll from "The End." The three guitarists duel over solos and it's over before you know it. In San Jose it seemed like they recognized the crowd wanted it to go a bit longer and obliged--or perhaps it was my imagination. As Paul hits the "and in the end" line, the massive video screens project a warm red sunset. And as he stands, waving to the crowd, explosions of confetti go off over the center of the crowd, and he departs for the evening, amidst the "driving rain" of confetti, about 2:35 after he'd arrived.

 

On the way out, I couldn't resist asking some of the younger attendees what they thought, since my 9-year old will be accompanying me to a show in May. Even though it's after 11 o'clock, the kids I talk to seem quite enthusiastic. Clearly the majority of those sitting in the $125 seats near me were older than I was, but I suspect the $50 & $85 seats might have had a larger percentage of twenty-somethings present. Leaving the Bay Area, I heard a story on one of the local stations about people who had pretty awful seats in Oakland, only to be approached by one of Paul's men, asking if they were "big fans". They wisely answered in the affirmative and found themselves upgraded to front row seats...

 

However, one of my favorite moments must've been when I was standing in the lengthy merchandise lines after the show on opening night. Perhaps the final word on the ticket prices was uttered by some very excited concertgoer behind me, who said loudly to his friends, or perhaps just to all those within hearing distance:

 

"That was so WORTH IT!"