Paul McCartney Plays Citi Field

I used to scoff at the term "rock god."   To me, "music icon" seemed good enough.  However, after seeing former Beatle, Paul McCartney, revisit Citi Field, which used to be Shea Stadium, some 45 years after the Beatles first appeared there, I now understand and agree with the term.  

Citi Field, the new home for the Mets, was packed to the rafters Friday night.  People of all ages sported Beatles t-shirts as a buzz started to build in the anticipatory audience.  The concert was supposed to start at 6:30pm but the opening act, Dubliiners The Script, didn't start belting out tunes until 7:30. Just as people were getting restless and a little obnoxious, watching streaming collages of McCartney and Beatles images and listening to McCartney tunes throbbing to disco beats, Sir Paul McCartney energetically entered the stage, starting off with one of the tunes from his Electric Arguments album.  He looked amazingly fresh and seemed to have limitless energy. Once he started to get into Beatles tunes like "The Long and Winding Road" and "Eleanor Rigby," the audience was totally enthralled and love was in the air.  However, it was clear, that despite their being fans of the music, the younger fans didn't really understand the history of the songs or the true meanings of the lyrics.  They didn't really understand that, unlike current-day banal, corporate music, this music defined a generation.  "Macca" gave a nod to former friends and bandmates, John Lennon and George Harrison, when he sung "Here Today," "Give Peace a Chance" and "Something," for which he grew noticeably wistful.  After a short-break, he and the band returned to do an electric rendition of "Live and Let Die," with glorious pyrotechnics to boot.  

McCartney had joined Billy Joel last year at his concert for the closing of Shea Stadium and last night, Joel returned the favor by chiming in on and raking the piano keys for "I Saw Her Standing There." McCartney put a perfect cap on the night with "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," easing the audience out of its euphoria.

What I realized during the concert last night is that  true musicians, those who stand the test of time, are those who not only have a universal message and brilliant lyrics, but touch your soul and give you a little glimpse of heaven. Sir Paul McCartney is not only a consummate musician, but a musical sage.  Rock on!