Security issues cloud second Paul McCartney Yankee Stadium show (photos)

Bob Gannon, who attended both Paul McCartney shows at Yankee Stadium and had noted some concerns with the security at the first show on Friday, says the two shows at Yankee Stadium proved that the House That Ruth Built may not be the best concert venue.

 

"Going in to this, I was really excited to see my favorite performer in my favorite baseball team's stadium!," he wrote us. "To be able to see Paul perform while I get a wonderful chance to watch the show while actual being in centerfield in the most historic field in baseball history.

 

"But two days at this venue only proved to be personally disappointing. This is a home game for me, too, being from Jersey and it's a time that I see so many friends from the area that I know sharing the Macca experience. So I am always excited for New York area shows. 

 

"The first show was just kind of nuts for me....security ordering people to stay seated, more floor seats with people in them than I've ever seen in 97 shows, Paul many flubbed lyrics and numerous friends up close all noting that Paul did not look well at points of the show and actually worrying about his health," he said. "That's not something that I noticed because, as usual, I was too busy taking pictures. And even with the flubbed lyrics, I thought personally that it was a hot performance and that a lot of the peripheral stuff stripped away some of the gloss. Plus I figured, there is still night #2 and things have got to get better .Right?"

 

Well, said Gannon, they didn't.

 

"So I'm getting ready to enter the park for round two when I get a text from my friend already inside. It's a warning that there is some kind of crazy security issue at least where he was sitting where security was already saying that no picture taking would be tolerated. He was challenged at the gate and then again at his seat. I got through security without any problems, but as I got to my seat about 20 minutes before the start of the show I was preparing my two cameras that I have been allowed to take into every show that I go to and see security already going up and down the aisles to each side of me stopping people from taking pictures from every camera and every cell phone.

 

"Now some friends were surprised when I told them this because where they were there was no such problem with security in their area yet a lot of friends did have the same problem. I in was middle section A4 floor row 15. And to my right the aisle was patrolled by four security persons that paced up and down the length of that section stopping all who attempted to take pictures." 

 

Bob said he was one of those warned. 

 

"Very early on, I got caught and warned but I decided to try to be sneaky as they couldn't keep this kind of pressure up for long. But then I continued to watch and saw no less than four people kicked out of the show when caught a second time. I then watched in horror as a good friend sitting in row 5 was pulled from his seat surrounded by three guards. My friend tried to explain that this was an allowable thing and actually showed them the sound check letter saying that cameras were fine. The guard answered this is not sound check anymore and were discussing having him removed from the venue. 

 

"Then enter as masked super hero -- Brian Riddle, in charge of site security, jumped the barricade and told them my friend was fine and that his camera and picture taking was allowed. He then had a pow wow with Mark Hamilton, McCartney's security director, who I haven't seen in awhile, and told security to back off. Of course, already almost an hour into the show I continued to try to conceal my photography as I was unaware at that time that they called the dogs off and already having one warning was not going to chance getting kicked out."

 

Gannon says McCartney's performance at the second show was better than the first. 

 

"The good thing about them being camera nazis was that they had no time to tell everyone to sit in their seats and the floor for the most part was up on it's feet and into it. Paul's performance tonight was even better, only one lyric flub that I heard and his voice sounded considerable stronger tonight to me. He shuffled some songs in and out of the set and moved positions of some songs. I've seen the set lists already up so I won't waste space on that. 

 

And the show had an added attraction, he said.

 

"The big surprise came in the first encore when Billy Joel joined Paul on stage after Paul announced him as a friend of mine, a friend to Yankee Stadium and a friend of New York. Billy Joel came out and went on the piano as Paul added 'I saw her standing there.' Billy looked very well, happy and healthy.

 

Gannon says despite the security problems, the second show was the better of the two. "All of my friends after the show all thought that this show was far superior to the first show all around. Even with the security hassles tonight it didn't detract much from the show as everything else came together nicely. The only sad lesson learned here is that maybe Yankee Stadium is not a good venue for future McCartney shows!"