Tuesday

Happy Tuesday, Gerbil Nation!
Good morning, Fatwa, and Sven!

Concert report:
Mrs. Paddy and I were impressed by how well organized the event was -- from traffic control to food and beverage services to restrooms and crowd control. At 85,000 attendees each night, there were more people present than live in most towns in America. Each act played a minimum of two hours.

Friday night -- Bob Dylan and the Stones. Bob still can’t sing, but the music and lyrics were still good. Dylan doesn’t interact with the crowd, but he did spend some time in front, facing the audience. The Rolling Stones put on a fantastic show, with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards demonstrating more energy and stamina than a lot of people one third their age. Their playlist covered the decades.

Saturday night -- Neil Young and Paul McCartney. Neil’s voice sounded better than it did ten years ago. He opened with a solo acoustic set that took you to the heart of his music and lyrics. Later, with his band with him, he showed that he can still play better than most. It’s hard to believe he can still move his fingers that fast! Paul McCartney still sounded good and put on a visually and aurally pleasing show. He covered the gamut of his career, interspersing personal stories that brought home the point that others repeated -- these guys are all friends and have known each other for decades; they’re happy to play together and no one is trying to blow anyone else off the stage. Near the end of the show, McCartney invited Neil Young back on stage to join him in Golden Slumbers and Why Don’t We Do It in the Road. During the former, when the two joined together at one mic to harmonize, the result was so bad that they each pulled out one earpiece and McCartney quipped “Now you know we’re actually live, not a recording.”

Sunday night -- The Who and Roger Waters. The Who brought all the sound and energy to the stage that you would expect. From their early work to Tommy and Quadraphenia, Pete Townsend’s skills as a composer and musician were on display. It was incredible. Roger Waters put on a show that was Pink Floyd to the nth degree. I’ve always loved Pink Floyd, but I realized that 2 1/2 hours of it is just too much. The on-screen visuals and cgi were incredible, as was the use of the speakers throughout the venue to surround you with sound (helicopters flying in from behind you, voices talking to your left, laughter to your right, etc.). While I appreciate the good work that Waters does with disabled Vets at Walter Reed, it got too political for my tastes, in the latter half of the show -- Trump as Hitler, Trump in KKK garb, the worst of Trump quotes. There was a 60-ft long inflatable pig that appeared between the seats and the general admission area that was emblazoned with anti-Trump slogans. Pro-Palestinian messages were also given time as well as a shout-out to the BDS movement. I wanted to apologize to the young Israeli behind me, but he had already left.