PAUL EN ECHO ARENA - REPORTE DESDE LIVERPOOL PARA BEATLES MAGAZINE

Reporte de Bob Gannon desde Liverpool para BEATLES MAGAZINE - Gracias Bob y felicitaciones, este fue tú show Nro 100! :


Robert Gannon´report from Liverpool to BEATLES MAGAZINE - Thanks Bob and congratulations, it's your show number 100!

Paul was highly interactive and visibly happy to be playing in front of the hometown. At one point he started listing shows from the tour....Brazil, Las Vegas, Yankee Stadium, etc.....and how amazing the shows were to close with.....But this one will be the best!!!! The Liverpool crowd cheered in approval and were into this show from the first song throughout. As he described to the crowd that while playing in Liverpool that a flood of emotions and memories come to him. I have never seen Paul address so many people by pointing, nodding or other cues than tonight.

It seems that the audience was filled with family, friends and FANS! While pointing out people from different countries, he also acknowledged the "fans on the run" who follow him all over the world. Lots of smiling and laughing on stage. Two moments that stand out...He starts telling the "I will" story and the Royal Wedding when the crowd booed the Royal Couple! Then later, he was telling a story about Cilla Black and he was rained down with boos. On both occasions he found it very entertaining and laughed.

You figured that he'd at least match the length of the Manchester show with the two added songs. But of course, always having something special up his sleeve for Liverpool gave us not only "Ram On" and "Wonderful Christmastime" (with kids choir from LIPA) but also added "Penny Lane" and "Mull of Kintyre". Of course Mull had a bagpipe band and during the song, he turned around to look at the bagpipe band and then spun towards Brian and then back to the audience with just the biggest, widest smile on his face. This was the look of a man who came in knowing that he was not taking any prisoners and knowing that everyone in the arena was leaving delighted none any more than himself.

There just seemed to be an additional Hometown Hero done good vibe not only from the crowd receiving this incredible performance but from the man providing it!. He really walked around with a swagger last night.

After the show, the crowd a buzz with Macca and the show. It seemed like everyone since the show will ask you if you saw the show and when answered yes, will say..."It was great right?". Yes, it was!! The whole crowd did leave happy! In fact, the local papers review the shows as they come through and nobody to date has received a perfect score........well of course up to our boy Paul McCartney!!!! Paul saw the 100th show sign and nodded his head. Later Rusty saw it, gave me a slight bow and mouthed "Thanks!". After the show, we went back to the VIP room where we partied until they closed.

There was a DJ and open bar so it was fun to have this extra party with friends and even made the day even better. Another moment I forgot, when Paul tells the "Blackbird" story, he begins to play and quickly has a lyric flub.....he stopped the song and said, let's start all over again! He then said, "This only proves that it's live" which was met with a rain of cheers. Also, my friend Rose made a great double sided sign which a bunch of us held up on cue. The front was yellow sun with the Word on it and then the flip side said "All you need is love". Paul and band really liked the signs and even the video staff and MJ Kim loved them. Well, that's it for now....here's the setlist:

1. Hello, Goodbye
2. Junior's Farm
3. All My Loving
4. Jet
5. Drive My Car
6. Sing the Changes
7. The Night Before
8. Let Me Roll It/ foxy lady
9. Paperback Writer
10. The Long and Winding Road
11. Come and Get It
12. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five
13. Maybe I'm Amazed
14. I've Just Seen a Face
15. I Will
16. Blackbird
17. Here Today
18. Dance Tonight
19. Mrs. Vandebilt
20. Eleanor Rigby
21. Ram On
22. Something
23. Penny Lane
24. Band on the Run
25. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
26. Back in the U.S.S.R.
27. I've Got a Feeling
28. A Day in the Life/ Give Peace a Chance
29. Let It Be
30. Live and Let Die
31. Hey Jude
32. Encore:

32. The Word/ All you need is Love
33. Wonderful Christmastime
34. Day Tripper
35. Get Back
36. Encore 2:

36. Yesterday
37. Mull of Kintyre
38. Helter Skelter
39. Golden Slumbers/Carry that Weight/The End

SOUNDCHECK:

Let's start with the soundcheck. We checked into the Echo Arena at around 3:30 PM and security was quite tight checking all bags and cameras as well as doing pat down searches. Very professional and courteous about doing it though. We were led down to a private room where we sat at our assigned tables for drinks. Within a half hour, we were led out into the arena where we were seated for the arrival of Paul. On Paul's arrival, you could see young Beatrice on stage...she waved to an uproar of cheers to which she waved to the crowd. As they walked her across the stage, she continued to wave to the crowd as the cheered her all the way across. I think she may have inherited her father's love of the stage because she did not appear to want to leave. Once again, the bigger cameras were not tolerated and the Event Travel team were proactive in shutting anyone down that they thought may be recording. Paul arrived and greeted the group and kicked into a nice set. He started out with "Honey Hush" which really rocked. He also played a rollicking version of "Blue Suede Shoes". He broke out the rare "Ebony and Ivory" out as well. As he does often, Paul dedicated "San Francisco Bay Blues" to Shelley Lazar who was unable to make this trip but she is the sweet lady who takes care of the VIP folks!. During "Petrushka" Paul told the story about falling in love with her in Russia and then moving to Liverpool where he got a job at the Echo Arena as a security guard. He said it was a nice job but he would frequently think of Petrushka. It was a cute little version that hasn't seem to run it's course yet nor have soundcheckers seem to be tired of it. A yell out request was made for "Beautiful Night" while Paul was on the piano. Also another fantastic version of "Sun is Shining". He began to play a few chords of it which very quickly tapered off into an instrumental. But a little closer to being played....however far it still may be! Here's the soundcheck set list

01. Honey Hush

02. Honey Don't

03. Blue Suede Shoes

04. Highway

05. Ebony and Ivory

06. Only Mamma Knows

07. Penny Lane

08. Celebration

09. CMoon

10. Things we Said Today

11. San Francisco Bay Blues (To Shelley Lazar)

12. Jam

13. It's So Easy

14. Sun is Shining

15. Petrushka

16. Something

17. Yesterday

18. Lady Madonna

As they led us out, we could see Wix with the accordian waiting for us to leave and shortly after heard bagpipe music. So we figured what was coming. We were then led back down to the VIP room where we received dinner, drinks and our VIP special gifts. Right before taking us back upstairs for the show, they let us know that there was a VIP party for an hour and 20 minutes after the show was over with open bar.