Music Shows

In this article we’re going to review one of the most famous concerts in rock and roll history, The Beatles performance at Shea Stadium.

The Beatles are arguably the most famous band in rock and roll history. They certainly were the start of the British revolution that spawned many bands with that Brit sound, but none of them sounded quite like the Fab Four.

The Beatles first concert at Shea Stadium in New York set records for the time. The attendance was 55,600 people and the money made was over 57,000 pounds. Not too bad for August 15, 1965. The noise factor at the stadium that day was so loud that John Lennon said it was “louder than God.” Lennon had a habit of comparing the Beatles to the almighty, which ultimately got him and the group into a lot of trouble in their early days.

Most people know about the concert date and what was played there, but what few people know is what happened to the Beatles on the way to Shea Stadium. While it was nothing traumatic, it is important to note that in spite of their enormous popularity, they were in total awe of what they were walking into.

On the drive to the stadium, George Harrison was totally in awe of the amount of traffic headed that way. The freeway was a total disaster area. Cars were hardly moving and for a while it looked like the Beatles themselves would be late for their own concert had it not been for the helicopter that took them from Wall Street to the stadium. The view from up above was as if people were trying to escape some sort of national disaster.

They wouldn’t allow the Beatles to land in the stadium so they had to land on top of the roof at the World’s Fair. From there, it was one hundred yards to the stadium in a Wells Fargo armored truck. Talk about security. On the drive in the truck, which had no windows, to the stadium, insane kids were banging on the outside of the truck and rocking it back and forth. At one point George thought the truck was going to be turned over and they were all going to be torn to pieces. All of this in spite of weeks drawing up plans for how they would get the group to the stadium.

Ironically, the concert, compared to modern times, was very low budget. The amps were Vox Ac-30s. The group was offered to have anything they wanted made for them, but they turned down all offers. They wanted to play with the equipment that they had always used. Consequently, the sound quality was not great. But the experience was one that will probably never be felt by anyone ever again.

For those interested in the music, the highlights of the concert were “A Hard Day’s Night”, “Help”, “I’m Down”, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, “Ticket To Ride”, “I Feel Fine”, and “Twist And Shout”.

In this article we’re going to review one of the most famous reunion concerts in pop history, the reunion of Simon and Garfunkel in Central Park.

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were one of the biggest singing duos in the late 60s and early 70s. To understand why this concert was so important one first needs to know about the events that led up to it.

Right after their recording of their landmark album “Bridge Over Troubled Water” Simon and Garfunkel had a huge falling out. In a nutshell, Paul Simon felt he didn’t get the credit he deserved for their Grammy winning title song from that album. Because Paul Simon actually wrote the tune he felt that he should be the one identified with it. But because of Art Garfunkel’s incredible vocals Paul Simon was always overshadowed even though he was the creative force behind the duo’s success. This became quite evident after their breakup when Garfunkel’s music career fizzled and Simon’s took off.

There was a period of time when people felt these two would never speak to each other again. It was more than ten years after their breakup that Paul Simon finally approached Art Garfunkel and asked him if he would consider getting together to do a concert in Central Park in New York City. Quite honestly, Simon never expected Garfunkel to agree but he did. The rest is history. So on September 19, 1981, Simon and Garfunkel played together for the first time in over 10 years in front of more than 500,000 people in Central Park. This is more people than attended Woodstock, just so you understand the significance of this event.

The duo had a pretty decent backing band as well. They had Steve Gadd and Grady Tate on drums, David Brown and Pete Carr on guitars, Anthony Jackson on bass, Richard Tee on keyboards, Rob Mounsey on synthesizers, John Gatchell and John Eckert on trumpets and Dave Tofani and Gerry Niewood on saxophones. This tight bunch of musicians put on a performance that for those in attendance will never be forgotten.

The truth is, anything these two would have sang together would have been a treat but the highlights were nothing short of the best these two had to offer. The concert started with one of their greatest songs and Grammy winner, “Mrs. Robinson.” Two songs later they came through with “America” which got an ovation that had to be heard in New Jersey. Other highlights included “Homeward Bound”, “The Sounds Of Silence”, “American Tune”, a solo Simon effort from 1973, “The Boxer” and of course the great “Bridge Over Troubled Water” which swept the Grammy awards show broadcast in 1971. Simon also did a few more of his solo efforts including “Still Crazy After All These Years”, “Late In The Evening”, “Kodachrome”, “Fifty Ways To Leave Your Lover,” and “Slip Slidin Away.”

For 500,000 people it was a once in a lifetime experience. Simon and Garfunkel were back together again…at least for one glorious day.

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Concerts

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