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July 2, 2005
The concert line-up:
Alicia Keys, Black Eyed Peas, Bon Jovi, Dave Matthews Band,
Def Leppard, Destiny's Child, Jars Of Clay, Will Smith, Jay-Z,
Josh Groban, Kaiser Chiefs, Kanye West, Keith Urban, Linkin Park,
Maroon 5, P Diddy, Rob Thomas, Sarah McLachlan, Toby Keith,
and Stevie Wonder.
Would there be any surprises with the line-up at Live 8?
There was no surprise of the heart. Somewhere between
hundreds of thousands and a million and a half people...
all with a good thought in mind and an open heart came together
in Philadelphia for a giant free concert. The result -- it sure felt
good!
That's what I went to see. That's what I got.
However, I was pleasantly surprised by some bands
that I had never respected. For various reasons,
some of the bands that were scheduled to play
had always been on my "I hate those posers" list.
But, since the crowd was open hearted, I thought I try to be
open minded.
In particular, Toby Keith, Def Leppard, Linkin Park and Maroon 5,
had been those over played radio bands that hadn't moved me.
Maybe it was the two dimensional aspect of recorded music?
Maybe it was having heard certain songs too many times?
Maybe it was me trying to be contrary to popular opinion?
Maybe it was all of the above. However, on this day, I had
decided to give them a chance. Here were the pleasant surprises:
Toby Keith -- what is that type of music... country? Whaterver it was,
sounded good. And, the cover of Phil Collins',
Another Day In Paradise hit the spot.
Def Leppard -- rocked. Though they had fallen from popularity
in the past few years, it didn't slow them down on stage. One
hit song played after another hit song got the crowd going.
Maroon 5 -- kicked butt on a cover of Neil Young's,
Keep On Rockin' In The Free World. I mean they really showed
their ability as live performers. Even songs that sound bland
on the studio recordings, turned into "in your face" versions
when played live.
Linkin Park -- blew the crowd away... I lost sight of them
when the port-a-pots became grandstands. As soon as they took the stage,
the crowd transformed. It felt like the size of the crowd doubled.
When they hit the first note of "Numb", the place went wild. You could
have lit-up Philly's lights for a week if you could tap into the
energy of the crowd.
There was no surprise with Stevie Wonder. I'd always imagined
he was a special presence. And, he is. Higher Ground elevated
the masses and knocked the funk out of 'em. I suppose the
surprise with Stevie was his ability to have had Toby Keith,
Def Leppard, Maroon 5 and Linkin Park as warm-up bands,
yet still be able to transcend all ages and time.
Philadelphia