Paul McCartney performed an intimate concert before 1,400 people at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York City, USA, on 13 December 2010.
It was the 31st concert of the Up And Coming Tour, which lasted for 38 dates between March 2010 and June 2011. This show was part of Sirius XM Radio’s celebrations on acquiring 20 million subscribers.
It was McCartney’s first performance at the legendary venue, which he described as “the Holy Grail,” adding that he “dreamed of playing here for many a year.”
McCartney and his band performed for competition winners and celebrities, playing a truncated version of the set he’s been using on his Up And Coming Tour with some new additions. Chief among them was a performance of ‘One After 909’, one of the earliest songs he wrote with John Lennon.
McCartney also played a cover version of Marvin Gaye’s ‘Hitch Hike’, which took three attempts due to problems with the sound system. He also performed his soundcheck staple ‘Petrushka’, and the seasonal classic ‘Wonderful Christmastime’ – with backing from a youth choir.
Celebrities in attendance included Keith Richards, Jerry Seinfeld, Simon Le Bon, Kevin Bacon, Tony Bennett, Alec Baldwin, John McEnroe, and Howard Stern.
McCartney’s band was Paul ‘Wix’ Wickens (vocals, keyboards, guitar, percussion, harmonica), Brian Ray (vocals, guitar, bass), Rusty Anderson (vocals, guitar), and Abe Laboriel Jr (vocals, drums).
Concert setlist
- ‘Magical Mystery Tour’
- ‘Jet’
- ‘Drive My Car’
- ‘All My Loving’
- ‘One After 909’
- ‘Let Me Roll It’
- ‘The Long And Winding Road’
- ‘Nineteen Hundred And Eighty Five’
- ‘Maybe I’m Amazed’
- ‘Blackbird’
- ‘I’m Looking Through You’
- ‘And I Love Her’
- ‘Petrushka’
- ‘Dance Tonight’
- ‘Eleanor Rigby’
- ‘Hitch Hike’
- ‘Band On The Run’
- ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da’
- ‘Back In The USSR’
- A Day In the Life
- ‘Give Peace A Chance’
- ‘Let It Be’
- ‘Hey Jude’
Up And Coming Tour dates
- 28 March 2010: Jobing.com Arena, Glendale, USA
- 30 March 2010: Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, USA
- 31 March 2010: Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, USA
- 3 April 2010: Sun Life Stadium, Miami, USA
- 5 April 2010: Coliseo de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- 27 May 2010: Foro Sol, Mexico City, Mexico
- 28 May 2010: Foro Sol, Mexico City, Mexico
- 12 June 2010: RDS Arena, Dublin, Ireland
- 13 June 2010: Isle of Wight Festival
- 20 June 2010: Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland
- 26 June 2010: Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales
- 27 June 2010: Hard Rock Calling Festival
- 10 July 2010: AT&T Park, San Francisco, USA
- 13 July 2010: Rio Tinto Stadium, Salt Lake City, USA
- 15 July 2010: Pepsi Center, Denver, USA
- 24 July 2010: Sprint Center, Kansas City, USA
- 26 July 2010: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, USA
- 28 July 2010: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, USA
- 8 August 2010: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Canada
- 9 August 2010: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Canada
- 12 August 2010: Bell Centre, Montreal, Canada
- 14 August 2010: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, USA
- 15 August 2010: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, USA
- 18 August 2010: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, USA
- 19 August 2010: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, USA
- 7 November 2010: Estádio Beira Rio, Porto Alegre, Brazil
- 10 November 2010: Estadio River Plate, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- 11 November 2010: Estadio River Plate, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- 21 November 2010: Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil
- 22 November 2010: Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil
- 13 December 2010: Apollo Theater, New York City, USA
- 18 December 2010: Hammersmith Apollo, London, England
- 20 December 2010: O2 Academy, Liverpool, England
- 9 May 2011: Estadio Monumental, Lima, Peru
- 11 May 2011: Estadio Nacional, Santiago, Chile
- 22 May 2011: Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- 23 May 2011: Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- 10 June 2011: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, USA
Also on this day...
- 2023: Paul McCartney live: Estádio Couto Pereira, Curitiba
- 2012: Paul McCartney live: 121212: The Concert For Sandy Relief
- 1974: George Harrison live: Capital Centre, Landover
- 1965: Paul McCartney takes LSD for the first time
- 1965: The Beatles discuss their third film project
- 1963: The Beatles live: Gaumont Cinema, Southampton
- 1962: The Beatles live: Corn Exchange, Bedford
- 1961: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (evening)
- 1961: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (lunchtime)
Want more? Visit the Beatles history section.
always a trooper Paul, never lets anything get in the way of a good song. Great version
“Keith Richards, Jerry Seinfeld, Simon Le Bon, Kevin Bacon, Tony Bennett, Alec Baldwin, John McEnroe and Howard Stern.”
+ Ron Wood, Paul Simon, Jim Keltner (!), Matt Damon, Ben Stiller. Probably a few more.
An amazing show. I’ve heard the mp3’s going around and they don’t really convey how exciting it was in the room.
It must have been a great show. It’s great he played at a place where James Brown and many other soul greats performed…..