Paul's "Out There" tour (contains spoilers) | Page 37 | Fab Forum | The Beatles Bible

WATCH OUT NOW – take care, beware of many spoilers…

Saturday could quite possibly have been the second best day of my life (said the man married to the same beautiful bride for 30 years!). It started out with a wonderfully lazy Saturday morning spent sipping coffee on the couch with Zag and Zog watching reruns of old, favorite classic shows. The anticipation of the Paul McCartney show that evening had been building for some time, but it really didn’t slap me across the face until I started packing for my trip to the Capital District of New York State. At this point, adrenaline would be my companion for the duration of the day, night and wee hours of Sunday morning. But, I am getting ahead of myself.

After exchanging good-byes, embraces and kisses with Z & Z, I drove the 4 hours to my home town just outside of Troy NY. I was flying solo as this show was a present for my 50th birthday from the aforementioned bride and she wanted to afford me the best seat possible (what have I done to deserve her?). The plan was to have an early dinner with my parents and then spend some time with my brother and his family while getting “warmed up” for the show. Once I arrived in town, I was informed that my Zister-in-law managed to find a ticket that day for my brother. My friend adrenaline then invited all of his friends to come over to my place and they completely took over. Ahhh Girl, on her way to see Ringo with ExTex and their spouses, called me an hour and a half before the concert and we exchanged well wishes to enjoy the respective shows. I think she managed to get a word or two into the conversation. Adrenaline, along with his family and an ale or three had my mouth working at astonishing speeds. When my Z-i-l dropped us off at the Times Union Center in Albany NY, the atmosphere was electric and eclectic. What a diverse audience! Suffice it to say there were children of all ages in attendance soaking up every glorious moment of pre-show anticipation. After walking around for a while and enjoying one last cold one, my brother and I went to our respective seats and waited.

Macca came on a bit late, (brother says it was about 8:18) but no one seemed to mind. Especially when the band came out and opened with a very rocking ‘Eight Days A Week ’. Paul looked and sounded fresh and energized. It was great to see that he was in good health. I won’t go into every song, but will hit some of the highlights. An entire set list can be found here. And now, the highlights:

Opening – I want to know who Paul’s and Ringo’s tailors are. They wear the coolest jackets!! Please forgive all of us in attendance for singing over Paul. We couldn’t help it!

‘Eleanor Rigby ’ was a highlight because Macca used images from a local artist as the background on the big screens. A classy touch to be sure. You can’t see many of the images, but here is the YT video.

We were treated to the first ever live performance of ‘On My Way To Work’. Before playing it, Paul said that the lighting crew and the sound crew had no idea they were going to play it – only the band knew. What ensued was a no-frills (the “frillers” were unaware!), wonderfully fresh performance of one of my favorites from the NEW album.

Without a doubt, the biggest moment of the evening came from a couple who showed the rest of us what the best way is to meet a Beatle on stage. During the show, the cameras would show signs from the audience to be displayed on the big screens. These folks obviously made an impression on him when they held up the following signs: Hers – “He won’t marry me til he meets you”. His – “I have the ring and I’m 64”. I will let Sir Paul regale you with the rest of the story and the ensuing sing-along.

That happened during the second encore!!

More than once, myself and other people in my section would respond to Paul’s post song “thank you!” with a resounding “NO – THANK YOU!!”

When the show was over, I found my brother. Without saying a word, we embraced. That was the first time all night that I wept. I thought I would have lost it long before that, but Mr. Adrenaline and his friends had me laughing, jumping, dancing, singing and screaming all night long. It was the first time in at least 25 years that an usher had to tell me to get down off of my chair. That was the last time all night that any part of me touched that chair. Anyway, we eventually made our way down the street where Z-i-l was waiting to take us home. A glorious party took us into the early hours of Sunday morning as the Adrenaline clan eventually parted company. It was a night I hope to never forget. Thank you, Sir Paul. Thank you.

If you have not yet seen it, here is a review of the show I found online.

Envy is something I don’t usually feel. But today, I am incredibly jealous of anyone who has tickets to see future dates on this tour. Get ready faceo!…and bring lots of socks as they will surely be knocked off.

Crinsk said

The only weird thing was that I think the crowd could’ve/should’ve been more excited; things seemed flat, if you can believe it.  I couldn’t.  I felt bad!  

Apparently you were not seated in my section. We had a blast.

I’m glad you enjoyed the show, though. And a free sound-check – stellar!! That must have been very cool.