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| Paul McCartney at Lollapalooza | Photo by Jason Gonulsen |
When I was a kid, I loved Michael Jackson, even though”Thriller” terrified me, as did the album cover for Bad. And even though my mom is the biggest Beatles fan that I know — she saw them live, twice (!) — for some reason, when I was growing up, I thought Paul McCartney was in Michael Jackson’s band. Maybe it was because of this.
I never got to see Michael Jackson live. And never in my wildest dreams did I think I would see Paul McCartney. But I have, three times now — twice with my mom, and once this past summer at Lollapalooza.
Each show was its own experience, and since I don’t like comparing live shows to one another, I won’t start now. But McCartney’s Lollapalooza set was special. Earlier in the day, my friend and co-photographer, Bridgette, and I made our way through the crowd to get as close as possible, since only a select few photographers were allowed in the photo pit. This turned out to be a blessing of sorts as we were able to watch the entire show, which featured McCartney bringing out Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes for “Get Back.”
But the chilling moment was during “Hey Jude,” when 100,000 behind me, or, better yet, all around me, sang along: “Nah…nah nah…nah nah nah nah…” I’m getting chills thinking about it right now. What a day. What a moment. What a great time to be alive.
