ONE ON ONE : April 19 2016 - Vancouver, BC - Rogers Arena

Paul McCartney salutes the crowd during the first of two concerts at Rogers Arena on Tuesday night.GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


www.calgaryherald.com
Review: Vintage Paul McCartney gets 'intimate' at Rogers Arena
FRANCOIS MARCHAND, VANCOUVER SUN
04.19.2016

VANCOUVER April 19 2016. Paul McCartney gestures to the crowd as he walks on stage at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016.( Gerry Kahrmann / PNG staff photo)

Paul McCartney

April 19 (again April 20) | Rogers Arena

Vancouver — Thankfully this time around it took much less than 48 years for Paul McCartney to make a return visit to Vancouver.

Less than four years after Macca’s mega concert at the tail end of his On The Run tour at BC Place, the legendary Beatle was offering fans not one but two shows at Rogers Arena during his One On One tour.

Let’s call this the “intimate” Macca experience, if you will.

Playing in front of 16,000 fans of all ages is much different than rocking 50,000, and the vibe at Rogers Arena was much more up close and personal than in 2012.

That’s not to say it wasn’t just as epic as the last time around.

Playing for close to three hours and performing a set comprising three dozens of classic cuts culled from his days with the Fab Four, Wings and from his solo catalogue, McCartney, 73, was relentless.

Armed with his Hofner bass, Sir Paul came on the stage to the final string swells of A Day In The Life, launching into A Hard Day’s Night with the help of his longtime band consisting of guitarists Rusty Anderson and Brian Ray, Paul “Wix” Wickens on keys and monster drummer Abe Laboriel, Jr.

“I’m getting the feeling we’re going to have a good time here tonight,” McCartney said after Save Us, from his 2013 album New.

There were very few breaks and pauses, save for Sir Paul to “take a minute and drink it all in,” as he did after Can’t Buy Me Love.

Garbed in signature blue jacket, white shirt and black pants.

He seemed to pose for the crowd, as he often does, to let fans drink it all in as well and, perhaps, snap a few shots of their hero.

The ultra crisp LED screens made sure no one missed any of the action, and they were often used to revisit old memories, including rarely seen footage of the Fab Four goofing off.

McCartney didn’t waste any time turning into his cheeky self. Who would’ve thought he would pull out a Kraftwerk-esque Temporary Secretary, complete with electro images of typewriters and fax machines, just because he heard a DJ in the UK had been playing the song a lot.

It was a weird way to warm up the crowd before the real blockbuster stuff, but it worked.

Riffs don’t come much bigger than Let Me Roll It, a super charged crunch monster backed by a staccato drum break that could belong in Led Zeppelin’s songbook. A little Foxey Lady outro to boot? By that point everyone on stage was loose and juiced, McCartney rocking a red splattered Gibson Les Paul.

While there were a few repeat moments from BC Place, especially in the scripted bit — the Jimi Hendrix playing Sgt. Pepper’s anecdote gets told almost every show — the Rogers Arena concert was, as advertised, quite different.

What a treat to see McCartney lose himself into I’ve Got A Feeling, where the whole band was singing along and feeling the groove.

My Valentine brought out local favourite Diana Krall on the piano, much to the delight of the crowd. Krall played on the studio version of the song, found on McCartney’s Kisses On The Bottom.

McCartney showed he was straining a bit on that one, seemingly more comfortable belting and wailing on Wings’ Nineteen Hundred And Eighty-Five or Maybe I’m Amazed, dedicated as usual to Linda.

The frail moments gave McCartney’s 73 years of age their weight, though, adding a certain humanity to a guy who’s been seen as forever young. With that in mind, Here There and Everywhere, on piano, and a jangly We Can Work It Out took on a new meaning.

“Life is very short and there’s no time for fussing and fighting, my friend,” McCartney sang, the accordion played by Wix giving Paul’s worn voice a slightly funerary edge.  

Give Macca some credit, though. The guy just can’t stop. No costume changes (save for removing his jacket) and no backstage breaks.

Artists half his age would buckle and fold over like cheap cardboard cutouts.

Speaking of cardboard, there was plenty in the room, namely a bunch of signs held aloft by excited fans.

“Your mind says don’t read the signs, and then there another part of your mind that says, ‘Read the signs,'” McCartney said with a chuckle.

“The thing is, if I make mistakes, I’m going to blame the signs.”

But there were few missteps. Even if there had been a whole bunch, no one would’ve said a darn thing. McCartney deserves such reverence.

An acoustic portion played inside an LED display looking like an abandoned cottage included The Quarrymen’s In Spite Of All The Danger, The Beatles’ You Won’t See Me, Love Me Do (dedicated to George Martin — what a treat), And I Love Her, a stark Blackbird, of course, and Here Today, dedicated to John Lennon.

It was mostly heavy artillery material after that: Lady Madonna, a solid FourFiveSeconds (the song McCartney recorded with Rihanna and Kanye West), a weeping Eleanor Rigby, the circus psychedelia of Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite (with lasers!), and Something (on ukulele, with a nod to George Harrison).

Let’s not forget Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da (cue the arena sing-along), Band on the Run, Back in the U.S.S.R., Let It Be, Live and Let Die (with huge pyro blasts, lasers — the works), and Hey Jude (which put the fans in the spotlight and on screen).

In the end, it was vintage McCartney — getting older, as we all do — singing songs that will outlast us all.

Encore notes

– The Tennant family, sporting their Sgt. Pepper’s uniforms, were invited on stage to get dad Jody and mom Helen signed by Sir Paul during Tuesday’s encore. Kids Solstice, 10, Akaya, 13, and Ocean, 16, also stepped up to the microphone to chat with Macca and the crowd.

– The Delta Police Pipe Band made an appearance during a performance of Mull of Kintyre, like they did at BC Place in 2012.

– Other songs during Tuesday’s encore included Yesterday, Birthday, and the Abbey Road finale of Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight, and The End.

vancouversun.com
Photos: Paul McCartney rocks Vancouver
VANCOUVER SUN
April 20 2016

Paul McCartney, the legendary Beatle, takes Vancouver by storm during his concert as part of the One On One tour.


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney gestures to the crowd as he walks on stage at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016.( Gerry Kahrmann / PNG staff photo)


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney gestures to the crowd as he walks on stage at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney gestures to the audience during his concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


Paul McCartney performs in concert at Rogers Arena, Vancouver April 19 2016. GERRY KAHRMANN / PNG


A road crew member checks the piano on the stage prior to Paul McCartney's performance at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C. Tuesday April 19, 2016. RIC ERNST / PNG






Road crew members prepare the stage prior to Paul McCartney's performance at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C. Tuesday April 19, 2016. RIC ERNST / PNG


A road crew member checks the piano on the stage prior to Paul McCartney's performance at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C. Tuesday April 19, 2016. RIC ERNST / PNG




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