the MEN Arena
From: Dylan
The atmosphere in the arena was electrifying. The crowd was cheering 10 minutes
before Roger even came on stage.
He arrived at 8.15pm, standing on top of the wall, and opened with 'In The
Flesh'. The projected images were amazing.
From where we were sitting, about half way back we had a really good view.
Roger then went into 'The Happiest Days Of Our Lives', 'Another Brick In The Wall
pt 2' and 'Mother'. The crowd were ecstatic by now.
The concert then moved into some of my favourite songs, 'Southampton Dock' from
'The Final Cut', and 'Pigs On The Wing' and 'Dogs' played in its entirety from
the 'Animals' album, with a great backdrop of the giant pig floating over
Battersea Power Station in London. One of my favourite places. They were
exceptionally well played too.
Next, came 'Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun', which was a bit of a
surprise because Roger has been leaving it to either close the first set or open
the second set on most of the tour.
And then, the highlight of the first half, most of the 'Wish You Were Here'
album, played almost in it's entirety. As the chords of 'Shine On You Crazy
Diamond' echoed around the arena, the crowd went wild, as a massive image of much
missed Syd Barret was projected to the back of the stage. 'Shine ON, parts 1 - 4'
were played and then the band went into 'Welcome To The Machine' with the
original Machine animation as a backdrop. Amazing. 'Wish You Were Here' followed
and the crowd was singing along with every word. To hear 15,000 people all
singing along was such a great feeling. 'Shine On parts 5-8' followed and closed
the first set which had been around 1 hour 20 minutes.
A short interval of around 15 minutes followed and then the lights went down and
the arena vibrated with the beating heart from 'Dark Side Of The Moon'. We got
'Breathe', 'Time' and 'Money' all consecutively with again some amazing
backdrops.
Next was the highlight of the whole concert for me, some of Rogers Solo work.
'Every Strangers Eyes' from 'The Pros And Cons Of Hitchhiking' was divine with
some film of native American Indians. It was very moving. We then got 'Perfect
Sense' with the whole crowd cheering. When PP Arnold, another one of my favourite
singers did her solo verses, the band had to stop playing for a minute, such was
the response to PP Arnold from the people of Manchester, where she is greatly
loved.
We then got 'The Bravery of Being Out Of Range', 'It's A Miracle' and 'Amused To
Death', all from the 'Amused To Death' album. Very thought provoking songs.
Roger and the band then went back into 'Brain Damage' and 'Eclipse' from 'Dark
Side Of The Moon' and 'Comfortably Numb' from 'The Wall'. everyone went wild.
Roger closed the show with a new song, 'Flickering Flame' which he introduced as
a song about love and hope.
Three hours of great music. What a great night. Probably the best concert I have
ever been to along with Nina Simone.
Thank's for such a brilliant night.
Hi. Here is what I thought about the concert in Manchester last night, 22nd June.
Love, Dylan.
Speaking as someone who was lucky enough to see the Wall, Pros & Cons, and Radio KAOS shows, the interesting thing about this show was the intimacy. It was as if the band & the audience were connected (as one) and Roger looked happy as if he really was enjoying it.
If you read this Roger, thanks for a great evening and please don't leave it so
long next time.
Nigel Cooke
I work backstage security at the MEN Arena, and last night was one of my better nights. Not only do I get in free, and get payed I might add, but my job is to guard the man's dressing room. So I heard some jamming by the group, had conversation with THE MAN, and had a generally good time.
The gig was great from a distance
so it must be awesome close up. And thats it. Wish I could tell you more
but... that would spoil it...
Thanks
Loz
The biggest surprise was the quality of Roger's vocals... he seems to have improved beyond measure, carrying off many of the Gilmour lead Floyd songs with consummate ease and grace.
An awesome show and one that I hope he continues to tour with for many years to
come.
Having now fully come to terms with the spectacle that I was
fortunate to witness, I am now in high spirits at the prospect of seeing the
man again at Glastonbury on Sunday ( Fuck work... some things must take
priority, and seeing Rodger Waters again is definitely a top one!)
On the negative - It might just be my hearing but I thought the volume was a bit on the low side... andmy seat was so high up, I couldn't get a good look at my all time hero. A large size video screen showing the band would have been better than all those rather dated images being projected.
My last gripe is aimed at the 6 or 7 foul mouthed drunken fools from Sunderland who persistently swore, spilt their drink and blew their joints all over a man and his teenage son all night. These were some of the so called fans that left in the middle of Rogers final song.
Well the night ended and in true Roger Waters style left some of his fans
bewildered on his choice of encore. But for me, it was a great way to end the show,
filtering out some of the assholes andleaving the true fans to relish and enjoy
the great mans final moments for probably some time.
Andrew
Newcastle
Due to lack of any Floyd activity in Manchester since 1988, not to mention Roger returning for first time in nearly 30 years, this crowd were going to give Roger and the band a welcome they would easily forget.
Constant ovations, and a cheer that nearly shook the roof of the arena when Roger came on stage. I could not believe the noise the crowd were making. Numbers like "Mother", "Southampton Dock", and "Every Strangers Eyes" the audience were drowning Roger out, let alone "Wish You Were Here"!
His solo material hit a euphoric crowd with the northerners too. During "Perfect Sense" the whole half of the arena leapt out of their seats mid-song to give PP Arnold the applause she so richly deserves. The crowd went mad for it for every song. By the time I went right to rim of the stage in time for "Comfortably Numb", right at the front of Roger, there was nearly a nasty crush when Roger took his bows. The security had too many people surge to the front and hastily dealt with proceedings when it was nearly too late.
As the peaceful "Flickering Flame" came to a close, I knew I had witnessed two of
the best concerts of my life. Please come back soon Roger, I intend to see at
least three next time!
MATTHEW ISAACS
