Another Brush With Greatness

I’ve been working at Wembley Arena as a steward since October 2007 (Rush was my first gig). The best has been the Police, as I was positioned in front of the stage throughout the concert. I heard everything, but only caught the odd glimpse of the band, as we are supposed to be watching the crowd, to prevent them from rushing the stage. However, the crowd were really great that time, in a really good mood, and a happy time was had by all.

Other gigs haven’t been quite as enjoyable. Babyshambles proved a tough one, with several girls having to be taken to First Aid throughout owing to the crushing conditions in front of the stage. Motorhead & Alice Cooper were the same (although Joan Collins walked past me at that one!).

And then there are the boring concerts. Stereophonics (several people walked out). Wet Wet Wet. And UB40.

But UB40/Maxi Priest threw up an amazing experience. I was positioned in front of the sound desk and had to walk back and forth showing people to their seats. I was doing this with one couple towards the end of Monsieur Priest’s supporting set, and was coming back to my original position afterwards. As I neared the desk, the barrier in front of it opened up, and a security guard came out.

Followed by another.

Followed by a little guy in a crumpled suit. ‘I’m just following you,’ he said to the guard in front. As he walked past me, I realised who he was.

Sir.

Paul.

McCartney.

MACCA!

I froze. I wanted to reach out and grab him. I wanted to shake his hand and thank him for his music.

But I wasn’t allowed to. I was supposed to be professional. AAAAAAAARRGH!!!

So I watched him go. Couldn’t believe my eyes…………….

Not many people knew he was there - only a few who, like me, had seen him leaving the sounddesk area. They were as stunned as I was, telling their friends around them, who understandably scoffed.

The interval soon followed, and word was going round that Sir P. was in the building. Towards the end of the interval, the same security men came back, sandwiching Macca and another, smaller, gentleman, with long, wispy grey hair. I studied him for a few seconds, and then realised that it was Denny Laine! Two members of Wings, who allegedly had been angry at each other ever since the demise of the band in the late ’70s.

And yet here they were, hanging out with each other! Could a Wings reunion be on the cards?

By this time, people were on the lookout, and the few rows surrounding the sounddesk burst into applause as Macca approached, which he acknowledged with several waves. A few people were flashing their mobiles at him, and standing in front of the desk as UB40 started up - we had to clear them away.

Then Ali Campbell announced from the stage during their third number that Macca was in the audience, and the whole place erupted. People deliberately walked past the desk area, ‘pretending’ not to be looking at him. One girl asked me to get his autograph for her, and couldn’t understand it when I said no. All the while he was grooving to the lilting reggae noises being played in front of us.

What I found interesting about my encounter was that it showed Macca as a human being. You normally only see him either playing in concert on TV, being interviewed, or running from the divorce courts. It was nice to see him simply letting his hair down for a change (albeit to UB40! What’s the story there?).

So I’ve now had a close encounter with four Beatles. And seen George Martin.

Sorry, Neil……

This entry was posted on 03/02/2008 at 12:51 pm and is filed under Work. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.