During last evening's 121212 Concert for Sandy Relief classic rock and rollers once again proved why they will never be forgotten and that they can still help change the world.
The sponsors of last night show didn't ask Bruno Mars, Rihanna, or Ke$sha. There was no Lady Gaga, Maroon 5, FUN, or Bieber. Instead they brought out the big guns, rock's royalty if you will, with The Rolling Stones, The Who, Eric Calpton, Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band, Roger Waters, Billy Joel, and Sir Paul McCartney.
In fact there were only three artists unqualified for AARP last night. Chris Martin, Alicia Keys, and Kanye West, and only one of them wore a leather skirt. Thanks for the endless jokes and future Saturday Night Live sketch Kanye.
So why bring in rockers of yesteryear?
How awkward was it to see a 68 year old Roger Daltrey jump around with his leathery chest hanging out during The Who's set?
The Twittersphere was on fire during Billy Joel's performance with countless tweets comparing him to Darh Vader and Walt from Breaking Bad. One Tweet by comedian Jeffrey Ross had many in stitches by spoofing a Joel classic with his elderly age: "Billy Joel is gonna have a heart a tack ack ack ack."
And how about all the parents who had to explain to their technology driven children that Dave Grohl used to play drums for another band called Nirvana? And the guy with the lime green pants was the bass player.
So why do these sponsors choose rock and roll relics over younger shinier models?
You can ague all you want, but when Sir Paul McCartney ripped into "Live and Let Die" you were probably either singing along or swaying in your seat. And after watching Kanye run around screaming obscenities in a leather skirt you were blown away by Billy Joel's performance with real music, real harmonies, and a killer band.
I give huge props to today's artists. Many work hard, and they are facing a radically different industry and consumer base with interests that change by the Tweet. All of this has led to a different style of musician. Today's artist must stand out in a huge sea of competition. To do that they must promote how great they are every day via marketing, social media, and any other means necessary. They must capture consumers with everything BUT music. Is it any wonder that today's artists go through costume changes during a show and yesterday's just change their guitars?
The artists that made up last night's bill were brought up in a different musical era. To stand out they needed to play their instruments better than the next guy. That's why Eric Clapton could kill it with a power trio and nothing else at last night's show. These artists needed to create songs that stuck with you for years to come. I think everybody was singing along with Billy Joel during his set. And finally these AARP rockers came up during a time when the youth believed they could change the world...and they actually did. That's why The Who is a statement and not a question.
Sponsors seek out these aging rockers for a number of reasons. First, they know a bill with Eric Clapton, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Billy Joel, and Sir Paul McCartney will easily fill seats with virtually zero marketing effort. Second, they know the music will be good...real, real, good. And finally they know that these acts have already helped change the world so they have experience when it comes to doing it once again.
Regardless, I encourage all of you to drop a few bucks to the Sandy relief effort. These people need our help. You can still donate to the Sand Relief effort by visiting their website at http://www.121212concert.org. And soon you can purchase the show from iTunes with proceeds going to the cause.
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