Queen & Paul Rodgers concert, Odyssey 2005...:)

[wee_mango]

I think I might have to put last night's events under bullet points lol:

- Before the concert started 2 of the crew guys were getting the crowd to do several Mexican waves. A few of us did it at our end of the stage and they finally succeeded when they went over to the other side and it went the entire length of the arena.

- OMG...These guys totally know how to put on a show and they're what, in their fifties...and by 'they' I mean Queen's Brian May and Roger Taylor - both still have so much energy and know how to rock! Problem is that they both have so much talent and you just don't know who to keep watching; you're sort of hypnotised by them both.

- Paul Rodgers (from the band Free) was excellent in my opinion; no Freddie Mercury but still fantastic as a singer in his own right if you understand me...sort of reminded me of Bruce Springsteen - he was all over the stage jumping up and down with the mike-stand all night waving it about and from time to time kind of pretending it was a guitar haha. 

- My mum loves Brian May - enough said! There were a few times when she was (sort of) going *SQUEE*, especially when he first appeared with Roger and elbowed me! *headdesk* I think Bri was/is her fave and was obviously so pleased to finally see him live (my parents were originally going to see Queen at Slane Castle in July '86 when I was 3 months old and take me with them, but decided it would've been too noisy...then of course the band stopped touring that year and then 5 years later Freddie Mercury died...). :)

- Some people in the audience knew just how to have fun - a bunch of young fellas sitting in the tier next to us were going mental but in a funny way, particularly during the song 'Fat Bottomed Girls' *wink wink*. You know how it is at concerts and some people are just like that and you can't help but laugh and then that makes it even more fun?

- Paul Rodgers was hot. 'Nuff said.

- I seem to have gotten into the habit of making note of the playlists whenever I go to concerts...playlist is as follows:

Tie Your Mother Down / I Want to Break Free / Fat Bottomed Girls / The Wishing Well (a Free song) / Another One Bites the Dust / Crazy Little Thing Called Love / Under Pressure / Say It's not True (sung by and according to Roger a song in tribute to Nelson Mandela) / '39 (sung by Brian) / Love of My Life (sung by Bri as a tribute to Freddie) / Hammer to Fall / Feel Like Making Love (Free song - loved this one, very rock) / Fire and Water / I'm in Love with my Car (sung by Roger) / Brighton Rock (an approx 10 minute Brian May guitar solo) / These Are the Days of Our Lives (Roger sung this one and the screen behind showed clips of the lads in Japan in the 70s) / Radio Ga Ga (sung by Roger) / Can't Get Enough of Your Love / A Kind of Magic / I Want It All / Bohemian Rhapsody (with more footage of Freddie) / *encores* The Show Must Go On / All Right Now (Free's biggest hit) / We Will Rock You / We Are the Champions

- I just love the atmosphere just minutes before the act come on stage and you're waiting (in some cases) for you're first glimpse of he/she/them....Paul, Roger and Brian came on mid-way through Eminem's Lose Yourself, which I thought was interesting ahahah.

- Dad nicked one of the advertising posters afterwards!! 0__0

- All in all, they played 2 1/2 hours...tickets were expensive like £50 a ticket, but according to Mum '...well worth the money.'  Yep, it so was.

- When it was over, I casually mentioned to Mum about seeing if we could try and look out for the guys leaving. I had gone to bed on Thursday night thinking about whether or not we should try it but we did in the end. You have to walk right around the Odyssey to a wee side electronic gate where the acts leave from and surprisingly there were only about 20 people there at most waiting...It was cold when we got there at around 11.45pm and we waited for about 15 mins before anything happened. The annoying thing was that there were so many big Mercedes cars about and every time one left it was usually no one inside lol. Paul came out first at about midnight, though for a good couple of minutes there was some discussion over signing some autographs but in the end his 'people' let him and he signed some handed to him in the car. His (what I would probably call) PA was really nice and on our side was handing autographed stuff back and forth. Mum managed to get one of our tickets signed and said he was dead nice, asking everyone what their favorite songs were etc. So they left a few minutes and another car left after them, with whom I was sure was Roger Taylor. At this stage, Mum and Dad had gone some feet behind me to have a peek through the bars in the wall, which was near a side door. Dad then decided to go and get the car and Mum and I kept on waiting for Brian to come out. At about 12.15am, Mum was frantically beckoning me to the bars and there was Roger (!) signing some merchandise...managed to get him to sign one of our tickets and he nearly took off with the pen as well lol!  I admit he does look his age up close but he was very nice and when Mum asked him 'Are you enjoying Belfast?', he replied 'Yeah, so far!' I think early on during the show he said he'd never been before. :) So he too left as well...and after him Brian went, though very quietly so that no one noticed 'til the car was pulling away out of the place! Apparently he gave the thumbs up as he went. There had been another Merc in the back of the place (beside a huge lorry) for ages with the doors open and boot up so I think he must've come out behind it - sneaky!! I can't complain though...At least I have one original Queen member's autograph, and my fave! It's funny though: I got into the band by accident a few years ago when I left all my CDs behind on holiday and had only 3 Queen albums to listen to for the whole 3 weeks. Also I've been lucky to meet one member of one of the world's biggest ever bands after only a few years whereas some people have to wait for a lot longer.....hmmm...

All in all, a nice 19th birthday present. Thanks Mum & Dad! XOXOXO

May post up some photos taken...if I can find out how to do that...

Comments

[wee-mango.livejournal.com]

why are people so afraid to fancy men over 50?

Good question - and I'll admit there's a fair few of 'em on my list!! :D :D A 'fair few' being about 6 or 7 ;)

Like I said, very very jealous. Infact I'm very tempted to turn on the caps lock and type it all over again....

Lol ;)

I love the Radio GaGa video, especially the wee bit when they're on stage in their red & black suits and it goes behind them all and gives us a quick peek at all their asses. Never noticed that? You will next time! I think Rogers' was second from the right....

*Squeak* OMG! Yes I remember that bit so well...I think they all looked rather lovely in the red and black and as for the rear end.....ooooh *thud* And is it just me or did he (worryingly) make a very good schoolgirl in IWTBF vid? ;) ;) And I love it at the end of the vid where it shows you all of their faces and Roger has a slight ahem, 'scowl' on his...nggggggh :P