DanMargarita.com

The hassle of the MBTA’s Green Line didn’t deter me from grabbing a last minute ticket to see the former Beatle at Boston’s Fenway Park this evening. Hell, these days if I get to my destination alive via the Green Line, that qualifies as a success.

Normally a right field roof box seat might not be the most desirable for a concert at Fenway, but after a 91 degree, humid and sweltering day, the breezes this locale provided made it better than the more expensive seats.

McCartney had all the veteran rock star points down pat, clearly doing his homework in making the proper references.

“Is that the Green Monster?” and then “Is that Ted’s red seat?” he inquired, along with other frequent mentions of Fenway and the Red Sox.

He came on promptly at 8:00 p.m. and played a solid two-and-a-half hour set, which included three encores, peppering the show with songs from his vast Beatles and solo career. The Liverpudlian also threw in some new songs, a couple of which were pretty good. McCartney didn’t make the mistake that even many veteran rockers make, however. Too often performers introduce a new song with a phrase like, “This one’s from our new album” which to many in the crowd serves as a cue that it’s a good time to go and take a leak. People come to hear the songs they know and love.

Sure, the majority of the crowd were recipients of the AARP newsletter, but there were a few younger people there as well, as McCartney noted. Not that time hasn’t taken a bit of a toll on some of the high notes that Macca strained to reach, but the fact that he’s willing to try for it is admirable.

I hope that when I’m his age I get to do something I love and get paid for it. Hell, I hope that I get to his age.