I'd hesitated to head down for the We Are One concert and inauguration kick-off event yesterday, but I'm so glad I did. Due to our lackadaisical attitude (and aversion to standing in the cold for hours before the concert), we got there too late to get into the secured area around the reflecting pool, but we staked out space on the Washington Monument grounds just about a minute before Springsteen kicked off the concert. I felt a bit ridiculous taking photos of performers on the jumbotron, but it was great just to be in the half-mile presence of the Boss . . .
and the Boss . . .
When U2 came onstage -- a primary reason I made the trek -- we had a suddenly obstructed view.
We'd move a few feet into a sudden gap in the crowd on the right, and there he'd be. A few feet to the left, and again . . . STURGILL! I was envious of the view these nearby tree climbers had until I uploaded the photo . . .
and saw how tired and uncomfortable they look. Enormously tall hooded men who appear from nowhere aside, the show was great. It moved along at a fast clip and I even enjoyed performances by artists I don't care for that much. The highlight for me -- surprisingly, since I went for Bruce and U2 -- was Mary J. Blige's rendition of "Lean On Me." It's a wonderful song, and the crowd turned into one big dance party (well, we were really just bopping, since we were bundled up like Ralphie's little brother in "A Christmas Story"). Other highlights were the whole Mall dancing along to "Shout" (sung by Garth Brooks), and Stevie Wonder's keyboards on "Higher Ground." The crowd was such a mix of ages and races, and it was funny to hear someone say "who's he?" when James Taylor (for instance) took the stage (though I admit I wouldn't have recognized Will.i.am in his non-hologram form). There was something for everyone, though, as shown by the two dudes pumping their fists to John Cougar (Mellencamp?) singing "Pink Houses" and shouting "You've still got it! You've still got it!"
As we made our way east on the mall and looked back on the dispersing crowd . . .
and saw how tired and uncomfortable they look. Enormously tall hooded men who appear from nowhere aside, the show was great. It moved along at a fast clip and I even enjoyed performances by artists I don't care for that much. The highlight for me -- surprisingly, since I went for Bruce and U2 -- was Mary J. Blige's rendition of "Lean On Me." It's a wonderful song, and the crowd turned into one big dance party (well, we were really just bopping, since we were bundled up like Ralphie's little brother in "A Christmas Story"). Other highlights were the whole Mall dancing along to "Shout" (sung by Garth Brooks), and Stevie Wonder's keyboards on "Higher Ground." The crowd was such a mix of ages and races, and it was funny to hear someone say "who's he?" when James Taylor (for instance) took the stage (though I admit I wouldn't have recognized Will.i.am in his non-hologram form). There was something for everyone, though, as shown by the two dudes pumping their fists to John Cougar (Mellencamp?) singing "Pink Houses" and shouting "You've still got it! You've still got it!"
As we made our way east on the mall and looked back on the dispersing crowd . . .
I resolved to face the cold and the crowds tomorrow and watch the
swearing in (albeit on a jumbotron) in a crush of deliriously happy
people. I'll just wear more layers. In the meantime, if you want to
see some actually good photos of yesterday's happenings, check out
these great shots on my friend's blog, brettstyle.
I'm glad you're going to brave the crowds. You would only regret not going. I'll look for you on TV. :) I really wish I could be there with you!
Posted by: Dubliner | January 20, 2009 at 09:44 AM
I wish you'd been here too -- it was a great day! I'll post photos later. First I have to "rest my eyes" . . . .
Posted by: mbpalaver | January 20, 2009 at 05:18 PM