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Rating: June 4th, 2006
I go to school like any other day that morning... the lessons? I don't listen to a minute of them... I have something else on my mind. Yes, because that evening, in Verona, something would happen that I would forget very easily.
From the creative genius of the Pink Floyd... The Dark Side Of The Moon.
The Arena is a fantastic place... even good old Rog said so... that same evening. The pre-concert atmosphere was perceptible even in the city. Yes, because it rarely happens to see dozens of people at the bar tables wearing shirts of the great English group... An unimaginable comings and goings of people wander around the arena, like good fans, waiting for the reason of their pilgrimage. Unnumbered ticket for me... the cheapest one... and therefore, to not lose the best seats, I have to enter a couple of hours before the show starts.
Bob Dylan songs play while the sun, slowly, crouches down; and while the stage is being set up. The Arena fills up before our eyes, and by nine, there wasn't a single free spot. Well... after the third time "Mr. Tambourine Man" is repeated, suddenly, the music stops, the lights go out, and a tremor of emotion pervades the audience.
Eins... Zwei... Drei... ALLE!!!!!! It starts just like that... with "In The Flesh"... and the tremor vanishes instantly. Strange how a song like this, that didn't pass into legend, can deliver such a strong emotion... It must be Rog's entrance... It must be the concert has just started... but I can't imagine a more thrilling beginning.
The initial "In The Flesh" is followed by Mother, another song from "The Wall," which sees our Rog engaged with the guitar. The song that follows, in my opinion, is the least successful of the evening: "Shine On You Crazy Diamond." I speak poorly of this song for several reasons: first of all, "Shine On," which lasts barely 5 minutes, is not "Shine On"; and then Rog immediately moves to the sung part, skipping the splendid solo, even though the solo of this song without Gilmour is not the same... All this just to say that, in my opinion, this song should not have been included in the setlist.
After the ode to the crazy diamond, Rog moves on to two other songs from "Wish You Were Here"; the first is "Have a Cigar," the second... needless to say... is "Wish You Were Here"; both quite melancholic but passionate and appreciated by the arena audience. "Set The Control For The Heart Of The Sun" is undoubtedly one of the most suggestive moments of the evening... The crescendo involves the audience, while the great mixture of instruments gives the spectators a moment of psychedelic ecstasy.
The following "The Gunners Dream" (an underrated song in my opinion) and "The Fletcher Memorial Home" are a transitional moment for the show, as the audience knows that soon it will be time for "Dark Side." But before the intermission, there is still time for "Sheep," one of my favorite Floyd songs.
INTERMISSION -------
Well, being late evening now, the arena without lights was pitch black. But sometimes something else is needed to light up the arena (or at least the audience of the arena). Well, in this case, a heartbeat is needed.
Thump Thump----Thump Thump----Thump Thump-----
The heartbeat rises, slowly, and slowly, accompanies the ticks of clocks, the sound of coins, voices, laughter... all overlapping one another, until a guitar chord puts everyone in agreement. "Breathe" triggers the roar of the audience, until now remain immobile. And finally, you realize that Dark Side has genuinely begun, eyes widen, ears are unclogged, and we sing... with joy... Breathe.... breathe in the air.
I don't want to recount song by song the whole album, also because it's very difficult to individually tell the pieces of an album that you listen to together as though it were one long composition. Magical moments mark the progress of the album which made history... great guitar and drum performance in "Time," not to mention a voice-double of Clare Torry in "The Great Gig In The Sky." In "Money," our Rog receives ovations from the audience, crossing the stage with his bass. "Eclipse" ends... and maybe you don't notice... because the memory of the masterpiece just seen and heard is still too imprinted in the mind.
Silence... a few seconds pass, and the arena stands up, to give a very warm standing ovation to the bassist who knows he has held a great show tonight. After receiving the last applause, Rog with the other musicians retreats backstage, but the audience knows it is not yet time to go home.
Indeed, after a few minutes, the group returns to the stage and starts "Another Brick In The Wall" (part 2, of course). "Vera" (The Wall) precedes "Bring The Boys Back Home," a currently relevant song given the situation in Iraq. "Comfortably Numb" closes the show, and it doesn't matter if Gilmour is not on guitar, or if Wright is not on keyboards, we Floydians truly appreciated it, thank you, Rog.
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