I’ve been doling out dollars to take in concerts for a long time – a trend that began in ninth grade, with Streetheart and Aldo Nova at the old Winnipeg Arena.
Back then, our junior high pals were the ‘babies’ in the crowd, hanging with ‘old people’ and breaking curfew to catch the end of the show.
Today, though many of the babies are young enough to be my offspring, and my friends are nearing ‘old people’ status – there’s still nothing like staying out much too late for rock ‘n roll…
Although a ‘head-banger’ in high school, I started listening to Guns N’ Roses after-the-fact. Documentaries depicted stories about the band during the past decade, while music clubs offered retrospectives. Somewhere along the way, I became a fan. With little hope of ever seeing them live.
Rumours and reports paint lead man Axl Rose as an SOB. He’s labeled temperamental and unpredictable, is known to walk off stages, and has allegedly shown up too ‘stimulated’ to play. Provided he shows up at all.
Word was if Axl ever returned to the road, it would be a loooong shot to get a good show from him. Which meant my new-found love for GN’R was to be unrequited… Until it was announced that Guns N’ Roses were touring again.
At last, it was time to be vindicated. Even as the ‘nay-sayers’ piped up – it’s not the real band. It’s not going to be this. He’s not going to show up. And so on.
I was willing to take my chances and ventured out in 30-below Winnipeg weather to see what the night would bring. The crowd was a mix of young and old, big and small, cool and nerdy. No one was sure what time Axl would hit the stage. Rumour had it he was in the building, because the police supposedly escorted him there. That tidbit of gossip added to the growing anticipation.
Would he decide to play tonite??
Finally, the lights went down and the crowd began to roar. We rushed back inside to the blackness of the arena. On the way up to our seats – look waaaaay up – the unmistakable opening of Welcome to the Jungle began to reverberate through us.
We were going to get a show!
With only a handful of rows between us and the rafters, we had a terrific birds-eye view of the stage and crazy crowd. Everyone jumped to their feet to claim dancing real estate. It was midnight. The party had just begun.
It was apparent right away that Axl was in fine form – belting out the tunes, nailing every vocal nuance, driving each note home. He was absolutely ON, and gave us exactly what we wanted – Guns N’ Roses!
The new musicians were spectacular – young guys who undoubtedly grew up listening to Guns N’ Roses. Two lead guitarists added their flair and style, freshly filling out that GN’R sound while keeping true to the classic flavour. They were living their dream, and we could tell.
So was Axl, groovin’ and shaking, sliding and shimmying, dancing and kicking in time to the timeless tunes. His moves were mesmerizing, his energy nothing short of energizing. He played every hit you could want, including my favourites Mr. Brownstone and Dylan cover Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door, and drawing from more obscure tunes like Used To Love Her (But I Had To Kill Her) – a dark little ditty accompanied by Bubbles and Sebastian Bach.
Pyrotechnics continued into the wee hours while the band played one gem after another, each better than the last. But as Axl sings in November Rain, “nothing lasts forever” and the music finally stopped around 2:15am – nearly two-and-a-half extraordinary hours later.
Those who dished out the cash, braved the cold, and broke curfew were treated to an unforgettable performance. Axl didn’t disappoint.
Neither did Winnipeg – giving such a warm welcome from our freezing cold city that Axl came back on stage at the end declaring “you people are amazing!” Then summed it up best when he shouted “good f***ing night!”
Indeed it was.
Winnipeg showed Axl a good f***ing time, giving him a captivated audience with undulated attention. He seemed to fall in love with entertaining all over again, and watching it happen was purely magic.
All rumours and negatives of Axl Rose aside, maybe playing Winnipeg reignited his spark for the stage, rekindled his passion for performing.
Perhaps playing our fair city restored Axl’s faith in rock n’ roll.
He certainly restored mine.
