Today's blog post is not related to collecting vinyl. I just wanted to share this with you and would appreciate your thoughts.
Last Saturday, my partner and I went to an outdoor Elton John concert in North Wales with about 14,000 other people. Having seen the Rocket Man last year, I knew we'd have a brilliant evening — and we did. The weather was good and the atmosphere was great. We were quite close to the front (in a seated area) and a few people near us decided to dance in the aisle. From where they were, they didn't appear to be restricting anyone's view.
Naturally an army of security staff repeatedly told the dancers to sit down. The dancers gestured as if they were going to sit back down before carrying on dancing once the staff had passed. Later in the concert, most people — myself included — stood up and danced in front of our seats until the end of the concert. I rationalised that as we (and others) had paid nearly £200 for a pair of tickets, the security staff were fighting a losing battle.
Then on Monday this week, I read of Elton John taking exception to precisely these actions by security staff at his concert in Gloucester on Sunday. Publicly chastising someone for doing their job seems harsh, though surely a balance has to be struck between safety concerns and the right of all guests to enjoy themselves. But on reflection, I’ve slightly reassessed my stance, especially regarding the time when all those who were able to stand and dance in front of their seats did so.
At the time of writing, Elton John is 68 years old. Saturday's concert mainly focussed on his 1970s output. His landmark album 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road' (from which he played seven songs) was released in 1973. If you were, say, 20 years old back in 1973, bought the album, became a fan and had followed Elton John ever since; you would now be over 60 years old too. My point here is that while Elton John rightly thanked those fans for their years of loyal support; he ignored the reality that a number of them were not the youngest or fittest at the gig. Some were clearly in their late sixties or older. They could not stand up or dance, and may well have had their view obscured.
A friend of mine, for demonstrable medical reasons, is also unable to stand at gigs. He phones venues in advance of smaller-scale, all-standing events to request a bar stool and a space near the front where he can see the action. As far as I know, his wish is always granted. So although this approach at larger, outdoor gigs would be a logistical nightmare, I do think that seating, positioning, pricing and other considerations, not to mention the attitude of the headline act, do need to show more sensitivity towards the needs and rights of enjoyment of any artist's ageing fanbase.
