When Lauren got tickets to go see Live8 on one of the giant screens set up around Hyde Park, I admit it: I was skeptical. I couldn’t quite understand why we had to brave massive crowds and potentially miserable weather to watch a concert on a TV screen when we could stay home and do the same. But good husband that I am, I went along. I’m glad I did.
The huge TV, the powerful sound system, and the spirit of the crowd all delivered an experience I couldn’t have gotten at home. More importantly, though, the highlight of the day was a moment that you had to be there to experience:
Occasionally, in the downtime between performers in London, the giant screen would cut to a concert in another city. At one point, it cut to the concert in Berlin, where Brian Wilson was performing and the German audience was singing along. The crowd around me joined in, and for just a moment, Hyde Park was filled with thousands of Brits, joined together with thousands of Germans, all singing: “I wish they all could be California girls…”