Oxfam America Tour Blog: 22 July 2008

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Oxfam Blog - Viva La Vida Tour 2008

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From the casino’s to the Windy City..

Time for a breather.. time I caught up with the world.

I am in the production office at the United Center, Chicago. Home of the Bulls and the Blackhawks! Banners marking their history of success hangs from one of the highest ceilings on the tour. This venue is apparently one of the ‘big 3′ (in terms of height at least). Got a bit of vertigo on the ‘noseblead’ seats when I took a wander earlier. There is history everywhere. I met tonight’s Oxfam volunteers a couple of hours ago, by a statue of Michael Jordan leaping for the basket. I think Coldplay would have slightly different statues, but who knows, they may get one someday. The tour seems to be the biggest on the planet right now.. selling out shows in hours and minutes, rather than days and weeks. Every venue they hit (with those hand-painted drums), goes nuts for the band, as soon as they launch into ‘Clocks’, or even set foot on the stage for that matter. When they took a run around to the balcony at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas, for ‘Green Eyes’, it was just crazy up there. I got some good pictures, but plenty of blurred ones with it, when my arms got knocked by other arms held up for that special photo (of that time when they were a couple of feet away from Will, Guy, Chris, and Johnny).

The show is on film tonight. This huge crowd will get a special treat of a couple of songs twice, and a longer set. They’ve been setting up the ‘dolly’s’, cables, ‘risers’ & cameras strategically all day.. I think it’s gonna be special.

Another awesome group of volunteers, all on time and full of energy for our work here. It’s great for them all to be able to say that Coldplay invited them here to talk about Oxfam. What a perfect chance to link up a great concert experience, with doing something right here and now, to get involved with making big change.

Just before I go for now, I wanted to say.. Vegas was crazy. The trip over the mountains from San Jose, was longer than expected. The crew all got in late to the venue. I was so impressed to see the show up and running in time. Especially working in that desert heat! It’s an experience that place. They’ve got an Eiffel Tower and a Statue of Liberty! I was used to Blackpool’s Golden Mile and Yarmouth.. not the Vegas strip. Now i’ve seen it, and now i’m a long way away from those casinos.

http://www.oxfamblogs.org/coldplay/?p=29