Earlier this week, video
went viral of a wheelchair-bound fan who got the once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity to join Coldplay
on stage in Dublin. The fan, who was lifted above the crowd by other
concert-goers who had accidentally fell onto him, was crowdsurfed to the stage
where frontman Chris Martin gave him a harmonica. Martin then proceeded to
improvise a song about that night’s show with the fan.
You hear about stories like this all the time, where artists
let fans come up on stage and play with them. Most of the time these are
one-off occurrences, like in the Coldplay story, but there are some bands that
make this a part of every show they do. Heck, there are even bands that allow
the entire audience to crowd the stage when they play.
Vinyl Bay 777, Long Island’s music outlet, loves it when the
fan experience gets enhanced by crowd participation. That is why we’ve decided
to research some interesting stories of fans getting to join their favorite
artists on stage. Here are seven that are just too awesome to be true.
1.
Green
Day: Green Day started letting fans play with them early in their career
and now it’s as expected a piece of their live show as their three-song
acoustic encores. After all these years, it seems like it would have to happen
that one of these lucky players would become famous themselves. That famous face would be Matt Healy,
frontman of The 1975. Healy related in a 2016 interview with Spin that he was
pulled on stage at the age of 13 by bassist Mike Dirnt to play with the band.
2.
Bruce
Springsteen: Springsteen is another artist who is no stranger to letting
fans play on stage with him. Earlier this year, the singer was doing a show in
Brisbane, Australia when he saw a sign made by a fan in the front row asking to
play “Growin’ Up” with him. Springsteen obliged, giving him some lessons in
conducting the band in the process. This is usually something that happens once-in-a-lifetime, but not for this kid. Four
years earlier, the same kid was brought up on stage to play “Waitin’ on a
Sunny Day” with The Boss.
3.
The
Who: Back in 1973, The Who were at the top of their game, having just
released ‘Quadrophenia’ earlier that year. It was also the height of Keith Moon’s
drug addiction and at a show in November that year, Moon passed out on stage
twice. As
the story goes, Pete Townshend asked the crowd if there was anyone out
there who could play drums. A fan named Scott Halpin, who had somehow made it
side stage before the occurrence, was volunteered by a friend and whisked on
stage. Halpin finished the set with them and was given a tour jacket for his
help.
4.
Blink-182:
Fans love to linger when shows are over. If we can get just one more glimpse of
the band, or even one more song, that’s always a plus. One fan earlier this
year decided to take it one step further during a recent Blink-182 show, where
he decided to jump
on stage after the band exited and take a seat at Travis Barker’s drum kit.
Mark Hoppis and Matt Skiba then went back on stage, and after telling the crowd
to go home, decided to play “Always” with the kid.
5.
Steel Panther: In 2012, a fan decided to come on stage during a Steel
Panther show, telling the band that he knew how to play all their songs on
guitar. The band proceeded to make fun of his outfit, then gave him a chance to
prove himself. The fan then surprised everyone, especially the band, by killing
the guitar part of “Eyes Of A Panther.”
6.
Kenny
Chesney: Not all on-stage fan interactions are completely musical. During a
2015 concert in New Jersey, Kenny Chesney invited
a young girl on stage to sing along with him. The girl ended up not wanting
to leave, instead asking for a kiss from the country crooner and following him
around the stage for more than 10 minutes. Chesney ended up letting the girl
hang out on stage for one more song.
7.
Foo
Fighters: At a show
in Toronto during the band’s 2015 tour, a fan told Dave Grohl that it was
his birthday and that he wanted to play drums with the band. Grohl obliged,
letting him take Taylor Hawkins’ seat during “Big Me,” but with the caveat that
he better not suck or he will “personally tar and feather” him backstage. Suffice
it to say, the fan did alright.
Interaction with fans is an important part of the live show
experience. Whether the artist includes such interactions in their shows regularly
or not, stories like the ones above, when they happen, are once-in-a-lifetime
events. When fans get the opportunity to come up on stage with their favorite artist,
it’s a moment that will stay with them forever.
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Be free to be a fan at Long Island’s top new independent
record shop, Vinyl Bay 777. We have thousands
of titles to choose from in genres ranging from rock, pop and country to rap,
R&B, dance and more. Browse a wide selection of new and used vinyl records,
CDs, cassettes, music DVDs and memorabilia from your favorite artists. More
titles are being added all the time, so make it a point to stop by our
Plainview shop during business hours or check out our selection online at
vinylbay777.com to see what’s new today.
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