Wembley 1988 – Michael Jackson
On 16 July 1988 Michael Jackson played the third of seven sold-out nights at Wembley, with the Princess of Wales in a crowd of 72,000 and the Bad tour at the height of its machinery.
Rose Bowl 1988 – Depeche Mode
On 18 June 1988 Depeche Mode closed the Music for the Masses tour in front of 60,453 people at the Rose Bowl, and the arms in the air became a kind of instrument.
Teardrop – Massive Attack
The harpsichord does not announce itself.
Reading 1992 – Nirvana
On 30 August 1992 Kurt Cobain was wheeled onto the Reading stage in a hospital gown, sang a line of The Rose, and then stood up and played as if the obituaries had been early.
Moscow 1991 – Metallica
On 28 September 1991 Metallica opened with Enter Sandman on a Moscow airfield, weeks after a failed coup, in front of a crowd nobody has ever quite agreed how to count.
Knebworth 1979 – Led Zeppelin
On two Saturdays in August 1979, Led Zeppelin came home to a field in Hertfordshire, four years after Britain had last seen them, and played as if the decade still belonged to the riff.
Live Aid 1985 – Queen
On 13 July 1985 Queen were given about twenty minutes at Wembley, and they spent them teaching a stadium that had not come for them how to answer in time.
The College Dropout – Kanye West
On 10 February 2004, a producer Chicago had already hired for other people's hits released a debut that refused the costume he was supposed to wear.
Walking on the Moon – The Police
The bass states one note, then leaves a canyon.