The Most Iconic Concert To Ever Play In Atlantic City, New Jersey

At least once a week, we implement what I affectionately call an “Official Mental Health Break” on-air segment.

What this means is that for at least one hour of our broadcast week … we suspend the daily hard-hitting, political, hyper-negative news issues that presently dominate our daily lives on a suffocating, minute-by-minute basis.

Instead, during this one hour, we take on-air phone calls from our wonderful guest listeners of the “Hurley in the Morning” program on WPG Talk Radio 95.5, focusing on a totally positive topic, such as:

Who is the most famous person that you’ve ever met - along with, Who is the most famous person you’d like to meet and why?

Our listeners and callers love these positive on-air segments and so do I.

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For my part in this, the most famous person that I’ve ever met is Sir Paul McCartney, who also happens to be my all-time favorite “Beatle.”

FYI, my former Boss, President Donald Trump is a very close second, if not a 1 and 1A scenario.

I owe this surreal 45-minutes of up close and personal “hang-time” with McCartney to former Atlantic City Mayor Lorenzo Langford.

Backstage, immediately before McCartney’s Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall performance, on September 28, 2002, we presented Sir Paul with “The Key to Atlantic City.”

This was just minutes before he was to take the stage. We were with McCartney for about 45 minutes, with only one other person in the room, McCartney’s official photographer, who took this photo.

McCartney was an engaging, perfect gentleman. If only this conversation was recorded. However, had it been … we never would have had this unguarded, lengthy conversation and experience.

Things happen in life exactly the way they’re supposed to. This was magic, happening in real life. Thank God McCartney’s photographer emailed me this photo, or, I might not believe that this really happened.

FYI, the photo arrived months later. You couldn’t help but wonder if it was ever going to arrive. A tour photographer takes so many photos. Some get lost, some don’t turn outright. What a keepsake. Very fortunate to have received it.

It was a surreal experience to walk out of Sir Paul McCartney’s personal (burgundy, piped draped) dressing room, to our seats and the concert began within a minute or so later.

It was the greatest concert that I’ve ever attended during my lifetime. The second is not even close.

This was the first time that McCartney was back in Atlantic City, since The Beatles played Boardwalk Hall on August 30, 1964, before 18,000 enthusiastic fans.

In McCartney’s return to Atlantic City, which was 38 years later, he played non-stop for more than 2 hours. I never saw him even take a sip of water. His voice was in perfect form.

McCartney played one hit after another in rapid-fire succession. It was beyond amazing. Maybe I’m amazed (couldn’t resist) I’m reliving the feeling all over again with each keystroke here.

Here was the iconic Setlist for the September 28, 2002 McCartney Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall concert: