Beck and Cage Play Forest Hills

Saturday, August 17th, Beck and Cage The Elephant played at Forest Hills Stadium, along with Spoon and Sunflower Bean.  It was a hot and humid night, but all performers I saw put on great shows.

The lead singer of Cage wore many, many, many layers of clothing and took pieces off throughout the performance.  Somehow he was able to do this despite the heat.  At the end, he crowd surfed across the entire audience, climbed on top of the mixing booth, then walked up the stadium into the audience.

Beck's setlist displayed his ability to mix different genres of music and make it all work.  He mentioned during the show that half his family was from Queens!

Cage The Elephant

Cage lead singer Matt Shultz crowd surfs across audience (standing!)

Beck performs 'Up All Night'

Beck performs Devil's Haircut

Sarah McLachlan and The New York Pops

Saturday, August 2nd, Sarah McLachlan and The New York Pops preformed at Forest Hills Stadium.  This marks the fifth year of the The New York Pops in Forest Hills.  They always put on a wonderful show.

Dropkick Murphys + Flogging Molly = fun!

Friday night the Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly played Forest Hills Stadium and a good time was had by all.  Stadium is now sporting permanent bathrooms for all guests.

Flogging Molly

Dropkick Murphys take the stage

ROGER DALTREY of THE WHO Joins The New York Pops at Forest Hills Stadium on June 17

The New York Pops and Music Director Steven Reineke unite with Roger Daltrey on Sunday, June 17 at 8:00 p.m. (doors at 6:30 p.m.) at Forest Hills Stadium for a special, one-night-only performance of The Who’s ‘TOMMY’. The orchestra and Daltrey are joined by a band of seasoned Who players, including guitarist/backup singer Simon Townshend, guitarist Frank Simes, keyboardist Loren Gold, bassist Jon Button, and drummer Scott Devours. The concert marks The New York Pops’ return for its fourth season at Forest Hills Stadium, presented by Q104.3 and Madison House Presents. Considered one of the seminal albums of the rock canon, The Who’s ‘TOMMY’ includes classics such as "Pinball Wizard,” “See Me, Feel Me,” and more, and was last played by The Who for the first time in 28 years at the Royal Albert Hall in London as part of a benefit concert for the Teenage Cancer Trust. The performance also marks Roger Daltrey’s return to the Forest Hills stage, after his summer 1971 appearance when The Who performed as part of a sold-out, two-night stand. The New York Pops’ appearance is generously supported by Morgan Stanley, Blue Marble Cocktails, American Airlines, and Wigdor LLP, with additional support from the City of New York and the New York City Council.

A SPECIAL NEW YORK POPS PRE-SALE WILL TAKE PLACE on FEBRUARY 8 from 10 AM to 10 PM. On February 8, visit foresthillsstadium.com and use discount code QUEENSPOPS to purchase your tickets!

Forest Hills Stadium - 2018

The winter winds still blow, but fear not, summer is coming.  As proof, the first two shows of the 2018 summer concert series at Forest Hills Stadium have been announced!  Tickets for both are on sale now:

June 8 - Belle & Sebastian with Perfume Genius and Frankie Cosmos

June 9 - Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats and The Head and The Heart.  Special guest Hiss Golden Messenger

And also, just added today:

alt-J has announced a unique concert at #ForestHillsStadium on Friday, June 15, the largest venue the band has ever headlined in North America. This performance is the only immersive sound show in the continent.

In another first for the band, the show will feature a surround speaker system enveloping the entire audience. The speakers will be used throughout the show to position sound effects mixed into a variety of the band’s material, thus creating an immersive sound experience.

The band has recently won the prestigious ‘Knights Of Illumination’ award for lighting production in an arena, which will also be featured at this show.

For this incredibly special event with guest Kamasi Washington the venue will have a general admission floor and a general admission bowl, so that fans can experience the show from every angle.

Tickets will go on sale this Friday at 10 AM Eastern at ForestHillsStadium.com!

The New York Pops Returns to Forest Hills

As much fun as the previous Pops concerts have been at Forest Hills Stadium, I have to say my personal favorite was last night's sci-fi themed extravaganza as The Pops played a tribute to film score composer John Williams and his collaboration over the years with directors George Lucas (Star Wars) and Steven Spielberg (E.T., Jaws, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Close Encounters of the Third Kind.)

Here are some pics I took from the concert, and a couple of clips from my favorite moments!

Cenovia Cummins plays the haunting theme from Schindler's List

The venue has continued to improve each year since The Stadium concerts returned

Meet Star Wars Characters at Forest Hills Stadium This Thursday!

The New York Pops Plays The Music of John Williams June 8, 2017 - 7:30 PM Forest Hills Stadium, Queens, NY

On June 8, 2017, The New York Pops will return to its summer home, Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, NY, for a program of music by legendary film composer John Williams. The orchestra will be joined by members of the 501st Legion: Empire City Garrison, a worldwide Star Wars costuming organization comprised of and operated by Star Wars fans, wearing costumes from the Star Wars films! The orchestra’s Kids in the Balcony program, which has expanded greatly since its offshoot Kids in the Stadium was introduced in 2015 thanks in part to the generosity of concert presenters Madison House Presents, will offer more than 1,500 Queens children and their families an opportunity to attend and learn about live music for free. This concert is generously supported by Morgan Stanley, AT&T, Wigdor LLP, andCredit Suisse, with additional support from the City of New York and the New York City Council. “Playing at Forest Hills Stadium has really been a dream come true” said Music Director Steven Reineke. “Get ready for an evening of music that will transport you from a galaxy far, far away to a park full of dinosaurs, from Civil War-era Washington to shark-infested waters off the coast of New England. It’s going to be a blast!” The New York Pops concerts at Forest Hills Stadium are family-friendly events. Food and beverage is available for purchase on the stadium grounds. Family ticket packages available. Tickets on sale  at www.foresthillsstadium.com  from $22.50 to $102.50.

Upcoming at Forest Hills Stadium

Flight of the Conchords Concert Pics

Hey, better late than never! Thanks to Aubrey for answering my call to fill in some of the holes in the blog's missing Forest Hills Stadium Concert photo collection!

The Flight of the Conchords concert at our Stadium took place back on July 20th. Looks like it was a lot of fun judging by these pics.

Call for Concert Pics

There have been several concerts at the Stadium that I don't have any photos from. If you attended them please email to edgeofthecity@gmail.com. I think I have photos from virtually every concert there since they started up again. I'm especially looking for pics from Flight of the Conchords, Flume, Louis C.K., Chris Stapleton, the recent Earth Wind & Fire/Bette Midler show, and Van Morrison.

Chris Stapleton Concert Pic

Thanks to David for sending in this shot of the Chris Stapleton concert held at Forest Hills Stadium last Saturday, July 23rd, along with some commentary:

"Saw Chris Stapleton last night.  Great concert.  Seats along the top sides of the stadium were not sold, but still a fairly large crowd.  Audience skewed older than the Zac Brown crowd if that's a fair country comparison to make, which it's not."

Forest Hills Stadium Concert Update

Apparently, the new City Winery Music Festival, the two day food and wine and music event that was to be held at the Stadium in September, is now being planned for next year. Aretha Franklin and Sheryl Crow were to perform.

But there's some other news as well that may have slipped through the cracks for some readers. Bette Midler will be performing at the Stadium on October 8th at the:

By the way, I took my summer vacation recently and then had to catch up on other stuff since I've been back so haven't had a chance to do my usual concert photo posts. I think I missed in there Louis C.K., for instance. If anyone took any photos of him at the event please email them to me at edgeofthecity@gmail.com

New Paul Simon Pic

Thanks to Ellen for the photo. If you've been to any other Forest Hills Stadium concerts this summer and want me to post them, please email to edgeofthecity@gmail.com Thanks

Bob Dylan Concert Photos

These are courtesy of Cher (EOTC reader, not the other one.) If anyone has any close-up shots of Bob from his show here in The Hills, please email them to edgeofthecity@gmail.com

Paul Simon Concert Photos

A bit late, sorry. These are courtesy of Greg. If anyone has some closer up shots of Paul Simon from either night, please email them in to edgeofthecity@gmail.com

Some More NY Pops Concert Pics

Thanks to Ari S. for sending these in via the blog's Facebook page...

New York Pops at Forest Hills Stadium with Matthew Morrison and Megan Hilty

Here are some photos from last night's show. Like last year, it was fantastic, mixing some classical American songs like "Take the A Train," and "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend," with some more modern Broadway hits from shows like "Finding Neverland" and "Hairspray." Matthew Morrison and Megan Hilty lended their star power to the incredible talent of the Pops orchestra. As Pops Conductor Steve Reineke remarked, there were more people at the concert this year than last, so it seems word of their new summer home here in Forest Hills is growing and they are becoming a local favorite!

Forest Hills Stadium's Secret VIP Rooms

This is really cool: The best concert seat in NYC is inside this porta-potty

There is no amount of names you can drop, palms you can grease or cleavage you can show that will get you into the strangest VIP room in New York City. The only key you need for this secret spot in Forest Hills Stadium is a 9-volt battery — and the ability to act like you need to go … to the bathroom.

Needless to say, "I want in!"

Happy Pride Day!

We had a great time at the Dolly Parton concert last night at the Stadium. I realized it was my 6th concert at the Stadium since music returned there on August 28, 2013: Mumford (2013); James Taylor (2015); New York Pops (twice) (2015); Disclosure (2016) and now Dolly (2016).

Anyway, Dolly put on a great show, I'm sure anyone who attended would agree. She's really amazing.

And, this pic of a couple of rather enthusiastic Dolly fans at the concert last night also gave me a fresh new Gay Pride Day photo to use on the blog! It will battle the Gay Imperial Storm Trooper on this website each year going forward! (I also included that one below for good measure.)

Happy Pride Day everyone!

Mumford & Sons Concert Pics

Some photos from Mumford's return to Forest Hills Stadium. These are from the second show on June 17th Friday night, courtesy of Kevin Hung. Thanks Kevin!

Marcus Mumford ran through the crowd!