The (Second) Best Days of My Life

I still remember my first time.

I remember being surprised at how good it felt. How right it felt.

That’s why it was such a joy to share Andrew, Gloria and Microsoft Steve’s first time with them. Bryans Adams, live in concert.

I’ve been an advocate, of course, ever since a summer evening in Budapest – some of the best days of my life – long ago. You wouldn’t necessarily expect it, but frankly, Bryan Adams rocks.


For weeks, black, white and orange billboards shouted about the Canadian rocker’s 5-city tour of India, the fourth of his career. We were quick to sign on for 1500 rupee tickets, $30, pretty pricey by local standards. Joined by two local staffers, pretty ardent fans, we trekked out to the high tech side of town and trickled in front of a large outdoor stage. A song-and-dance number from an upcoming movie was a pretty poor opener, and it took BA about an hour to show up.

He started, just like in Budapest, with a slew of songs I’d never heard of. But that the rest of the crowd – Hungarian and Indian alike – seemed to know those songs just fine. Gloria skeptically turned to me with a “he better play something I know soon” look. Andrew got antsy when the unknown man next to him innocently draped his arm around his shoulders, as Indian men often do. But by the time he got to the middle of his set, though, Gloria was rocking and Andrew let out a little “Bryan Adams sings this song!?”

Two-and-a-half hours later, validated. All three agreed the concert was fantastic. Just like a Budapest evening, long ago, Bryan Adams rocked a new legion of fans into his corner. Man-crush, vindicated.