Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto

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Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto
The stage
Also known asToronto Rocks
Directed byDavid Russell
StarringJann Arden
Dan Aykroyd
Jim Belushi
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerJustin Bomberg
CinematographyJustin Bomberg
Original release
Release2003 (2003)

Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto, also known as SARSStock, was a benefit rock concert that was held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on July 30, 2003. An estimated 450,000 and 500,000 people attended the concert, making it is the largest outdoor ticketed event in Canadian history and one of the largest events in North American history.[1]

Overview

The crowd at Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto on July 30, 2003

The concert was organized in about a month, upon the suggestion of headliners

Rolling Stones have held tour rehearsals in Toronto on more than one occasion; Toronto was also the setting for Keith Richards's 1977 arrest and subsequent trial. When The Rolling Stones announced the concert, Toronto was still under a SARS warning from the World Health Organization
. The publicity garnered by the SARS outbreak led to a downturn in Toronto's tourism industry, which the concert was intended to help revive.

Tickets for the concert went on sale on June 27, 2003 and cost $21.50 Canadian.[2] The Canadian portion of 150,000 tickets sold out almost immediately and made a single-day record for the Canadian arm of Ticketmaster.[3]

The concert was held at

MuchMoreMusic
provided coverage of parts of the concert throughout the day, including the end of the Rolling Stones' set.

The concert opened in the afternoon with Have Love Will Travel Revue, including Aykroyd and

James Belushi, Sam Roberts, Kathleen Edwards, La Chicane, The Tea Party, and The Flaming Lips who invited artists from backstage to dance on stage with them dressed in fuzzy animal costumes, Sass Jordan, The Isley Brothers, and Blue Rodeo. Each band performed for 15–20 minutes. The second part of the concert began later in the afternoon and lasted into the night and featured Justin Timberlake, The Guess Who, Rush, AC/DC
, and the Rolling Stones, who performed a 90-minute set to end the concert.

Justin Timberlake was booed by the crowd, which was anticipating the harder-rocking second half of the concert. Throughout his performance he had to dodge

Miss You" and also for Justin Timberlake's "Cry Me a River". When some fans continued to throw bottles at Timberlake, the crowd was harangued by a visibly angry Keith Richards
.

Rush was the last band to be added to the lineup. According to drummer Neil Peart, "When we were first asked to play Molson Canadian Rocks For Toronto, it seemed impossible to say yes. We had been off the road for 8 months, our gear was in the warehouse, most of our crew was out on other tours, and even we were all over the place - Geddy with his family in France, Alex working in the studio mixing our Rio de Janeiro show, and me on my motorcycle in the California mountains. However, when we thought about everything Toronto meant to our lives, to our work and play, our homes and families and friends, it seemed impossible to say no!" [5]

A documentary DVD entitled Toronto Rocks was released in 2004, showing highlights of the event.

See also

  • List of historic rock festivals
  • Hong Kong Harbour Fest, a similar event held in Hong Kong to revive the economy after SARS.

References

  1. ^ "CBC News - Toronto Rocked". Archived from the original on 2009-07-27.
  2. ^ "Molson Mega-Concert To Feature The Rolling Stones, The Flaming Lips, AC/DC And Many More". Chart Attack. Archived from the original on 2003-07-03. Retrieved February 4, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. ^ "Rush Joins SARS Benefit, Canadian Tix Sell Out". Chart Attack. Archived from the original on 2003-08-10. Retrieved February 4, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ^ Rashbaum, Alyssa (July 31, 2003). "Justin Timberlake Joins Stones At Toronto Benefit, Gets Pelted With Garbage". MTV. Retrieved 2012-04-29.
  5. ^ "Toronto SARS Benefit Concert".

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto.
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