Opening Ceremonies, or, The Wildest Concert Ever

                                                     Photo Credit: Kevin Mazur/HBO

Wading through massive crowds and countless vendors at around noon, I knew I was close.

Sliding through the crowds towards the Lincoln Memorial, suddenly I saw a break in the pack and a welcome sign: "Press Entrance."

I broke from the crowded streets and chatted with a Brazilian radio-journalist operating out of D.C. on the way to the security check, where I embarrassingly continued to forget that I still had things in my pockets. It took about three times the norm to get through metal detectors.

To the side of the Memorial, a triangular spot was gated for press - closer to the stage then I'd ever imagined.

The scene was not unlike the end of "Star Wars" when Luke is given a medal in front of rows and rows of onlookers. Ironically, George Lucas was sitting about 200 feet in front of me. Whoa.

The mass of press folk battled a bit for prime real estate within the area; while my lack of a camera made me unfit for the fight to the front, my short stature made it easy to slip through to a fantastic view.

The set up was elaborate - a glass cube sat on stage right to house the Obamas, an orchestra pit towards the front, sliding scenery pillars and countless flags, all leading up the Memorial steps.

After an hour and a half waiting (I had it easy. One photographer cried in relief"I've been waiting for six hours!" as the ceremony began), the sliding pillars parted, revealing a regal set of military trumpeters. The orchestra played "Fanfare for the Common Man." This was the real deal.

Over the course of the next two hours, a collection of the best and brightest in Hollywood and Musicland spoke and performed in some brilliant collaborations.

Bruce Springsteen sang "The Rising" with only an acoustic guitar... and an entire chorus behind him.

Mary J. Blige sang a big band "Lean on Me."

James Taylor and John Legend crooned through "Shower the People."

Sheryl Crow and the everpresent will.i.am sang Bob Marley's "One Love."

And, most surprisingly of all, Garth Brooks downright kicked ass on "American Pie," evoking the most enthusiastic crowd reaction of the whole show. Seriously, Garth Brooks. Weird, but almost soothing; the heart of country-loving Middle America still beats loudly. And wears cowboy hats.

The performances were great, sure, but this wasn't about the music. It was about something bigger than that (and that's saying something. Very little is bigger than music), something that was in the air, in the words of each speaker, in the booming "OBAMA" chants of the massive crowd stretching from the Lincoln Memorial straight back to the Washington Monument.

The speakers, including Steve Carell, Tiger Woods, Tom Hanks, Queen Latifah, Jack Black, Samuel L. Jackson and Denzel Washington, often quoted famous Americans (President Lincoln, FDR and JFK showed up most often) in speeches that both added to the unbelievable nature of the event and grounded everyone in the reality of the present.

U2 played last, fittingly; the band, though Irish, has come to represent, for many Americans, the right for good to exist, and overcome evil. The band rocked "Pride (In the Name of Love)" and "City of Blinding Lights" in proper form.

Then it was time for the biggest rock star of all.

Obama spoke passionately, but realistically.

"I won't pretend that meeting any of these challenges will be easy," he said after listing America's ills.

"But what gives me the greatest hope of all...is you. You belive in what this country can be and you want to help us get there...You proved that people who love this country can change it, and there is no obstacle that can stand in the way of millions of voices calling for change."

Well said.

-Justin Jacobs

-Photo by Michael Heater