The Concert for New York City

Did You Know?

• Over 60 stars signed unique memorabilia backstage that were auctioned for the Robin Hood Foundation, including three large posters, three customized 24" drumheads, a complete drumset, and a guitar.
• The concert was released on DVD and VHS by Sony on January 29, 2002, with the VHS set running 296 minutes and the DVD 245 minutes.

Audience reaction

The crowd was highly emotional, with victims' families and colleagues holding portraits of the dead. Three speakers were booed: Susan Sarandon for plugging mayoral candidate Mark Green, Richard Gere for speaking about non-violent tolerance, and Hillary Clinton for her perceived anti-police views. Gere acknowledged the jeering, saying, "That's apparently unpopular right now, but that's all right." Sarandon was nearly tripped by the wife of a missing police officer whose foot came through the barricade fence.

Adam Sandler's appearance as Operaman provided comic relief; he sang about New York City, the end of Rudy Giuliani's term, the Yankees, preceding acts, and Osama bin Laden's alleged cowardice. Musically, the audience responded most fervently to the Who, roaring during "Who Are You," drowning out the band on "Baba O'Riley," and reaching a peak with "Won't Get Fooled Again." The backdrop featured American and British flags. Vocalist Roger Daltrey told the crowd, "We could never follow what you did."

When tossed a law enforcement officer's cap during "Behind Blue Eyes," Daltrey said, "I'm not worthy of wearing this." Forbes described the Who's performance as a "catharsis" for law enforcement. This was bassist John Entwistle's final American performance with the Who; he died eight months later. Jon Carin played keyboards in place of John "Rabbit" Bundrick.

Short films

Several short films were shown during the concert. Woody Allen's "Sounds from a Town I Love" (sometimes incorrectly referred to as "Sounds from the Town I Love") is a three-minute comedy consisting of cell-phone conversation snippets of twenty-three random people walking through New York City, ending with the message "I love this town." John Cusack introduced the film with an apology from Allen. Other films included Edward Burns' "Lovely Day," Ric Burns' "New York: A Documentary Film," Christian Charles' "The Greatest City on Earth," Spike Lee's "Come Rain or Come Shine," Martin Scorsese's "The Neighborhood," and Kevin Smith's "Why I Love New #*$%!&@ York." Among those appearing in Allen's film were Austin Pendleton, Griffin Dunne, Michael Emerson, Bebe Neuwirth, and Celia Weston.

Critical reaction

In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked this event and the America: A Tribute to Heroes telethon among the 50 moments that reshaped rock and roll. Madison Square Garden fans voted it the fourth-greatest moment in the venue’s history. During the 2008 Kennedy Center Honors for Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, the show ended with an unexpected choir of New York City police and rescue workers, moved by the Who’s performance.

Broadcast

When VH1 broadcast the event live, it brought in more than $35 million, plus another $275,000 from a related auction. Every dollar raised went to the Robin Hood Relief Fund, set up by the Robin Hood Foundation to support those affected by the World Trade Center attacks. Greg Sills and Fred Graver served as executive producers, Paul Flattery produced and co-wrote the show with Stephen Pouliot, and Louis J. Horvitz directed. David Hewitt and Mark Repp handled the recording using Remote Recording's Silver Truck.

The special earned two Primetime Emmy nominations, for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special and for Outstanding Art Direction. VH1 Classic aired the full, uncut 5½-hour version on January 1, 2008, and CBS ran a one-hour highlight program the next month. A DVD and album came out in January 2002. The concert returned commercial-free on September 11, 2011, for the 10th anniversary, and again on October 20, 2021, on MTV Classic and MTV Live for the 20th.