Tag / Hollywood Casino Amphitheater

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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #2

Music.  It is a powerful thing that brings people together, creates memories, and evokes emotions.  It is the universal language that speaks to the soul.  It forms the soundtrack of our lives.

It has now been five years since we last counted down the Top 200 artists in my iTunes library, featuring the songs I have listened to the most since 2007.  It is time to do so again, seeing which performers still resonate and if any newer ones have joined the fray.  So, without further ado, here are my most listened to artists, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2026.

Today, we have our penultimate entry with the artist I’ve listened to the second most over the last 13-ish years.  Formed in Liverpool, England in 1960, I present to you the Fab Four, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.  Collectively known as The Beatles.

#2: The Beatles
iTunes stats: 2147 plays
Previous ranking: #2

Arriving on US shores in early 1964, The Beatles put together what is today considered a catalog of thirteen studio albums and one compilation.  Those releases are the core of the 99 tracks that make up their 2147 plays, for an average of 21.7 listens per track.  Their counts would be even higher, but their totals were reset in 2009 when I replaced the original CD releases from the 1980s with a remastered box set.

While the band broke up four years before I was born following the release of 1970’s Let It Be, I have managed to see Paul McCartney in concert twice, first at Wrigley Field in 2011 and then again at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheater in 2017.  His touring band puts on quite a show and I’m sure I’d be interested if and when he comes back through town again, assuming the price was reasonable.

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2022: The Year In Live Performances

During 2022, I managed to get out three different times, taking in my first post-pandemic concert and play and my second comedy show.

In June, I attended my first concert since 2019.  Garbage was opening for Tears for Fears at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre and I made a last-minute decision to attend.  I hadn’t been to this particular venue since 2017, despite it being the closest to my house.  After a nice set from Garbage, I stuck around for the first part of Tears for Fears’ set.  The songs I knew from them were evenly split between the beginning of the show and the end, so I stayed for the first five songs they performed, hearing Everybody Wants to Rule the World and Sowing the Seeds of Love before leaving.  Without the crowds, I was able to get from my seat to my house in about a half hour.

For my birthday, I received tickets to the stage version of Clue.  In November, the night before Thanksgiving, Angelina, Danny, and I headed into the city for what was my first trip to the theater since 2018’s trip to Broadway.  The production of Clue is based on the movie, which is one of my favorites.  A good time was had by all.

To wrap up the year, I headed to the Chicago Theatre to see John Oliver on New Year’s Eve.  It was the perfect New Year’s Eve for someone my age, with the show starting around 7:30, wrapping up by 9:00, and allowing me to drive home and be in the house by 10:00.

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FB8 – Week 21

Another solid-ish week, as I found myself staying on the right side of 30,000 steps thanks to some outside activities.  Things got off to a pretty good start on Sunday, finishing 13 steps shy of 5800 thanks to a frustrating trip to Guaranteed Rate Field.  Monday saw very little drop-off, ending with 5700 steps.  Tuesday saw a much bigger fall, dropping down to 4300 steps.  Wednesday fell even more, going down to 4100 steps.  Thursday was the high point of the week, thanks to a last-minute decision to head to the World Hollywood Casino Ampitheatre to see Garbage and Tears for Fears, putting me over 7000 steps.  Friday turned that around and saw the lowest total of the week, with only 3500 steps.  A trip to Wrigley Field to see the Cubs battle the Braves on Saturday was a decent way to end the week, finishing with 6900 steps.

Total steps: 37,414

Daily average: 5344.9

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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #2

6 years ago, we first counted down the then Top 100 artists in my iTunes library.  Since that time, I’ve successfully managed to migrate my music collection to a new PC with the stats intact and expanded the count down to the Top 200.  It’s been 3 years, so I figured it was time to take yet another look at my Top 200 artists, based on the number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2021.

Today, we have our penultimate entry with the artist I’ve listened to the second most over the last 13-ish years.  Formed in Liverpool, England in 1960, I present to you the Fab Four, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.  Collectively known as The Beatles.

 

#2: The Beatles
iTunes stats: 1736 plays
Previous ranking: #2

Arriving on US shores in early 1964, The Beatles put together what is today considered a catalog of 13 studio albums and 1 compilation.  Those releases are the core of the 99 tracks that make up their 1736 plays, for an average of 17.5 listens per track.  Their counts would be even higher, but their totals were reset in 2009 when I replaced the original CD releases from the 1980s with a remastered box set.

While the band broke up 4 years before I was born following the release of 1970’s Let It Be, I have managed to see Paul McCartney in concert twice, first at Wrigley Field in 2011 and then again at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheater in 2017.  His touring band puts on quite a show and I’m sure I’d be interested if and when he comes back through town again.

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Fitbit III: Week 26

Another great week, as I surpassed 60,000 steps for the second time in the last 3 weeks and extended my streak of days over goal to 14.  The week got off to a decent start on Sunday, where morning brunch led to just surpassing my daily goal of 6500 steps.  Monday started at the Will County Courthouse in Joliet for what was supposed to be a week of jury duty, but an early exit brought me to Wrigley Field for day 1 of crosstown action, finishing well over 7000 steps.  Tuesday was the big day of the week, thanks to a return trip to Wrigley followed by my first trip to the Hollywood Casino Amphitheater in 21 years to see Sir Paul McCartney.  Wednesday was my down day of the week, with no plans and a mere 12 steps above goal.  Thursday, the crosstown action moved down to Guaranteed Rate field and I notched my second 10,000 step day of the week.  Friday was the first day I made it to the office all week, which I followed with a trip to Miller Park in Milwaukee, scoring my third 10,000 step day of the week.  After sleeping in on Saturday, I took a trip to the car wash, followed by exciting Sox/Indian action.

Total steps: 63,225

Daily average: 9032.1