In the last few days after Super Bowl XLV, there has been much discussion about the halftime performance of the Black Eyed Peas. Our own Anthony Stalter was not a fan, and when I spoke to a few of the guys on my Tuesday night basketball team, they weren’t all that thrilled with the Peas either.
I am admittedly not a huge BEP fan, though I do like a few of the songs, especially “I Gotta Feeling” since my two-year old always marches and hops his way around our kitchen island whenever it comes on. I thought the halftime show was okay. Slash’s appearance was a nice surprise (though Fergie’s Axl Rose impersonation left a bit to be desired) and they did a nice job with lit-up dancers around the stage. However, if I never saw Usher perform again, I think I’d be all right with that.
It got me thinking — maybe I could lay some groundwork and help pick the artist/band to perform at next year’s Super Bowl.
Looking at this list of Super Bowl halftime shows, it’s interesting to note that the Super Bowl used marching bands up through most of the ’60s, ’70s and even the ’80s. It wasn’t until 1991 when the Super Bowl got a “big” name, when Disney produced a show that featured the New Kids on the Block. Through most of the ’90s, the halftime shows would feature a medley of acts, though Michael Jackson and Diana Ross did headline in 1993 and 1996, respectively.
After Janet Jackson’s “wardrobe malfunction” in 2004 (produced by MTV), the powers-that-be went conservative over the next few years, booking Paul McCartney and the Rolling Stones for the next two Super Bowls before going with Prince in 2007. His show was a bit risque as well (remember the shadow of his guitar?), so the Super Bowl followed up with Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and The Who before booking the Black Eyed Peas for 2011.
In many ways, the BEP booking makes sense. They’re mainstream enough that a vast majority of the SB audience would have heard at least one of their songs and they’re not going to risk the negative publicity by being particularly edgy or pushing the envelope in any way.
So where does that leave us? Most of the rock icons have already performed (adding U2, Sting, ZZ Top and Aerosmith to the previously mentioned classic rock acts), but a few names that jump out are AC/DC, the Eagles, Elton John and John Mellencamp. Since Super Bowl XLVI is in Indianapolis, an appearance by Mellencamp makes a lot of sense. AC/DC is probably too hard, though they could do a song or two as part of a medley of artists. The Eagles and Elton John are probably too soft to carry a halftime show by themselves.
What about a more contemporary artist?
Here are eight possibilities that make some sense, in increasing order of how much I’d like to see them get the gig (and what chance they’d have to pull it off if given the opportunity):
