What was your favorite?

Over the past 10 years, the Superbowl halftime show has begun to shift from halftime celebration/tribute to the halftime Rock N’ Roll concert.  And I like it!  The past ten years have brought some of the greatest performances of all time.

I’m not to sure what to think of “The Boss(es)” performance last night… I’m not sure what I think about “The Boss” still.  I mean, I like a lot of his music, but I just don’t get the whole vibe… probably cause I’m not from Jersey.  How do you NOT play “Born in the USA” at the Super Bowl?  And the whole sliding into the camera thing… I understand he was having fun, putting on a show, amped up.  But I am still trying to figure out what was more offensive, Janet Jacksons bare breast in 2004 or the extreme closeup of “The Boss’s” crotch.  But I digress, back to the topic at hand.

You can find a list of all the past Super Bowl Halftime Shows here.

But for my money, the top three are;

3.) Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – 2008

This one was last year here in the AZ.  I loved the song selection, the stage, the performance.  Tom (on the classic Flying V guitar) and his band tore it up and the presentation was incredible.  For an older stoned guy, Tom can still rock.  And I love the licks in songs like “American Girl” “Free Falling” and especially “Running Down a Dream”.  Solid performance all around at #3.

2.) Prince – 2007

Seriously.  I have liked Prince for a while now.  Not so much for the vocals, or the songs themselves, or their content… But the man is a PHENOMENAL guitar player.  Most of the people I know laughed and scoffed when I mentioned this, and thought me slightly funny for liking Prince.  But when he shredded that symbol guitar of his, with the rain coming down, and the silhouette on that sheet… Incredible.  Most agreed with my thoughts on Prince after that performance.  One such man, strong enough to admit it is my friend Nick.  Thanks for being big enough to be honest man…

1.) U2 – 2002

After the 9/11 attacks of 2001, talk of cancelling the Super Bowl because of terrorist threats… A great game was dwarfed, by what many consider (myself included) one of the most important, incredible, and impressive performances of all time.  Bono kicking off with Psalm 51:15.  Man, I still get chills watching this, especially the 2nd half!

So what was your favorite performance?  Do you agree with mine or do you differ?  Sound off!