Wings arrived in Venice, Italy, on September 24, 1976. Paul, Linda and the kids spent the first day sightseeing the beautiful town and taking a ride on a gondola.
On Saturday, September 25, 1976, Wings performed a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) benefit concert in St. Mark's Square, Venice, where they help raise $50,000 towards restoring the historic city and help stop it from sinking. The show, part of a week of concerts in the city, which features Ravi Shankar, Peter Ustinov and Mort Schuman, is a great success but unfortunately the weight of the equipment used by the group causes subsidence damage in the area. As part of the deal, Wings perform free of charge and Paul agrees to pay for transport of their equipment, but the organising committee foot their hotel bills and the cost of erecting the stage and seating in the Piazza. To offset the massive investment for this one concert, Paul arranges for the other concerts (on September 19, 21 and 27) to take place on either side of the Venice concert. It is attended by approximately 15,000 people, all paying around 10 pounds a head. |
