Mine would be Richard Thompson’s “1952 Vincent Black Lightning”, although I’m having trouble imagining 100,000+ Richard Thompson fans together in the same place at the same time.
Desperado or Hotel California…
Nahhh…Desperado, so i could talk to the uninformed (youngins) and warn them of the dangers of chasing the wrong thing.
That’s be mine, as well. There’s probably a half-dozen Queen songs that might qualify for me, but I think this one would be the coolest to pull off.
It sounds like you can’t tell the difference between a girl who’s really into you and one that’s bored as shit. 
There’s a big difference in how a crowd is made up. That’s a key factor in the OP–the hundred grand’s worth of people want to be there, they’re not just trying to fill an evening. The closest I can come is a weird series of Dead shows back in 93 or 94. Sting opened for them. I don’t care if your a fan of neither, but it was a bit odd and distracting (?) having a cadre of Sting fans confused and bored with the improvisations and whatnot.
And the fun bit would be being at the epicenter. Just listening/experiencing it would be one thing, but that’s not the subject of the OP.
That sounds quite like a personal attack to me.
You didn’t in the slightest address my question. These are people that aren’t cheering, aren’t clapping, aren’t signing along, aren’t jumping around or waving their arms or doing anything but listening to other people listening and coughing and you sitting on your ass on stage. How would you know the difference between people wanting to be there or not?
4’33" is brilliant. Talk about a crowd experience.
That being said, my choice would… well, I was going to say Sweet Home Chicago, but then I realized the perfect song.
Crossroads. Because there’s only one way I could be that good.
(Original)
(As covered by Cream)
I would choose to play Frank Zappa’s Lumpy Gravy. And then I would be revered as a god (at least in Lithuania and maybe Germany).
ETA: I think 4’33" is a great idea, too.
As far as playing an instrument and singing perfectly, it’d have to be Monty Python’s “The Penis Song (Not the Noel Coward Song)”.
Close runners-up (and strictly based on my singing ability) would be “Gaston” (both principal vocal parts), “Out There” (both vocal parts), “Be Prepared” (all vocals), or “Pretty Women” (both Sweeney’s and Judge Turpin’s parts).
Or any bass parts laid down by the inimitable J.D. Sumner.
You know where you are? You in the Jungle baby, and you’re gonna dieeeeeeeeeeeeee
Crowd goes wild.
(Welcome to the Jungle by GNR for you squares… though Paradise City might be fun too)
Singing and playing instrument of my choice and just absolutely nailing it?
AC/DC’s “Let There Be Rock” and I happen to like drums (plus I wouldn’t want to try and out-Angus Angus). Watching Chris Slade drumming on “Live At Donnington” is awesome, I’d like to be able to do that.
And while it might seem a little sappy to some, getting up in front of 100,000 enthusiastic people and belting out a perfect “Star Spangled Banner” would be something I’d remember for a long, long time. No instruments and no clowning around (“brave” does not have 73 syllables, thank you very much).
For the past two years, huge Todd Rundgren fans gathered in Akron, OH for a concert. And the night before there is a party. And folks who can perform are invited to get on stage. Sometimes the results are OK, sometimes the results are…regrettable.
I’d love to be able to get on stage and sing Born To Synthesize from the album Initiation. Of course I’d have to learn Tuvan throat singing techniques to be about to do it justice, but hey, this is a fantasy.
Little Wing
For the scenario in the OP, with the massive crowd, only Springsteen would suffice. My choice of song is maybe a little obscure - “This Hard Land”. For some reason this song seems like it would be a great one to perform.
I’d give a completely different answer if the question was about a small venue though.
I’d like to be able to play Beethoven’s Piano Sonata #8, the Pathetique.
I have been a professional bluegrass player and singer for 35 years, so this is a very different genre for me. I’m listening to a recording of this music right now. Gives me chills.
David
Seconded! I had to sing that in Italian and German when I was in college [failed music major here] and it still makes me get all shivery thinking about it.
Bring Him Home – Jean Valjean’s song from Act II of Les Misérables.
First choice, Springsteen’s Jungleland, just cause I know my wife would completely turn to jelly.
Second choice, the crooner in me would love to nail a Dean-like version of Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime
I did once do a karaoke version of REM’s End of the World as We Know It and nailed it at least enough to impress a bunch of half drunk people in a bar, spurred on by my table of 8 more than half-drunk coworkers. Pretty low bar there, though.
It was performed live on national radio (P1 - which is sort of similar to BBC4) here in Denmark a few years back - with a fine introduction, too. It was quite amazing - silence (or lack of sound, if you will) is a very surprising and thought-provoking thing when it happens on a radio talk show.
An alarm actually went off in the radio studio during the recital because of a system that automatically perceives studio silence for more than 2 minutes as a serious error.
On stage in front of a full stadium audience that would be mind-blowing!
Sorry for the double. Just thought of the one song I would like to be able to pull off perfectly:
Rag Bageshri (classical Indian) - if I could play it as well as the late great Nikhil Banerjee. Just once …
Since American Idol has killed And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going, I’d go with Everything’s Coming up Roses.
Hold up-- does ‘play any instrument’ include my very own body? Because I’d go with Big Spender and slinky dance my ass off.
No wait, wait . . . forget Broadway. I’ll have to go to my first musical love, Top 40. I pick I Will Always Love You.