More than 45,000 tickets sold out in only 19 minutes for the special birthday concert at Ford Field, the city's downtown NFL stadium, in honor of the man born Robert Ritchie.
Early in the show, fellow musician Uncle Kracker joined Rock on stage for "Good To Be Me." Talk show hosts Conan O'Brien and Jay Leno appeared on two oversized video screens on either side of the stage in taped messages wishing their friend a happy birthday.
O'Brien told Rock: "Happy 40th birthday ... and rock on Detroit!"
