Sparky's Review

[sparky]

Since I saw two shows, I have to kind of gang this together. I am not going to go into all the specific songs, the order. My response is delayed and all of that is done to death.

Let me just start by saying that the vibe of the room was STRANGE. The ushers seating us, the dim lights, the quiet music. Everyone was compelled to whisper, and it felt extremely subdued to be a venue for a rock concert. It felt more like a ballet performance. Even theatre shows in NY are a little more electric and chatty. People seemed intimidated by the surroundings. May I also comment that that ratty little bar in the lobby charged me 14 bucks for a drink with a small amount of ghetto tequila in it ? :laugh:

No matter, but it made an impression.

As for the show....

Enchanted was an interesting choice for an opener. I like this song live, and everyone seemed pretty charged just to see Stevie. The crowd clearly adored her, even if it wasn't all die hard fans. Is this the right opener ? I am not sure. It wasn't WRONG, but I couldn't help but think as I saw the shot from ICW on the RP screen that it might have been a hell of a way to open the show. Wasn't too fond of the RP images in this song, but it opened the show pretty well.

The raindrop RP for OTR/Dreams worked better - I have to say again that having center seats made ALL the difference as Stevie plays strictly to the center front of the house, and the RP has to be seen from this angle to be appreciated. I don't think that this version of OTR is as good as when Carlos was the MD. He added these really nice, heavy guitar riffs under the melody that beefed the song up a lot. I also question if this song combo really needed to be in the set at all. She sang the hell out of OTR. But as this song segued into Dreams I felt the pace of the show was off. A little bit calm.
However, the piano intro to Rhiannon was wickedly dark and orchestral, and I have to say the band made me like this song live again. I don't ever need to hear it again live, but I enjoyed it, and the crowd went nuts. For once, the pace of it was up to snuff. This song has been played at a draggy tempo for the better part of two decades, and kudos to the drummers for kicking it up a speed - especially during the end.

I don't think Sorcerer was a great choice. I like the song, and it was a good version, but I don't think it worked. It is the kind of song that doesn't make you want to move, and doesn't make you want to sit, either. I feel exactly the same way about If Anyone Falls. The harmonies were EXCELLENT in IAF, but it was too midtempo. Nice to hear it after 14 years ? Sure. Fitting for Vegas ? Nah. And those columns. Lord Have Mercy, the columns. Number one, they looked like high school students made them out of papier mache, and they didn't hit the ground. They just creeepily floated. The scenic designer, if indeed she hired one, needs to be beaten. Severely. And I am just the man for that job.

On the other hand, the cuts from the video, superimposed over shots of a beach, were cool.

The placement of SB in the set shocked me. It never comes this soon in the set and I feared the show had shot it's wad way too early. Of course the intro was too long, but it was worth it. Especially for the inclusion of a kick on Saturday. The things we are thankful for. And on Friday, the spinning was pretty impressive. Beat the SYW spins. For the first time too, the RP really worked. It was old school Vegas cheesiness at it's best. The blinking, traveling white blocks ! So damned funny. And the fact that they projected her in the middle. That was the first moment of the show that I felt the show was up to the standards of being "special" or "Vegas". It was way cliched, but spot on. Loved it.

GDW ? The sitar effect on someone's guitar made this good. That was an interesting choice, to be sure. Don't know that this song needed to be in the set either. It was a jarring comedown after SB. But, the new sounds were cool. And she played with the ending both nights. I loved her whispery outro on Friday. It was very Tusk tour. Gotta love that.

FFG kicked my butt. The only problem is that 90% of the house didn't know it. I therefore think it could have been placed better in the show. It would have made a barn burner of an opener - a good trick to pull as people would have been so excited to see her they wouldn't have sat down. Friday she nailed the end better, but I love this song so I enjoyed it a lot.

HSML was a welcome addition. Is it a new song to do live ? Nope. But I haven't seen it since 94 so I won't complain. Stevie clearly loves doing this song, the girls shine, and it evidently gets homegirl's juices going. She got very sexed up doing this song. I don't know exactly what I feel about THAT.
But she seemed to be enjoying herself. She did this nasty Mae West dance in the ending vamp with one hand on her hip and the other swaying over her head. Very hot.

OF COURSE she had to do Edge. But God Save Me from the RP guy who chose the animated doves. I like the fllmed ones way better. The problem is, the song is 20 minutes LOOOONG, and they just wore them out. The song needed a bunch of other cool imagery - it evokes so much imagery in the lyrics that a monkey could choose images for it. The TD or Designer ( I repeat, IF THERE EVEN WAS ONE) really missed the boat on this. Good rendition and I give SN big props for swimming into the crowd for her stage walk. God love her for doing that. It sets her apart and people just adore her for it.

INTK is a dead horse. It really is an anti climax of an encore. It simply isn't that great of a song. She needs a better first encore. It is simply a habit. It worked all right, but she deserves a better song to follow Edge. If she is going to do a cover, how about "Shout" ? How about "Rock and Roll" ? Either of those would blow people's sox off. She could sing around the melodies just fine.

As others have said, the piece de resistance was BATB. This is the song that made going worthwhile. Everything worked. The little candles on the piano, the film clip, the chiffon drapes which echoed the design of the film, her costume, hair...
And let us just take a moment for the singing. She kicked the ass of this song to France and back. I have not heard her sing with this much emotion and pathos live since....the 80's. It was transcendent both nights. Genius. And because of that, her whole body showed it. She was completely committed in the performance of this song. Every element was perfect. It reminded me of the Stevie of old, who did feel every note she sang. If anyone doubts if she still has "it"...this proved she does.

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Now, the problem. BATB, in perspective, also showed how much the rest of the show lacked. Was it a fine show ? Sure. Was it all that special and memorable as a whole? Not for this veteran fan. BATB made the entire trip worth it. However, there were so many simple things that could have pitched the show over the top. The RP screens were very underused. There was next to no scenery. Those three tiered lace covered lamp things were tragic. Maybe I am a harsh critic because I do sets for a living, but man...I also know LV is full of cheap drapes and scenery. They could have, with 15 grand, done enough to push it to the next level. And.....a funny thing happened to Stevie when she put on that beautiful costume and swept her hair up...she became a different character. She was transformed into something else, and it made for a chilling performance. It added the theatricality that the venue demands. She
proved she could do it. In order for this show to be a VEGAS HIT if she does it again, she needs to add maybe two other songs where she does this, and that's it. Get a real set designer, use the RP screens with a bit more creativity, and it would have been the show she said she was going to do. I think if she just rejiggered three of the songs, the set list would be fine. Perfect. I know she has to shut the casual fans up with the chestnuts. I get that. That's fine. But BATB proved she can go into that theatrical vein, and if she did a few more of those BATB level songs, with costumes and sets that worked with the material, I would go back once a year for two shows. It would be easily worth a thousand bucks.

___________________________

So all in all, I had fun. On a personal note, I am bummed I didn't run into Livia, except for a moment. Thought you had disappeared with John Kinney backstage, Homegirl ! We had a drink at the Seahorse, and stayed till 11.

AMber, I looked for you at Margville Friday night but damned if I could spot your ass in that dump.

[Livia]

I saw you walking past the Seahorse before the show - and I was there again about 30 minutes after briefly saying hello to you, and remained there until they closed at 3 AM!! Oy vay, traveling home today was rough....too tired to post my thoughts on the shows, but I will just say that BATB made also made me bawl like a baby!

"GDW ? The sitar effect on someone's guitar made this good." - That was all Scott on the keyboard! :)

[GardenStateGirlie]

May I also comment that that ratty little bar in the lobby charged me 14 bucks for a drink with a small amount of ghetto tequila in it ? :laugh:

I would later find out the obscene amount I paid for a drink was due to the fact that Wolfgang Puck was catering -_-

[GardenStateGirlie]

I saw you walking past the Seahorse before the show - and I was there again about 30 minutes after briefly saying hello to you, and remained there until they closed at 3 AM!! Oy vay, traveling home today was rough....too tired to post my thoughts on the shows, but I will just say that BATB made also made me bawl like a baby!

"GDW ? The sitar effect on someone's guitar made this good." - That was all Scott on the keyboard! :)

Were you by any chance there on Wednesday night wearing a purple shirt? (I thought it was purple). If not, your twin was walking around. I didn't want to say anything to the woman because I would have felt like an ass if it wasn't you.

[Livia]

Were you by any chance there on Wednesday night wearing a purple shirt? (I thought it was purple). If not, your twin was walking around. I didn't want to say anything to the woman because I would have felt like an ass if it wasn't you.

Not me - I didn't arrive in Vegas until Thursday. :)

[strandinthewind]

**** Puck :laugh: His pizza is like $8.00 a slice here and crappy at that.

I have to say Sparky nailed the review though I do think that from a lay person like me's eyes, the set was cool. I also think they knew it was one show, etc. I did LOVE, however, how they put the pie wedge riser in to level the stage and make it narrower by making it impossible to use like 15 feet of each side. I also think the animated attitude she used in all songs was a very welcome breath of fresh air :cool:

BTW - sorry to miss you Sparky!

[GardenStateGirlie]

Not me - I didn't arrive in Vegas until Thursday. :)

Glad I didn't say anything then! :laugh:

[amber]

AMber, I looked for you at Margville Friday night but damned if I could spot your ass in that dump.
I was wandering around Caesars with Strand et al on Fri night. Sorry i missed you, too.

[sparky]

I was wandering around Caesars with Strand et al on Fri night. Sorry i missed you, too.

Welllllll, I guess we should have worn badges. I was in the seahorse Friday night for a long time, and ended up next to Chris Nicks and that Mini Stevie girl, who for about 3 minutes I thought WAS Stevie...same hair, so damned short EVEN SMELLS LIKE HER. Until she turned to look at me and the jig was up.

[sparky]

**** Puck :laugh: His pizza is like $8.00 a slice here and crappy at that.

Puck. Ugh. That fat bastard.


BTW - sorry to miss you Sparky!

Back at ya.

I wasn't in a cowboy hat and wife beater. How would you have known who I was ?

[strandinthewind]

Welllllll, I guess we should have worn badges. I was in the seahorse Friday night for a long time, and ended up next to Chris Nicks and that Mini Stevie girl, who for about 3 minutes I thought WAS Stevie...same hair, so damned short EVEN SMELLS LIKE HER. Until she turned to look at me and the jig was up.

I know - I met her too and she was nice and all, but it was a little disarming at first and then disconcerting thereafter because I cannot imagine La Nicks hauling out in that drag :laugh: - but and again, she was really really nice as was the guy she was with.

[amber]

Welllllll, I guess we should have worn badges. I was in the seahorse Friday night for a long time, and ended up next to Chris Nicks and that Mini Stevie girl, who for about 3 minutes I thought WAS Stevie...same hair, so damned short EVEN SMELLS LIKE HER. Until she turned to look at me and the jig was up.
That frickin mini Stevie gave me blasted heart palpitations! Now i know exactly how I will feel if I ever see Stevie. But then, we saw her all the time. Her and her Fabio boyfriend. We were sitting in a bar, and she walked into the women's bathroom, then didn't come out, for like, 40 minutes. :laugh:

[sparky]

I saw you walking past the Seahorse before the show - and I was there again about 30 minutes after briefly saying hello to you, and remained there until they closed at 3 AM!! Oy vay, traveling home today was rough....too tired to post my thoughts on the shows, but I will just say that BATB made also made me bawl like a baby!


I was sure I saw you as I walked by there....went to the bathroom and came back and the one I thought was you, with the long haired blonde, was gone !

BATB turned on the waterworks for me too. It was spine tingling.

[sparky]

That frickin mini Stevie gave me blasted heart palpitations! Now i know exactly how I will feel if I ever see Stevie. But then, we saw her all the time. Her and her Fabio boyfriend. We were sitting in a bar, and she walked into the women's bathroom, then didn't come out, for like, 40 minutes. :laugh:

OMG. Chris was telling her what went well with Vodka, she was smoking, and I thought - no way. This CANNOT BE. It really threw off the conversation for a minute. That guy was SO Fabio. Fabio meets Whitesnake.

[strandinthewind]

. . . I wasn't in a cowboy hat and wife beater. How would you have known who I was ?

I was in Prada - of course puff puff :cool:

Sat. was a little freaky to me because the MOMENT she sang "Crying in the morning," the top from my beer bottle cut my finger and there I am trying not to bleed on my shirt, so I had to go to the first aid station and get it cleaned, the little medal thing taken out and then dressed - then I had to fill out a form saying I would not sue :rolleyes: THEN - out seats were all of the way to her right on the second row (which had like three seats total ) so we literally just walked to the stage during the time to do so. Well, people behind us started getting violent - I got hit in the kidneys twice by some cun& (sorry she deserves that one) and Chris (gldstwmn) was almost knocked down. Then, the security guards FREAKED out at these girls who climbed the stairs on the far right side and were knocking us down and into the *&^%%^& behind me reacting to that. So, we just went back to our seats and I left for awhile to calm down with a cig. and a beer. I mean I get that she may be you idol - but hitting someone to see her is just fu&ked up. Get a life people - if she knew you acted like that she, your idol, would be horrified. Moreover, if you want to sit on the first two rows, pay the fuc&ing money to sit ther :mad: BUT - she was VERY cool on Sat., esp. with that Tusk era "Baby baby baby baby - you can't see me anymore" or whatever it was she said.

[Livia]

Fabio's name is Joe and mini-Stevie is Elise. They are married, from New Jersey, and both VERY cool people! It's hilarious to watch people react to them. Friday nite, some dude bought her a rose, he was convinced she was Stevie. LOL Elise has a VERY heavy "Joy-Zee" accent - usually she has to "tawk" to convince people she's not Stevie. Again, it's hilarious!!

[MacMan]

Everything worked. The little candles on the piano, the film clip, the chiffon drapes which echoed the design of the film, her costume, hair...

Great review Sparky!!

You mentioned the candles on the piano, and this reminded me of something very strange.... You know that Royal Blue cap or cloak or long coat that Stevie wore back around 98/91 it has the gold embroidery around the edges of it, and looks very heavy? For some reason - at the Friday show, that was what was draped over the piano for BATB, but inside out... and the candles were placed ontop or next to it on the piano. I saw a guy bring it out to lay over the piano, and thought when I saw it, is that the cap people were referring to her wearing... and how is she going to get it on if it's draped over the piano? Just something I noticed... and wondered if anyone else noticed that as well.

[GardenStateGirlie]

That frickin mini Stevie gave me blasted heart palpitations! Now i know exactly how I will feel if I ever see Stevie. But then, we saw her all the time. Her and her Fabio boyfriend. We were sitting in a bar, and she walked into the women's bathroom, then didn't come out, for like, 40 minutes. :laugh:

Seriously, how many times did we stare at that woman? The similarities were uber creepy. Of course they'd be from Jersey :laugh:

[strandinthewind]

Great review Sparky!!

You mentioned the candles on the piano, and this reminded me of something very strange.... You know that Royal Blue cap or cloak or long coat that Stevie wore back around 98/91 it has the gold embroidery around the edges of it, and looks very heavy? For some reason - at the Friday show, that was what was draped over the piano for BATB, but inside out... and the candles were placed ontop or next to it on the piano. I saw a guy bring it out to lay over the piano, and thought when I saw it, is that the cap people were referring to her wearing... and how is she going to get it on if it's draped over the piano? Just something I noticed... and wondered if anyone else noticed that as well.

It was heavily featured in the TimeSpace era. I was right up against the stage under Scott's feet basically - so I saw it in detail and it looked like that cape and was beautiful :cool:

[sparky]

Great review Sparky!!

You mentioned the candles on the piano, and this reminded me of something very strange.... You know that Royal Blue cap or cloak or long coat that Stevie wore back around 98/91 it has the gold embroidery around the edges of it, and looks very heavy? For some reason - at the Friday show, that was what was draped over the piano for BATB, but inside out... and the candles were placed ontop or next to it on the piano. I saw a guy bring it out to lay over the piano, and thought when I saw it, is that the cap people were referring to her wearing... and how is she going to get it on if it's draped over the piano? Just something I noticed... and wondered if anyone else noticed that as well.

Thanks Mac.

I totally noticed that ! I remember it from the Timespace tour - I think she wore it for HAEWAFY. I though WTF ? That's a cape, not a piano shawl ! But, if you're Stevie, or Scarlett O'Hara, any fancy piece of household fabric can double as clothing. :laugh:

[sparky]

Seriously, how many times did we stare at that woman? The similarities were uber creepy. Of course they'd be from Jersey :laugh:

When she was standing next to me, my friend and I about spit up our drinks.

[strandinthewind]

When she was standing next to me, my friend and I about spit up our drinks.


She even kind of laughed like La Nicks, though any exact imitation of La Nicks' laugh would be impossible. I thought they were really funny and fun to be around and enjoyed meeting them and Livia is correct, the people's stares at her were hysterical :laugh:

[GardenStateGirlie]

When she was standing next to me, my friend and I about spit up our drinks.

****, that's $14 dollars wasted. No good.

[sparky]

****, that's $14 dollars wasted. No good.

THANK GOD, my drinks were 11 in the Seahorse. Or 9, if I got the cute bartender. :nod:

[MacMan]

She even kind of laughed like La Nicks, though any exact imitation of La Nicks' laugh would be impossible. I thought they were really funny and fun to be around and enjoyed meeting them and Livia is correct, the people's stares at her were hysterical :laugh:

That mini Stevie situation the night I saw her... Friday, was pretty funny. First, I did this double take walking out of the place and by her... cause I only had a side view.... Then while a group of us were waiting just outside the doors to the place after the show... she's was out front with Chris Nicks, which I thought was kind of odd... But then I said to a friend of mine... Look at all the attention she's getting... Maybe she's a hired diversion....lol

[skcin]

That mini Stevie situation the night I saw her... Friday, was pretty funny. First, I did this double take walking out of the place and by her... cause I only had a side view.... Then while a group of us were waiting just outside the doors to the place after the show... she's was out front with Chris Nicks, which I thought was kind of odd... But then I said to a friend of mine... Look at all the attention she's getting... Maybe she's a hired diversion....lol


Haha! I thought the SAME thing. Like she's Stevie's stunt double, lol! Amber or Theresa then said "Yeah, but what stunts does Stevie do?" :laugh:

OK, now about Spark's review. I will say that on Tues, I was not really impressed with the screens (any of them ) at all, with the exception of B&tB. On Wed, when we were more towards center, and they seemed to have worked out the kinks a bit, and I was pleasantly surprised.

Looking at my pics (they're in the "MY take on Vegas thread - I tried to take one of each song so people that couldn't go would get an idea of how they looked) I think in general they were very cool. Exceptions being:

Rhiannon - unicorns. Need I say more?
Landslide - WTF?
Edge - agreed - the same dove on the enitre song was boring. Of course, I was staring at Stevie anyway, sooo...

[gldstwmn]

Great review Sparky!!

You mentioned the candles on the piano, and this reminded me of something very strange.... You know that Royal Blue cap or cloak or long coat that Stevie wore back around 98/91 it has the gold embroidery around the edges of it, and looks very heavy? For some reason - at the Friday show, that was what was draped over the piano for BATB, but inside out... and the candles were placed ontop or next to it on the piano. I saw a guy bring it out to lay over the piano, and thought when I saw it, is that the cap people were referring to her wearing... and how is she going to get it on if it's draped over the piano? Just something I noticed... and wondered if anyone else noticed that as well.

I certainly did notice it and even tired to get a picture of it after the show but it came out too dark. :(

[skcin]

I thought it was the Desert Angel cape - is that the one you guys are talking about? The one from the Enchanted box set book where there's a flag superimposed over her photo & the words to Desert Angel?

I don't have a still pic, but you can see it at the end of my Wed. video as she's walking offstage (I believe it's right after she leaves, I swung back to her mike & you can see it on the way.)

[gldstwmn]

I thought it was the Desert Angel cape - is that the one you guys are talking about? The one from the Enchanted box set book where there's a flag superimposed over her photo & the words to Desert Angel?


That's the one. :nod:

[skcin]

That's the one. :nod:


OK, then I agree that was it. :laugh:

[The Tower]

Since I saw two shows, I have to kind of gang this together. I am not going to go into all the specific songs, the order. My response is delayed and all of that is done to death.
I was gonna do a review thang, too. But since your review is very close to mine own feelings and a lot of things have been done to death, I will just plop my comments in on this thread.

The setlist was tired. I promised myself I was going to stay away from the Ledge starting Tuesday morning and I stuck to it. It was good to be surprised, even though the setlist was not surprising.

Geoffrey and I got up at 4am to catch our 7am flight and we weren't able to check into our room until 1pm, so our asses were dragging. I had planned on meeting and seeing people at the show, but being tired we barely managed to get it together to see Jason and Amber.

What can I say? The impact of "Beauty and the Beast" so heavily tilted the judgement scale for this show. It can't be reviewed as a whole entity. So, removing BATB from the setlist, here's my high/lowlights:

Biggest duds:

"Enchanted"- This song is supposed to be a "rocker" and she just did nothing with it. Lazy, lazy, lazzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzy vocals. Either do the song or don't do it, but please no phoned-in performances, please.

"I Need to Know"- This is a complete waste of time- permenently delete it from the setlist, please.

Biggest surprises:

"Landslide"- I cried on this one both nights. Why did I cry to this song that has been performed to death? Especially on Saturday, when she dedicated the song to Caesar's Palace :shrug: :rolleyes: It was her voice. Stronger and more vibrant than I've heard since the 80's. No joke.

"Stop Draggin' My Heart Around"- Doing it in the new lower key is abysmal. Friday night's performance was disheartening. However..... for some reason she really rocked it on Saturday night. I don't know why, but it was different. She was on fire.

The "I Told You So" of the tour:

"If Anyone Falls"-
I really, really, REALLY hope she doesn't do "If Anyone Falls"! The last thing I need to see is that damn carousel scene from that wretched video.....

I loathe that video. What was she thinking?!?!? Then again, she had just gotten off the treadmill from the "Stand Back" video, so maybe she thought that carousels and sad attempts at ballet would be happenin'.

Sure enough, we got endless loops of Stevie doing bad ballet. Thank gawd we didn't get the carousel shots.

Biggest Letdown:

"How Still My Love"-

"But you don't forget me...
Ooo no...you don't forget me
Oooo no... my lonely"

ONE!!!! Hello, Stevie- you forgot the climax of the song....

Best Song of the Night (other than BATB):

"Fall From Grace"- !!!!!!!!!!!! This song was everything that "Enchanted" was not. More proof that Stevie has still got it.

Some of the graphics were really awful. The white mares on "Rhiannon", the computer silhouette of the dove on "Edge.." over and over and over and over, and the disco blocks on "Stand Back" :eek: :eek: I leaned over to Geoffrey and said, "Next thing you know the screen is gonna click over to a game of pong."
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I have to say, that Stevie's voice was the best that I have heard in a long, long time. One thing I really noticed is that she was holding all her notes out instead of dropping them off. She looks fantastic, too. I looks like she lost the little bit of weight she was carrying from the second leg of the SYW tour. She needs to get rid of those Reeboks, though- it looks like they limit her movement.

What can I say about "Beauty and the Beast" that hasn't already been said? I think Sparky said it best here:
Now, the problem. BATB, in perspective, also showed how much the rest of the show lacked. Was it a fine show ? Sure. Was it all that special and memorable as a whole? Not for this veteran fan. BATB made the entire trip worth it.
Immediately after BATB on Friday, I ran over to Jason freeeking out and the consensus was that BATB proved just how much Stevie can really do if she chooses to do it. It's so frustrating because we know how good she can be and so often she chooses to be lackluster. Tears just poured down my face during that whole song. I was seriously in an orgasmic state when did the pleasure/pain-I've changed part of the song. Words cannot describe it, you really had to be there to feel it.
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Sorry I missed you Sparky (and many others)!! Like I said, Geoffrey and I were tired as hell. Amber and Jason both tried to cajole us into going out to the bars, etc. but we were two tired old grammaws. We slept in most of Saturday and barely made it to the concert after showering and eating, etc. Sunday was just a clean up and go home kind of day.

All in all, it was worth it- mainly because of "Beauty and the Beast". It's one of those things that you look back on ten years later and remember as clear as a bell. It ranks up there as probably the best performance of her career, no exaggeration.

It was great meeting Amber, Mariel and Jason. Sorry we didn't get to meet and greet more peeps.

:wavey:

[strandinthewind]

Lord Child - B&B made up for whatever image of the set list I had conjured up in my head. I will say though I thought SDMHA was much higher than on the TISL tour - so there was at least that. I think the quality of her voice in this made, to me, all those pesky things fall away. I am eternally thankful for her B&B performance and like you said will keep that one close for many many years to come :cool:

It was great to meet you all as well :wavey: :wavey: :wavey:

[Clayre]

Best review of Las Vegas that I ever did see :nod: :laugh: :thumbsup:

Since I saw two shows, I have to kind of gang this together. I am not going to go into all the specific songs, the order. My response is delayed and all of that is done to death.

Let me just start by saying that the vibe of the room was STRANGE. The ushers seating us, the dim lights, the quiet music. Everyone was compelled to whisper, and it felt extremely subdued to be a venue for a rock concert. It felt more like a ballet performance. Even theatre shows in NY are a little more electric and chatty. People seemed intimidated by the surroundings. May I also comment that that ratty little bar in the lobby charged me 14 bucks for a drink with a small amount of ghetto tequila in it ? :laugh:

No matter, but it made an impression.

As for the show....

Enchanted was an interesting choice for an opener. I like this song live, and everyone seemed pretty charged just to see Stevie. The crowd clearly adored her, even if it wasn't all die hard fans. Is this the right opener ? I am not sure. It wasn't WRONG, but I couldn't help but think as I saw the shot from ICW on the RP screen that it might have been a hell of a way to open the show. Wasn't too fond of the RP images in this song, but it opened the show pretty well.

The raindrop RP for OTR/Dreams worked better - I have to say again that having center seats made ALL the difference as Stevie plays strictly to the center front of the house, and the RP has to be seen from this angle to be appreciated. I don't think that this version of OTR is as good as when Carlos was the MD. He added these really nice, heavy guitar riffs under the melody that beefed the song up a lot. I also question if this song combo really needed to be in the set at all. She sang the hell out of OTR. But as this song segued into Dreams I felt the pace of the show was off. A little bit calm.
However, the piano intro to Rhiannon was wickedly dark and orchestral, and I have to say the band made me like this song live again. I don't ever need to hear it again live, but I enjoyed it, and the crowd went nuts. For once, the pace of it was up to snuff. This song has been played at a draggy tempo for the better part of two decades, and kudos to the drummers for kicking it up a speed - especially during the end.

I don't think Sorcerer was a great choice. I like the song, and it was a good version, but I don't think it worked. It is the kind of song that doesn't make you want to move, and doesn't make you want to sit, either. I feel exactly the same way about If Anyone Falls. The harmonies were EXCELLENT in IAF, but it was too midtempo. Nice to hear it after 14 years ? Sure. Fitting for Vegas ? Nah. And those columns. Lord Have Mercy, the columns. Number one, they looked like high school students made them out of papier mache, and they didn't hit the ground. They just creeepily floated. The scenic designer, if indeed she hired one, needs to be beaten. Severely. And I am just the man for that job.

On the other hand, the cuts from the video, superimposed over shots of a beach, were cool.

The placement of SB in the set shocked me. It never comes this soon in the set and I feared the show had shot it's wad way too early. Of course the intro was too long, but it was worth it. Especially for the inclusion of a kick on Saturday. The things we are thankful for. And on Friday, the spinning was pretty impressive. Beat the SYW spins. For the first time too, the RP really worked. It was old school Vegas cheesiness at it's best. The blinking, traveling white blocks ! So damned funny. And the fact that they projected her in the middle. That was the first moment of the show that I felt the show was up to the standards of being "special" or "Vegas". It was way cliched, but spot on. Loved it.

GDW ? The sitar effect on someone's guitar made this good. That was an interesting choice, to be sure. Don't know that this song needed to be in the set either. It was a jarring comedown after SB. But, the new sounds were cool. And she played with the ending both nights. I loved her whispery outro on Friday. It was very Tusk tour. Gotta love that.

FFG kicked my butt. The only problem is that 90% of the house didn't know it. I therefore think it could have been placed better in the show. It would have made a barn burner of an opener - a good trick to pull as people would have been so excited to see her they wouldn't have sat down. Friday she nailed the end better, but I love this song so I enjoyed it a lot.

HSML was a welcome addition. Is it a new song to do live ? Nope. But I haven't seen it since 94 so I won't complain. Stevie clearly loves doing this song, the girls shine, and it evidently gets homegirl's juices going. She got very sexed up doing this song. I don't know exactly what I feel about THAT.
But she seemed to be enjoying herself. She did this nasty Mae West dance in the ending vamp with one hand on her hip and the other swaying over her head. Very hot.

OF COURSE she had to do Edge. But God Save Me from the RP guy who chose the animated doves. I like the fllmed ones way better. The problem is, the song is 20 minutes LOOOONG, and they just wore them out. The song needed a bunch of other cool imagery - it evokes so much imagery in the lyrics that a monkey could choose images for it. The TD or Designer ( I repeat, IF THERE EVEN WAS ONE) really missed the boat on this. Good rendition and I give SN big props for swimming into the crowd for her stage walk. God love her for doing that. It sets her apart and people just adore her for it.

INTK is a dead horse. It really is an anti climax of an encore. It simply isn't that great of a song. She needs a better first encore. It is simply a habit. It worked all right, but she deserves a better song to follow Edge. If she is going to do a cover, how about "Shout" ? How about "Rock and Roll" ? Either of those would blow people's sox off. She could sing around the melodies just fine.

As others have said, the piece de resistance was BATB. This is the song that made going worthwhile. Everything worked. The little candles on the piano, the film clip, the chiffon drapes which echoed the design of the film, her costume, hair...
And let us just take a moment for the singing. She kicked the ass of this song to France and back. I have not heard her sing with this much emotion and pathos live since....the 80's. It was transcendent both nights. Genius. And because of that, her whole body showed it. She was completely committed in the performance of this song. Every element was perfect. It reminded me of the Stevie of old, who did feel every note she sang. If anyone doubts if she still has "it"...this proved she does.

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Now, the problem. BATB, in perspective, also showed how much the rest of the show lacked. Was it a fine show ? Sure. Was it all that special and memorable as a whole? Not for this veteran fan. BATB made the entire trip worth it. However, there were so many simple things that could have pitched the show over the top. The RP screens were very underused. There was next to no scenery. Those three tiered lace covered lamp things were tragic. Maybe I am a harsh critic because I do sets for a living, but man...I also know LV is full of cheap drapes and scenery. They could have, with 15 grand, done enough to push it to the next level. And.....a funny thing happened to Stevie when she put on that beautiful costume and swept her hair up...she became a different character. She was transformed into something else, and it made for a chilling performance. It added the theatricality that the venue demands. She
proved she could do it. In order for this show to be a VEGAS HIT if she does it again, she needs to add maybe two other songs where she does this, and that's it. Get a real set designer, use the RP screens with a bit more creativity, and it would have been the show she said she was going to do. I think if she just rejiggered three of the songs, the set list would be fine. Perfect. I know she has to shut the casual fans up with the chestnuts. I get that. That's fine. But BATB proved she can go into that theatrical vein, and if she did a few more of those BATB level songs, with costumes and sets that worked with the material, I would go back once a year for two shows. It would be easily worth a thousand bucks.

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So all in all, I had fun. On a personal note, I am bummed I didn't run into Livia, except for a moment. Thought you had disappeared with John Kinney backstage, Homegirl ! We had a drink at the Seahorse, and stayed till 11.

AMber, I looked for you at Margville Friday night but damned if I could spot your ass in that dump.

[Johnny Stew]

BATB proved just how much Stevie can really do if she chooses to do it. It's so frustrating because we know how good she can be and so often she chooses to be lackluster. Tears just poured down my face during that whole song. I was seriously in an orgasmic state when did the pleasure/pain-I've changed part of the song. Words cannot describe it, you really had to be there to feel it.They call it a "climax" for a reason. :p The trouble seems to be that people expect all 15 songs to put them into that orgasmic state! :laugh: ;)

I'm glad you guys had such a great time. Joshua's still raving about it, and I'm loving every minute of hearing about it... definitely sounds like a night to remember.