Mad4stevie's Detailed Hershey Review
 

For this concert, I really tried to pay more attention to details so I could write a review this time!

First – some general observations:

1. I could barely believe how thin Stevie looked in all of her outfits. The pants looked more like Lycra type pants. When she danced, I was close enough to actually see her leg muscles ripple in the pants!! Her frumpy cardigan sweater style from the SYW tour was a memory. She was wearing a red bra or bustier under her black coat for her initial duets on Don’s songs. Naughty, naughty!!
2. She looked well rested and amazingly energetic in most of the songs. I agree with the other reviews about her playfulness with Don and the crowd. She was having a blast and none of it was forced. In fact, I was so struck by how young she looked that I felt like I was watching her in the SDMHA video. My opinion – much less stress than having LB on tour with her. I have never seen her so alive!
3. Her little packs were actually made to complement her outfit changes. For example, her pack for Edge was covered in the same fabric as her Edge skirt.
4. There were two small girls (under the age of 10) in the front row. One kid knew the words to every song and Waddy was starring at her in amazement as if he couldn’t believe this kid new all the words to all the songs! It was funny to see Waddy so fascinated – I think he even mentioned it to Don after Leather and Lace because he pointed at the girl and Don took notice of her.
5. Speaking of Don, his cowboy style shirts looked out of place with his tuxedo jacket. He always had it untucked. He was the frumpy one, not my girl Stevie! A fashion plate he is not.
6. I chickened out at the last minute and did not take my camera. Of course, on this particular occasion, security barely looked at anything when I entered the venue. I had a perfect view because the two people directly in front of me in rows 3 and 2 were short. And there were plenty of people using cameras (some even used a flash), and no one said a damn thing to them. I hate the fact that I am not a big risk taker sometimes :laugh:


The Genie – I am a bit embarrassed to say that I have not heard this song before. It was good, but his vocals seemed a bit quiet in the beginning and hard to follow.

Witchy Woman – Again, a good vocal. A so, so Eagle song, IMO.

I Put a Spell on You – This was better than I expected.

Hotel California (with Stevie) – This song rocked! The crowd went nuts when Stevie walked out onto the stage to sing with Don. Stevie was very animated and you could tell she loved singing this song with Don.

New York Minute (with Stevie) – This was not a particular favorite of mine from Don’s solo career, but with Stevie it had much more passion than I expected.

The Last Worthless Evening (with Stevie) – Love, love, love this song! I enjoyed the duet, but probably would have felt the same if Don had done it solo.

Boys of Summer – My second favorite Don song. It was really good, but I couldn’t help wishing they were playing the video behind him on the big screen.

Heart of the Matter – My favorite song from Don’s solo career. His vocal was excellent on this song.

Dirty Laundry – A good rocker! Don was more animated during this than I expected.

Life in the Fast Lane – Oh how I wished Stevie sang this with him! I recall some speculation regarding these lyrics being written about SN and LB. I think Stevie could have rocked in this song, but the lyrics are a bit more “dirty” than Stevie would probably prefer to sing on stage.

All She Wants to Do is Dance – Eh . . . probably one of my least favorites of the night.

End of the Innocence – I used to really like this song, but it didn’t really connect with me this time.

Desperado – GREAT closer for Don. Very passionate vocal, and a song that surely everyone can relate to on some level.

TO BE CONTINUED . . .

And, onto Ms. Stevie . . .

Outside The Rain – Stevie was great, but it isn’t one of my favorites, and I honestly don’t get what all the fuss is about.

Dreams – A standard good performance.

Rhiannon – Well done as usual. The pictures of Rhiannon on the screen were very interesting. A good piano intro as well.

Enchanted – A great upbeat song that made me dance! It reminded me of her performances of the Enchanted tour era.

Gold Dust Woman (with Don Henley) – Now this . . . was a show stopping performance! I was skeptical at first about how it would go over with Don’s vocal, but I have to admit I was convert by the end of the song. I love the shawl that she wore for this song. It looked more delicate the previous “gold dust” shawls. I loved Stevie and Don’s dancing at the end. It looked very sexual to me. She did twirls under Don’s arm at the end, just like a ballerina. Stevie’s vocal at the close of the song was very cool . . . “Baby, baby, baby, baby . . . you can’t see me now . . . you won’t see me now . . .” I liked this addition. I got the feeling she was channeling LB on this one!

Circle Dance (Bonnie Raitt cover) – I was not prepared for the emotional shock of this song. As Stevie stated before the song began, she and Don “thought that she (Bonnie) wrote this song about her father”. What a tearjerker. Stevie quickly wiped away a tear from her left cheek after the lights faded. I cried, too.

Stand Back – This is always my favorite concert song, whether solo or with the Mac. I was a bit surprised how few people stood up at the beginning of the song. I was on my feet as soon as the bongos started. She did some amazing twirls as usual, but her energy seemed to be waning a bit on this song. Usually she rocks the end of the song (i.e. “STAND BACK!!!), but wasn’t there at the end of the song because she left the stage to change for BATB. Her early departure left the song less powerful, IMO.

Beauty and the Beast – A complete tearjerker. Beautiful intro, and the candles on the piano were a really nice touch. She looked gorgeous in her off the shoulder gown, way beyond my expectations. I loved the fact that the old movie was playing on the screen behind her, but at times I felt it distracted from her powerful performance. Am I the only one who didn’t realize that Al Ortiz sang backup on this song? I happened to look over and saw Al set up on his own mic next to The Girls and thought “WTF”?! I would have paid just to see this song . . .

Edge of Seventeen – Wow did I miss the boat on the Edge rush. I was not prepared and have no clue why (duh!!). Our row was right on top of the row in front of us, and it was nearly impossible to get out of the row and up front without climbing over the first three row in front of me. She shook a lot of hands and seemed really attentive to the two young girls in the front row. She kissed one on the head (will that kid ever know how lucky she was?).

Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around (with Don Henley) – I like this song better with Don than Waddy without question. The chemistry was much better with Don. Stevie sounded just like she did on the Belladonna track, IMO.

Leather and Lace (with Don Henley) – Another great duet, as I expected.
Stevie’s shawl was beautiful and fit perfectly into the “Lace” part of this song.

So You Wanna Be A Rock and Roll Star (with Don Henley) – Probably the biggest surprise for me of the night. THIS SONG TOTALLY ROCKED. The energy was amazing and both Stevie and Don were playing their individual tambourines. A perfect end to a great evening. I liked ending the show on a high note!

Overall, the best solo performance that I have seen from Stevie. Her vibe was totally different than on the TISL, when she was having all those physical problems, and much different than on the SYW tour. She was totally free to be herself, without the need to appologize to anyone. I hope to God this will surface on video. Hopefully, all of you will be able to experience this tour in person!

I can honestly say, had we not stood up, the row behind us would have sat for the entire show. They were not into it at all. I tapped Justin and said, "we have to stand for Stevie...I cannot sit down..." :laugh: I'm glad you all stood too!

I am sure that you saw all those people in the front sitting down. It was striking especially during Stand Back. I mean, HOW do you sit through that song?! There were two in front of me that sat through most of the show with their arms folded and legs crossed. GET WITH THE PROGRAM, PEOPLE!!

I sure did. Better for us because when they sat and we stood, we had a great view :nod: I usually don't sit but the crowd seemed a bit older all around us so I sort of followed their lead and it seems like we all did in our row. I still cannot believe you were sitting right next to me. I think I stared at you for a minute and then looked away because I just wasn't positive :laugh: Did you get a load of the chick in front of you and sort of over to the left with the red overalls on? She was craaaazy!

Yeah, I kinda was staring at you too, more so during Edge when I kinda moved over into seat 4 a bit (it was so damn crowded!). I was thinking that I recognized you from somewhere (I now realize it was from some pics you had posted on here :) ) There was barely room to dance; I had to stand sideways so I didn't bop anyone with my arms.

That girl off to the left was hillarious! She was with some guy and I remember them dancing to a beat when there was none! It was noticeable because no one else was really moving because it was between songs. That is good 'ol PENNSYL-TUCKY for you! :laugh: :laugh:

Excellent review... Man with each passing review - it kind of makes me sick that I'm not going to see any of these shows... :(

Another great review.

Ledgies sure can write!

Oh, I forgot another tidbit . . . Stevie had a new hand motion for this tour. The SYW lasso is gone and now Stevie is delivering a forward "punch" much like those from theTaebo video :laugh: She did it on several songs. I found it fun, as opposed to the lasso, which annoyed me a bit.

Maybe Billy Blanks deserves the credit for her excellent physical shape :D

Yaya!! Sounds mondo HOT! Now I can't wait to see her Taebo punches! :D

I agree with pretty much everything you have said. Security was a bitch about cameras on my side though. No one took pictures.
One other thing. I am not sure its fair to blame Lindsey for her subdued mood during SYW because she was fairly blah at plenty of solo shows I have attended as well. I doubt her change in mood has anything to do with him not being there. I have been extremely hesitant to say this but I am not entirely convinced her elevation in mood is au natural. (please no bashing...people around me said the same thing and it is just our opinion, mine based on seeing her in person dozens of times...)

Maybe she's just finally at a great place in her life instead? And nobody is bashing Lindsey, as far as I've read, if she had decided to be more subdued at SYW it's been just her decision, and Lindsey didn't need it at all, IMO. By the way,kudos to Don Henley for being such a good and relaxing tour companion. :thumbsup:

Romy

It is a bit of a mystery... I was listening to an FM show from September 2004 last night and it was PAINFUL to hear, especially compared to her wonderful vocal performances recently. I can only postulate:

-She's over the menopause thing and on a good maintenance dose of estrogen replacement therapy. I *understand* that ERT instills a sense of well-being and health.

-The estrogen has lifted her spirits and her energy level. Accordingly, she is working out and has shed about 15 pounds.

-With the weight loss and sense of well being she's feeling more confident.

-She has probably taken some intensive voice coaching in preparation for LV so everything is more effortless.

One would hope that with all of this new-found energy she will write lots of new songs! :shrug: