Mohegan Sun review from Days News

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Posted on Mick's Board. I bolded the best part.

Here is a review for the Mohegan Sun Show from Days Newspaper New London, CT.

Stevie Nicks Charms Even Don Henley In Duo's Arena Show

By KRISTINA DORSEY
Arts & Entertainment Editor/ETW
Published on 6/8/2005 The Day Newspaper, New London, CT.

It's tough to say which was more entertaining at Stevie Nicks and Don Henley's concert Monday at Mohegan Sun Arena: listening to their still-mighty musical artistry during their solo sets or watching how awkward they were when performing together.

The big draw of this show was seeing Henley and Nicks dueting. The musical icons, who dated back in their heyday and recorded “Leather and Lace” in 1981, launched their joint tour last week. Based on their lack of chemistry during their first few numbers together, they're still getting comfortable.

The banter-free concert was constructed so that Henley sang first, with Nicks joining him mid-set for three songs. After an intermission, Nicks took the stage; Henley came on for two numbers during her performance, and then they did a couple of songs together for the encore.

When Nicks first came onstage, she and Henley stood at separate microphones, and he sang straight ahead, with an impassive _expression, often with his eyes closed. This is how he sings when by himself, too, performing with energy but also a certain grim determination. But you'd think he would connect more with a partner. After a couple of songs, Nicks began trying to engage Henley, looking toward him and eventually swinging her microphone around so she was facing him, not the crowd.

Eventually, though, the theatrical Nicks managed to loosen up Henley. By the encore, she coaxed a hint of a smile out of him when, during the line “Take from me my lace,” she friskily held out the edge of her lacey shawl toward him, and he playfully grabbed at it.

Whatever the camaraderie, their harmonies sounded sweet. The mix of Nicks' distinctive rasp and Henley's reedy tenor remained potent, particularly on their versions of Bonnie Raitt's “Circle Dance,” Nicks' “Gold Dust Woman” and Henley's “New York Minute.”

Now, Nicks has the kind of voice that people either love or hate. Her voice got gravelly after “Rumours,” and, in her later drug-dazed days, Nicks started sounding like Tom Waits and looking like Kirstie Alley. Now, she looks fabulous and acts focused. Her voice is strong and effective, even if her upper register has grown more limited. On some songs, she dropped to a lower note instead of reaching for the higher one she used to, but she made it work, giving songs a slightly different torque.

Henley's voice sounded remarkably like it did back in the 1970s and '80s, still supple on everything from “Witchy Woman” to “End of the Innocence.” And is it me, or is Henley starting to resemble Phil Collins, albeit with a great head of hair?

Nicks scampered offstage for lots of costume changes during her solo set, switching from one floaty black outfit to ... another floaty black outfit.

(This left plenty of time for band solos.) She looked particularly stunning in a gown that Barbra Streisand and Donna Karan would envy for “Beauty and the Beast.”

Best songs of the night: Henley's haunting “Desperado” and blistering “I Will Not Go Quietly,” and Nicks' epically romantic “Beauty and the Beast” and driving “Stand Back,” during which she did — how could she not? — that patented Nicksian twirl, which actually elicited cheers.

After such a superb concert, the ending was anticlimactic. The last number was a cover of The Byrds' “So You Wanna Be A Rock N Roll Star,” and this mushy-sounding song was not a strong choice. After hearing the best creations of talented writers Henley and Nicks, I wanted to hear more of their songs, not a tepid tune of someone else's.