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Post by Timeblue on Aug 13, 2023 19:48:12 GMT
Good pics! I too am surprised that Soft Cell were the headliners, isn't this their first tour in years? Not exactly huge back in the day so I'm a bit puzzled...
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Post by unomusette on Aug 13, 2023 19:59:57 GMT
Great pics Horacewimp, what a lovely setting and you were indeed lucky with the weather. Shame Soft Cell didn't make as good an impression as OMD, but at least it meant some people beat the rush to get out of the car park. Every cloud.....
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Post by orioles70 on Aug 22, 2023 0:39:40 GMT
I hadn’t bought a ticket because I thought this week would be my vacation. My vacation shifted back a week and eloneen ’s post reminded me that it was showtime. Someone was selling their ticket on the left side, 4th row for a song! Off I went. Earth, Wind & Fire had the place standing, singing and dancing in place as their choreographed set moved to the beat of not 1, not 2 but 3 percussionists. Add in a horn section and keys and they really had a wall of sound. Lionel was the bigger name for this show - almost a co-headliner gig. His voice is still the same. His knees may be a lil creaky, but that didn’t stop him from venturing out to the end of the runway. He started out on a gleaming white piano and finished up on a shiny black one that I still don’t know how they snuck into the middle of the arena. 7:30 start and 11 pm finish for this double bill full of hits from the 70s and 80s. here's a bit of Boogie Wonderland www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0KxqtAmFrUVwWejEwa7FewxRf5sxQrC1RQ4ZXSAgn9uRS1AsHpypRMjJku93rwmU7l&id=100052981997120¬if_id=1692509586637287¬if_t=feedback_reaction_generic&ref=notif
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Post by eloneen on Aug 22, 2023 2:02:54 GMT
orioles70 4th row! Wow! So close! You got to see Verdine White's antics up close and personal. Lucky you! For me, EWF was hands down the clear draw ahead of time, with their show well worth what I paid for my ticket. Philip Bailey's pipes are as great as ever! He can still hit all the high notes, even in his early 70s, and the band still knows how to groove! Both my older brother and his grandson (big fans) were tearing up. My brother first saw EWF live over 50 years ago, and they were his favorite band, with their music forming much of the soundtrack of his adolescence and early adult years. His 19 year old grandson, who grew up listening to EWFwith his grandpa, was seeing them for the first time, and was clearly overwhelmed.That was a beautiful bonding moment.between them. (This same brother introduced me to some of my favorite groups growing up, and went with me to my first ELO concert when I was 13. ) My sister in law and I were on our feet, singing and dancing, much of the time. Lionel Richie's performance was going to be just the icing on the cake for me, but I was so very pleased and surprised with how good it was. He is a master of audience engagement, and he has a rich and deep catalog, performing a number of lovely sad ballads--my favorite-- including the beautiful tearjerker, Still. The visuals and light show for Richie were impeccable and impressive, and you could sense his joy and gratitude at being able to perform after the pandemic hiatus. It was definitely a two-fer for me, iike when I saw Hall and Oates with ELO in 1981, John Legend with Sade in 2011, and Chicago wirh The Doobies in 2017. Top notch all around
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Post by Horacewimp on Sept 17, 2023 8:22:24 GMT
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Post by Timeblue on Sept 17, 2023 10:03:06 GMT
I don't know if I could follow a band like Dexys, too many radical changes of direction for me. I liked their early look (Geno) and kind of liked the Irish travellers look (Come On Eileen) but after that, my interest waned. A bit like ABC, I loved them as much as ELO when Lexicon Of Love came out but with every subsequent album came a radical change.
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Post by unomusette on Sept 17, 2023 21:07:13 GMT
I quite like the way they change to suit themselves - they aren't a band I'd pay to see live but I'm always interested in what they come out with next. Kevin Rowlands seems to be endlessly full of ideas, good for him.
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Post by eloneen on Sept 23, 2023 2:58:29 GMT
I'm going to see Chicago next week, along with my hubby, who also enjoys their music. We saw them once a few years ago with the Doobies and I was impressed! I can't wait! I am also contemplating getting a ticket to see Kansas in my area at the same venue later this fall. I say "a ticket" because I don't think my hubby would want to go. He does not like Kansas, but I saw them live once when I was in high school (my parents were kind enough to go with me), and I really enjoyed the show. (Nostalgia, anyone?) Lead singer Steve Walsh has an amazing voice, incredible energy onstage, and, like Chicago, they are a band full of amazing musicians. I like a lot of their songs, but some of their tunes do feel a bit ponderous and pretentious to me now, but I actually know the songs, at least. There's enough good stuff there to make me consider it... I know I'm getting old when I see that this "Legends" concert series sponsor is a posh private retirement community in the area.
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Post by eloneen on Sept 23, 2023 19:39:05 GMT
Hmmm. Kansas is a no-go. I just checked the current lineup. Walsh left the band almost ten years ago due to problems with his voice and a lack of enthusiasm for continuing- so a decline in the two things he was known for -- powerful vocals and a high- energy presence on stage. Kerry Livgren, the chief songwriter and intellectual force of the band, also is no longer with Kansas. I knew about conflicts within the band, and his repeatedly leaving and rejoining, both due to his turning towards a decidedly Christian spiritual orientation in his songwriting, beginning in the early 1980s. The violinist and backup vocalist Robby Steinhardt died a couple of years ago, and I do remember hearing about that sad event. Still, I've been out of the loop. No thanks. Might as well be a tribute band at this rate...
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Post by eloneen on Oct 1, 2023 0:11:22 GMT
Hubby and I went to see Chicago on Thursday night.There was no opening act. They first played for about 80 minutes, had a 20 minute intermission, and continued for another 80 minutes or so after that, so we were treated to quite a bit of great music! The first half of the show featured a lot of their early proggy tunes, and some big hits. But the place was rocking with many of the most familiar hits during the second half, and they performed most of their hit ballads, too. Of course, the crowd erupted with joy for "Saturday in the Park." Chicago brought down the house with their encore "25 or 6 to 4," which was simply amazing - a fine way to end the show with this rock masterpiece!
The venue was fairlly small, with fewer than 3000 seats, so it had a nice intimate feel, and all of the seats are good. Like for the EWF and Lionel Richie concert last month (with some attendees using wheelchairs, electric scooter chairs, walkers and canes), the audience skewed towards an older demographic. I would say even more so for Chicago. A lady on our row came with her oxygen tank, and we saw a few folks with canes, and others struggling with the stairs..
Anyway, the show was fantastic. There are three remaining active original members from their founding 56 (!) years ago, and they are still very fine musicians! Robert Lamm continues to have that lovely, velvety baritone voice, and the two original guys on the horns are really enthusiastic and proud to be such an important part of the distinctive Chicago sound for so long. In their mid- late 70s, they've still got it!
The younger, newer, band members, who are in their 40s, 50s and 60s, are incredibly impressive, as well. In one interview a few years ago, original member and songwriter, keyboardist and lead singer Robert Lamm said that the younger guys joined the band with more talent and skill than the original lineup had earlier on, and that the original band members have learned a lot from the younger ones. That's saying something! ( I think JL said something almost as complimentary about his current lineup. ) The other lead singer, Canadian Neil Donell, sings most of the higher parts, doing an amazing job of replacing Peter Cetera's vocals. He did much of the interacting with the audience, too, along with Jimmy Pankow, trombone player par excellence, who was so excited and energetic onstage. He seems like a really fun guy!
While Robert Lamm was onstage throughout most of the show, out front or standing in the back on keyboards and doing backing vocals, and while he sounded absolutely fantastic on lead vocals, he didn't sing lead on all the songs one would have expected. At almost 79, he's slowing down and handing over some of the lower lead vocal parts to other singers in the band, but he was still out front for part of the show, with his "keytar" strapped around his neck, the way he did 20 or so years ago. I'm impressed. He also said a few years back that Chicago will continue to exist when the original guys are no longer in the band, because the music is bigger than the specific musicians playing it. (Not sure how I feel about that...)
There was so much nostalgia, so much talent, and so much joy at that concert! A wonderful evening! Thumbs up! 👍
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Post by Timeblue on Oct 1, 2023 0:52:12 GMT
Hubby and I went to see Chicago on Thursday night.There was no opening act. They first played for about 80 minutes, had a 20 minute intermission, and continued for another 80 minutes or so after that, so we were treated to quite a bit of great music! The first half of the show featured a lot of their early proggy tunes, and some big hits. But the place was rocking with many of the most familiar hits during the second half, and they performed most of their hit ballads, too. Of course, the crowd erupted with joy for "Saturday in the Park." Chicago brought down the house with their encore "25 or 6 to 4," which was simply amazing - a fine way to end the show with this rock masterpiece! The venue was fairlly small, with fewer than 3000 seats, so it had a nice intimate feel, and all of the seats are good. Like for the EWF and Lionel Richie concert last month (with some attendees using wheelchairs, electric scooter chairs, walkers and canes), the audience skewed towards an older demographic. I would say even more so for Chicago. A lady on our row came with her oxygen tank, and we saw a few folks with canes, and others struggling with the stairs.. Anyway, the show was fantastic. There are three remaining active original members from their founding 56 (!) years ago, and they are still very fine musicians! Robert Lamm continues to have that lovely, velvety baritone voice, and the two original guys on the horns are really enthusiastic and proud to be such an important part of the distinctive Chicago sound for so long. In their mid- late 70s, they've still got it! The younger, newer, band members, who are in their 40s, 50s and 60s, are incredibly impressive, as well. In one interview a few years ago, original member and songwriter, keyboardist and lead singer Robert Lamm said that the younger guys joined the band with more talent and skill than the original lineup had earlier on, and that the original band members have learned a lot from the younger ones. That's saying something! ( I think JL said something almost as complimentary about his current lineup. ) The other lead singer, Canadian Neil Donell, sings most of the higher parts, doing an amazing job of replacing Peter Cetera's vocals. He did much of the interacting with the audience, too, along with Jimmy Pankow, trombone player par excellence, who was so excited and energetic onstage. He seems like a really fun guy! While Robert Lamm was onstage throughout most of the show, out front or standing in the back on keyboards and doing backing vocals, and while he sounded absolutely fantastic on lead vocals, he didn't sing lead on all the songs one would have expected. At almost 79, he's slowing down and handing over some of the lower lead vocal parts to other singers in the band, but he was still out front for part of the show, with his "keytar" strapped around his neck, the way he did 20 or so years ago. I'm impressed. He also said a few years back that Chicago will continue to exist when the original guys are no longer in the band, because the music is bigger than the specific musicians playing it. (Not sure how I feel about that...) There was so much nostalgia, so much talent, and so much joy at that concert! A wonderful evening! Thumbs up! 👍 To me (an Englishman) Chicago will always be associated with Pete as the lead singer. I don't mean to be derogatory, but isn't this band just like ELO was when Jeff left?
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Post by eloneen on Oct 1, 2023 1:09:03 GMT
Timeblue . Not really. They are so much bigger than Peter Cetera.They got started in 1967, with their first US hit in 1969. When did they first become popular in the UK? They had several lead singers - the brilliant, legendary guitarist and songwriter Terry Kath ( Camelia Kath's first husband, who died in 1978 in a tragic accident with a handgun), who did the lead on Colour My World; Robert Lamm who wrote and sang lead on Saturday in the Park, Does Anybody Really Know What Time it is?, and others; and Peter Cetera, an early (but not original ) member who also wrote songs and did most of the high vocals, such as on 25 or 6 to 4, which Lamm wrote. In the late 70s and early 80s, the ballads that Peter Cetera wrote and sang lead on became huge commercial hits and helped the band reach a larger audience, and ultimately led to Cetera's solo career and departure in the mid 1980s. (The record company was pushing Peter as the sound and face of Chicago because of that success, and it was overshadowing the rest of the band at that time.) There were multiple songwriters ( for hits) for a long time, even including guys in the horn section. They made decisions about personnel changes together whenever possible, even during difficult times. Chicago was and is a real "band," with wide and deep talent ( songwriting, singing, playing) on display in so many ways on their albums throughout the years. As much as I love ELO, Jeff never gave anyone in ELO that kind of creative platform or level of recognition. Edit: Here's a live 1970 performance of 25 or 6 to 4 featuring Lamm's brilliant songwriting, Kath's absolutely unbelievable guitar solo, and Cetera's compelling vocals, and the whole band pulling it all together... collaboration at its best.
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Post by eloneen on Nov 26, 2023 19:35:59 GMT
Hmmm. Kansas is a no-go. I just checked the current lineup. Walsh left the band almost ten years ago due to problems with his voice and a lack of enthusiasm for continuing- so a decline in the two things he was known for -- powerful vocals and a high- energy presence on stage. Kerry Livgren, the chief songwriter and intellectual force of the band, also is no longer with Kansas. I knew about conflicts within the band, and his repeatedly leaving and rejoining, both due to his turning towards a decidedly Christian spiritual orientation in his songwriting, beginning in the early 1980s. The violinist and backup vocalist Robby Steinhardt died a couple of years ago, and I do remember hearing about that sad event. Still, I've been out of the loop. No thanks. Might as well be a tribute band at this rate... The other day, I found a full concert video online of the very Kansas performance I considered attending in my area. I'm glad I didn't go. So much of the two hour show consisted of songs I don't really know that well. Their performance of the songs that I do know was quite good, even without so many of the original guys remaining. I really enjoyed those songs and was impressed by their talent and fidelity to the band's sound! I'm glad I was able to check out the video but also glad I didn't shell out good money for tickets...
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