Originally Posted By Inspector 57 Not many of us got to see the concert in person. One of the final shows from London was broadcast tonight on American TV. Anybody see it? What did you think? I just finished watching it. I don't want to be the first to give my opinion.
Originally Posted By gadzuux I watched a fair bit of the beginning and the end - I skipped the middle hour entirely. Madonna is a marginal singer and songwriter, and the show is heavily larded with 'flash and dazzle' to make up for it. The show itself seems to be more large scale "performance art" than a conventional concert - you hardly ever see any musicians and it's clear that much of the music is pre-recorded, sampled, and heavily synthesized. That said, it's a spectacular show. The songs themselves are a bit thin, but blown up to epic proportions so that maybe people won't notice. The production is huge, and madonna's looking buff. The show seems heavily weighted towards her newer material. Crazy me, I'd rather hear her older stuff. I used to have a side job doing concert security, so I saw the 'blonde ambition' show three times in three days back in `91. That show was also a big production with lots of moving sets and elaborate staging, this one is even more sophisticated. In sum, madonna has always been a shrewd woman. This show is designed to show off her strengths and minimize her weaknesses. It has flashes of greatness, and even when it's less than great, it's still not bad.
Originally Posted By Spooky Ghost I had to work so I missed it. Oh why cruel fate why. Why do you hate me so? Curse the day I got hired at my current job so I had the utter misfortune of not being able to watch. Why lord why?!...
Originally Posted By oc_dean Funny how I knew this was coming up .. and I let it go - Yet I always enjoy Madonna's music. I guess I'm not a bonafide ...... Oh, never mind.
Originally Posted By Autopia Deb Caught the last minute or so of "Live to Tell" when I turned on the TV to put in a movie. That was the only Madonna song I EVER bought (on 45 lol). I really liked the movie it was the title song for(At Close Range?). She was always too top 40 pop for my tastes.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN Thank for posting on this I57... I have been at hoe for one day and busy as heck since I have to go back to work tomorrow... and finally, once I got to collapse on the sofa last night, I ran upon the Madonna concert by accident, tuning in one hour after the broadcast had started. Sad because I have been dying to see Madge's take on DONNA SUMMER's I feel Love which is supposed to play in the very beginning. However.. I only caught the last hours of the show. I have to say I truly enjoyed what I saw. While its no secret that Madonna's talent is a bit limiting in the vocals, somehow she sounded quite good on this show, and it appeared to me she was actually singing most of the stuff and not lip sync thru it. The production was fab, and she looked great for her age. Oh my...all that flexibility!! Then the dancing was great. One particular dance sequence with the boys was truly remarkable (the one they end up disappearing into the floor on the runway), and new production on old songs, such as the Disco Inferno take on "Music" was brilliant. All in all... Madonna, like it or not, continues to be one of the most memorable performers of our generation. One gripe about the broadcast.. too many commercials, rather flashy editing that made for some unwatchable moments. Rough editing like that compromises the performance on stage, as we really can't appreciate much of it as if we were there for real, and concidering the show's choreography was terrific, this irked me a bit. But GREAT SHOW overall. When is this DVD coming out???
Originally Posted By TDLFAN Question... on the "Erotica" bit, what was the song she sang in conjuntion to the "Erotica" chorus?? It was one of my favorite moments of the portion of the show I saw.
Originally Posted By ToonKirby >ARGH! I forgot this was on tonight. I missed it entirely.< BRAVO is reairing it sometime next week, I think the 30th. I watched the first hour and then had to turn the channel ... I prefer superficial Madonna over preachy esoteric Madonna.
Originally Posted By Dave >>> I skipped the middle hour entirely. <<<< Well since it was only on for 2 hours which hour did you miss?
Originally Posted By Dave Even though I have a decent copy of the Blonde Ambition tour from the live broadcast I would give a 100 bucks for a commercial dvd or vhs version of the show.
Originally Posted By Inspector 57 Oh, man. I should've taken the opportunity to post my reactions first, when I had the chance. Now I might come off as some kind of suck-up. [Remember Julie Brown and a watermelon, anyone?!] Anyhow, I totally agree with both gadzuux and TDLFAN. The show was huge, overblown, pretentious in spots, designed to cover Maddie's weaknesses, and almost totally wonderful. For me, the first few numbers were disappointing. I LOVE "Confessions on a Dance Floor," and I was looking forward to seeing its songs performed in a fresh manner that matched their spirit and energy. But... Ugh. The show's whole initial equestrian/dominatrix thing just seemed Madonna-cliche and totally inappropriate for "Future Lovers," "Get Together," and "Like A Virgin." Sorry. Video of humans and horses being injured doesn't make me "get" anything. Except that you should "get" over indulging yourself, Madonna. But then the show picked itself up, dusted itself off, and took flight. I didn't mind the "preachy" part that accompanied "Live To Tell." Actually, I think it's very cool of her to include a little exhortation to the audience, a challenge to DO something to help the world. C'mon. You spent $140 to see a 2-hour concert, plus $10 for parking and $70 on souvenirs. You can spare a $15 donation for African orphans. I especially loved a few of the "Big" numbers. As TDLFAN posted, "Ray of Light," with its visuals and the incredible dancing the guys did, was a delight. "Music [Disco Inferno]" was a riot. And even though I don't care for the lyrics to "I Love New York" and I wasn't totally impressed by her "Look! I'm a guitarist!" act, that number was enjoyable for its visuals, if nothing else. But I mostly found the more intimate numbers to be most appealing. "Forbidden Love," with the Jew and the Muslim. "Isaac," despite the visual melodrama of the caged woman. "Like It Or Not," with Madonna and a chair. And especially "Let It Will Be," with Madonna channeling a drunken Annie Lennox. All in all... An INCREDIBLE light and stage show. People definitely got their money's worth in "spectacle"... Madonna looked GREAT and natural and she seemed more of a person and less of a character than she's been in previous shows... The show was a lot less homoerotic than previous shows -- well, a lot less sexual in general... She seems not bothered by the lip-synching "scandal" anymore. There were times in which she blatantly didn't even bother to move her lips... But when she did, she sounded good. She carried off "I Feel Love," which is a challenge. Yeah, she's not the greatest talent. Yeah, the broadcast was significantly marred by HORRIBLE editing. But I really loved watching this show. Thanks, Madonna!
Originally Posted By Inspector 57 <<Question... on the "Erotica" bit, what was the song she sang in conjuntion to the "Erotica" chorus?? It was one of my favorite moments of the portion of the show I saw.>> Those lyrics are from an early, alternate version of "Erotica." In that version, the verses are pretty much the same as those we know, but the tune and lyrics of the chorus are different: "You are who you are and I wouldn't want to change a thing in spite of all the pain that love can bring. What can I do? I'm so in love with you. You thrill me, surround me, you fill me. You send me, You put me in a trance. You fill me, inside of me, take me. You thrill me, You put me in a trance." She recorded that vocal during the Erotica sessions (and that track has circulated on the internet), but that version of the song was never produced. In Madonna fandom, the alternate version of the song is frequently referred to as "You Thrill Me."
Originally Posted By Inspector 57 <<When is this DVD coming out???>> January 27. Plans are to package the DVD of the (uncensored) live show with a CD of the show. If you'd be content to record your own video of the "clean" version of the show, sans commercials, keep an eye on HBO. Rumor is that it will appear there soon.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN OMG!! Thank you for the info!! >>In Madonna fandom, the alternate version of the song is frequently referred to as "You Thrill Me."<< Well.. it definitely thrilled ME! so I want that bootlet recording pronto!!!
