Barry opened in that maroon sparkly jacket that he wore for I Write the Songs so often.
A fitting choice for what many of us hoped would be the "Christmas shows."
No changes in the opening of the show (not that I want any - I don't!) - It's a Miracle,
then Daybreak, Somewhere in the Night and This One's For You.
We got a mini-Christmas show - not nearly as big as it's been in previous years. Only
two songs - Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer and River. Rudolph is always fun. I think
it was funnier this year than it was last year. Kye did his funny Rudolph voice again.
And Keely joined in with her own special take on the show. You can't help laughing.
I'm having trouble remembering at what point during the show they do Rudolph. I'm
thinking it's before the 40's segment?
Anyway, Barry sang a small portion of The Old Songs before diving into the 40's segment.
And then he sang a portion of Singing With the Big Bands. He talks about recording that
CD with members of big bands from the 40's - and he talks about how when those guys
started playing their music the years just melted away from them.
He moved over to the Dew Drop Side to do the 40's medley, starting with Jump Shout
Boogie on the cotton-candy piano. The costumes are very bright and colorful as well. I
think the visual aspect of the medley is just as impressive as the actual music.
Barry's still choosing a lady to dance with during Moonlight Serenade. It's fun to
watch, especially when he's standing just on the other side of the gate from a woman
and you can see the anticipation in their faces.
The 50's segment started with Bandstand Boogie and Kye and Keely dancing. Okay, my
mind is really wandering to strange places this morning (as you'll see when you read
the review from Thursday night). But during the part of the dance where it appears
that the only thing keeping them from sprawling out flat on their backs is that they
manage to grab each other's hand, if you've seen the show you know what I'm talking
about - do you ever wonder if they "missed" during rehearsal? Ouch! Okay, I told you
my mind is going strange places today!
Next was Venus, with Barry and gang hamming it up again. Each of the backups gets
their own little moment during this song - it's so funny. Especially when Kye grabs
Keely's, uh...when Kye grabs Keely. And when she turns around to confront him! And
when Melanie starts walking toward Barry like a zombie before Keely drags her away. And
when Kye grabs Monica's, uh...grabs Monica. I think I see a pattern developing here!
Then Love Is A Many Splendored Thing - beautiful song, performed beautifully. And then
Are You Lonesome Tonight at center stage. Another beautiful song. Used to hate both
of those songs, but Barry has made me love them.
No Unchained Melody tonight - I guess that one was dropped in order to put in the
Christmas songs. So I won't complain!
I'm still having trouble remembering the order of songs, but I think this is where
Barry sang River. He started it off sitting on the piano at center stage (I think - I
having trouble remembering that, too). About two thirds of the way through the song he
got off the piano and walked around in front of it - I thought he might sit down on the
piano bench, but he continued to stand while he sang. It was reminiscent of the way he
performs Even Now. He did sit on the bench for the last part of the song. It was a
great performance, he put a lot of emotion into it. You can tell the song is a fan
favorite - the audience is reacting before Barry even starts singing.
The 60's medley was next. I still think that You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' is the
stand out song from the medley. He seems to nail this one everytime. Always a
passionate performance. And the audience loves it.
I love what Barry does with Yesterday - I remember he mentioned in a recent interview
that he was trying to stay true to the original song while putting his on spin on it.
Yesterday is a really good example of it. The arrangement does seem to be very, very
close to the original. But Barry does something with it that makes it his own.
I also enjoy Where Did Our Love Go during the 60's medley. Besides featuring the girls, it's an
upbeat feel-good song. I think it's interesting the way Barry is able to stick a
little bit of Motown in these medleys. I actually like Barry's versions of these songs
better than I do the originals.
The 70's segment was Mandy/Could It Be Magic, followed by I Write the Songs, Copacabana
and the It's a Miracle reprise. Same bright yellow jacket that he wore in November. I
hope he keeps this one for a while - I really like it.
If my memory continues to fail like this I'm going to have to write my reviews as soon
as I get back in from the show! Hope I didn't leave anything out!
