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Paris Las Vegas - July 8, 2011(View photo gallery here)
DD-29  Silly Barry was back for Can't Smile Without You. He was just flying through the lyrics, speaking them so quickly it would make your head spin! Ha! I would say that he's just trying to prompt the audience with the lyrics since he wants us all singing along with him, but... Nah! He's just messing with us! Hee! It's so funny - I had to give up singing along with him again. Some people can't walk and chew gum at the same time - I can't sing and laugh at the same time. Well, okay - I can't chew gum and walk at the same time, either. I was sitting 4th row tonight. You wouldn't think there would be a difference in the set and lighting from only two rows back, but there really is. Thinking back, sometimes the lighting effects were enhanced - but sometimes you actually lost some of the effect. For instance, the "paintings" that drop down at various places in the show - those look much more 3D from the 4th row - there's more of a feel that you're actually viewing paintings than just looking at props. But on the downside, the "big" effect of Bring on Tomorrow just wasn't there - I could still see the lights moving around and changing colors - but that "big" feeling I've described in the past just didn't exist. Gorgeous colors, great music, but that overwhelming feeling of almost being swallowed up by the song was gone. Before anyone thinks I'm saying I didn't enjoy the song - NO!!! - I can't imagine there would ever be a time when that song isn't going to be one of my favorite songs in the show. I'm just making an observation - something that I saw as a noticeable change. Makes me wonder if Barry himself isn't actually creating that effect - what I've been attributing to lighting effects might actually just be Barry. I've said before, he has an energy that you can literally "feel" if you're close enough. And I would probably agree with those of you who are thinking "she's nuts" if I hadn't heard the same thing said by so many other people over the years. So maybe the "big" effect was lost because of where I was sitting. Hmm... Interesting... Well, I think I'm up closer for the rest of the shows this trip - but later in the year I'm sitting further back. Will be interesting to see if I notice the same thing. Not sure if this has anything to do with where I was sitting, or if it were just something going on with the sound - but the sound really wasn't great at the beginning of the show. I didn't notice it later on, so that may have just been something caused by it being the first night back. The music drowned Barry out - had a really hard time hearing him clearly for a while there. Anyway, I'm jumping ahead of myself. This was another night of differences - Barry sang the songs differently, or sometimes his dialogue was different. I can't remember now exactly what Barry was talking about, but during Daybreak he changed things up a little - did something different. And then he said (paraphrased), "And this is what I'll be doing - I'll be..." and then he went right in to the lyrics of Daybreak. And he inserted those extra words during Somewhere in the Night again - Barry said "YOU'RE music to magic to end." This is one of the songs where you lose something if you're sitting further back. I could appreciate the overall performance of the song, but I definitely missed that little extra "feeling" that you get up closer. Barry had some feeling, though! When he got to the part of the song where he unbuttons his jacket, "Loving so warm, feeling so right" - goodness! Forget romance, he just got down to business! Talk about some forceful vocals! I've never seen him perform the song like that before! Barry carried that mood over into Looks Like We Made It - very strong, forceful with his vocals. The new lyrics flowed much more smoothly tonight. I love the concept behind them, even though at times they didn't seem to quite fit with the music, felt a little awkward. I tried to remember the new lyrics to put them in the review, but I still can't quite remember it all - I had it last night, gone this morning. Brain is getting old, I guess... Anyway, it flowed very nicely at tonight's show. Here's an advantage to sitting a little further back - you can actually take photos of Barry during his piano ballads without so much of the "floating head" effect! This shot is from Even Now. And Even Now was magnificent. Again, I couldn't quite get the same degree of feeling from the softer part of the song as I normally do. But when Barry stood up from the piano, he projected a lot of passion out into the audience. Barry sang these lyrics forcefully, too - but there was a different vibe to this - it wasn't the same as the way he did it during the opening medley. There was emotion in what he was doing with Even Now. You could literally feel the anguish of "God I wish you knew" - even sitting further back, I felt that! I so wish I could capture that expression on his face as he turns to walk to the back of the stage - such frustration and angst - I've never been able to catch it. And usually I'm too wrapped up in the performance of the song to even think about trying to snap a shot. After all this time, I'm not the least bit immune to what he can do to an audience. At any rate, it was incredible. The long note at the end was fantastic. None of the reaching for the audience that took my breath away last time - this time it was more like just a big ending to a big power ballad. Barry put so much into this performance and the last two notes that it seemed to literally take his breath away. He even commented on it after the song - telling his band to play something while he pulled himself back together. This performance definitely had the "WOW" factor.  Why does Brooklyn Blues somehow feel different? I don't know - it just had a different feel, but I didn't notice anything different. As usual, Barry seems to be really "into" that song - he emphasizes the lyrics and really seems to be into the music. The long note at the end was great - not as long as he sometimes holds it, but still long! I mean, there have been times I could have pulled out my iPhone to check my email while he was holding that note! (and that includes the time it takes for the thing to boot up!) Ha! He didn't hold the note that long tonight - in fact, when it was over he wrinkled up his nose and used hand gestures to indicate it was so-so. Not true! It was great! I didn't need to check my email, anyway! By the way, never take your eyes off those painting during Our Love Is Here to Stay. As Barry waves at each painting and it changes, they usually change to the same thing. Not always though! Remember that one at the end where the it shows the heads of the couple as they embrace? Well, several shows back, a different painting was inserted there - can't exactly describe it - but it made Barry chuckle! I Am Your Child was beautiful again - I really like the way Barry has been performing it lately. Very soft, kind of breathy... The entire Grandpa Joe segment was cute - well, it always is. Managed to catch this shot of Barry during the part where they play this recording of baby Barry singing (not singing!) Happy Birthday to his cousin. This is where he says "That's me!"  Nature Boy was extra cute tonight. A lot of little giggles from the audience - enough to make Barry react - see the photo. Just adorable. I especially loved the part where the lyrics are "love and be loved in return". As he mouthed the words to the song (while baby Barry sang), he used his hands to gesture, kind of going along with the music - but also putting some emphasis on the lyrics. And looking out at the audience as he did it, not just singing along to himself.  A little lighting snafu during this portion of the show. I'd never really noticed before, but there are extra little lights that are "suspended" in the background as Barry performs I Am Your Child and Nature Boy. Tonight, one of those lights was dangling, swinging back and forth. Several audience members noticed it because they were pointing. New York City Rhythm also felt different - and again, I don't know why. This is a song where you can definitely appreciate being a little further back. I especially noticed being able to see the guys on the keyboard better - especially Ron P and Joey. Not so much with Ron W. The big dance part in the middle is also better viewed from further back. But the chase around the piano segment isn't - it loses a little. All interesting stuff. This One's For You was great - Barry really seemed to be trying to connect with the audience on this one. Well, not only this one - I also saw it during Even Now and then again later in the show. A lot of times during his performances of this song, Barry seems to be looking off in the distance, but this time he would turn his head and look straight out into the audience as he sang. He didn't just focus on one location, he turned his attention to several different places in the audience throughout the portion of the song where he sits at the piano. When he stood up, the song became a little more emotional - just a little - this didn't have the passion of Even Now. But it still came across as heartfelt, as if he needed to get a message across. So, the performance was strong and rock solid. Sometimes you can watch Barry perform this song and it seems as if it's totally for Grandpa. But other times, like tonight, there seems to be much more to it than that. Will someone please throw a glow stick at me so I don't forget to take a photo of Barry posing with the conductor painting behind him at the beginning of Love Is Here To Stay?! No, I'm just kidding - don't do that! But I swear, it's like I have a mental block or something. I never think about it until he's actually posing! And at that point, there's no time to get my camera up and focused! I don't know why I can't remember. I guess I'm just too wrapped up in it, especially since Barry changed the show so that he walks out on the stage in the dark and stands there watching the video screen along with the audience. I never watch the screen - I'm always watching Barry watch the screen. And then his cute dialogue. And then I'm waiting to see how he's going to perform Our Love Is Here to Stay - will be it romantic or sweet... And I just forget that I ever wanted that shot in the first place! And one of these days he's going to take that song out of the show and I will have missed that shot completely! So now I'm going to walk around the rest of the day telling myself, "Remember the shot, remember the shot..." (and if I do remember, he probably won't strike that pose!!) But... Regardless of my lack of mental focus during that portion of the show, Barry's performance was excellent. I would say this was a middle-of-the road performance - not especially romantic or sweet or light-hearted or any of the other terms I've used to describe it in the past. Just "nice" - it felt "nice". It had kind of a general, "toward the world" feel - meaning it didn't seem that Barry was trying to "connect" with the audience the way he does at times - it was more general, broader. His gestures seemed to take in more than the audience, they could have just as easily taken in the entire world. It didn't come across so much a love song, as a song of contentment. It left you with a good feeling, but not a WOW feeling. Does that make sense? After Barry finished Love Is Here To Stay, I heard some familiar music! Barry inserted 15 Minutes into the show and it's fabulous! They've changed the set a little. Now there are 4 neon signs (not neon signs, that's just what it looks like) that have been dropped down in the 4 corners. I can't remember what they all said, but it was kind of like little slogans. Even the lighting at the back of the stage was done in such a way that it makes it look kind of like a brick wall. Another change to the set was the guitar players! I remember mentioning in a review a while back that over the years Barry has managed to bring forward and feature all of his band members except the guitar and bass players. Well, now he's done it! Mike and Stan came forward for 15 Minutes - and Kye joined them with his guitar. They all were still further back on the stage than Barry and the lighting on them wasn't bright at all - but the ambience was fantastic!  Anyway, besides the atmosphere, the song was fantastic. I actually liked 15 Minutes even better performed live than I do on the CD - and I love it on the CD. That's not surprising - Barry has a way of frequently bringing even more life into a song with his life performances. Okay, so this song may not be a rocker when compared to Metallica, but in the soft rock world, it's definitely a rocker. I'm really looking forward to it at Saturday's show. Tonight I was trying to take it all in - the lighting, the set design, the guitar guys - so I didn't have my full attention on Barry's performance. I remember seeing some "attitude" - that's what rock is about - ATTITUDE! I'm really looking forward to seeing Barry perform this again so I can pick up on more of what he's bringing to the song. (always hard the first time you see a new song performed live) Bring On Tomorrow may not have had the same "big" effect that I've seen in the past, but that ending is still pretty cool - where all the lights fade to black and there's just this one light on Barry for a brief moment. Yeah, still no golden aura - I was obviously seeing things! But even without seeing Barry enveloped in gold (hee!), the way they narrow the light down to where it's just shining from about chest up is nice. It's just too brief - your eyes really don't have a chance to focus on Barry before all the lights completely go out. I seriously think you don't have more than a second to view it. Forget my ever getting a photo of it - even if I had the camera up and focused, it would be a stroke of luck if I actually managed to catch the shot. Tonight Barry wasn't grinning at us (the way he was last time) - instead he just had a sweet expression on his face and then he folded his hands in front of him just as the lights went to black. I loved Barry's performance of Bring On Tomorrow. Granted, it's totally my opinion (like everything else I write), but it seems to me that he's found the perfect "mood" for that song. He changed his dialogue a little at the beginning - instead of just saying that the guy is going to tell the girl that he's made it, he added, "We can buy dinner now!" But the actual performance, was a mix of all the emotions that the lyrics to the song really seem to convey (my interpretation, of course). I love this song - love seeing Barry perform it. So, tonight I watched the videos during Bandstand rather than watching Barry. Uhm, well... Okay, I mostly watched the videos... Hey, he's too cute and I'm only human! Anyway, it's fun to watch the videos - this is mainly during the part of the segment where Barry is mocking the funny dances (And it's REALLY hard to take your eyes off him when he's acting so silly! You should have seen him doing The Fly!) It's hard to follow it all, because sometimes each video screen is showing something different. I saw Chris and Stephen. I saw someone twirling a big stand-up bass (but couldn't see the face). There's some fantastic footwork of people dancing - just their feet. And then there's an incredible dance segment with a couple dancing - the moves are unreal to someone as uncoordinated as me! If anyone ever doubts how hard Barry is working on these shows physically, just take a look at this shot from Mandy. He was REALLY working during this show - you can see the sweat on his neck, and even his hair shows signs of how much he was perspiring. He works HARD - they all do! And, of course, not just physically - it's so apparent how much work he puts into preparing these shows, deciding how to perform the songs. If some folks don't choose to see that, it's their loss. I, for on, appreciate it. And have I mentioned lately how happy I am that I can take shots like this during Mandy again?!? Ha! I love this shot - it will absolutely be enlarged and hung on my wall.  In terms of trying to connect with the audience, I think I saw more of it during I Write the Songs than at any other time during the night. Barry really seemed to be reaching out. Lots of gazing out into the audience, across the theater, not just looking straight ahead. Fourth row or not, I felt that one! Barry was having fun with Copacabana tonight. He acted out the lyrics, especially the second verse. He was just being silly. And that's always fun. I love this shot from the end of the show, too. I never know what I'm going to get, if anything, from those closing moments. I'm only willing to snap off one shot, because I want to see the rest with my own eyes. (although, it would be cool if I could get a shot of Barry waving at us after the lights have been turned off him) And I never know what he'll do - sometimes he just briefly waves and sometimes he blows us kisses or bows or throws his head back - just never know. So I was very pleased with this one.  For once I didn't have that twinge of sadness that the show was over - I'll admit it hit briefly as Mandy started, but only for a second. Probably isn't bothering me because I have more shows to attend. Ask me again on Sunday night!! Can't close without a tux shot! And a cute one, too! 
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