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Paris Las Vegas - September 16, 2011(View photo gallery here)
BB-30  I almost don't even remember Looks Like We Made It. Did he do that song? LOL! Oh, yeah - he did it - big eyes, exaggerated voice and mannerisms. Big smile. I went ahead and remained standing for Can't Smile Without You. I usually sit back down, even though I know he's going to ask everyone to stand up - I play the civilian game. But what the heck? They made me miss CIBM, so I just kept standing. Thankfully, Barry didn't delay his request for everyone to stand - I wasn't left hanging there, standing with only a few other people standing. Barry played his silly lyrics games tonight - speaking the lyrics very fast. It was totally hopeless - I couldn't sing along - every time I tried, he would do something silly and get me started laughing. Barry has been so cute lately as he starts the ballad segment of the show (well, the first ballad segment...) He always says, "I must have a ballad somewhere" - but it's his facial expressions that have been so cute. He sat down at the piano and asked "What should I do?" I really don't think his intent was to ask the audience for suggestions, but he did get a lot of them. He eventually said, "I'll just do what the band is already playing - even though it's risky." I think what Barry was referring to was the fact that as he opened the show, his voice was a little raspy. Not a problem, though. The performance was beautiful. This is one of the songs where I could hear there were sound problems - Barry's piano was a little too loud (I'm pretty sure it was Barry's piano). I didn't find it distracting, though - I thought it was kind of fascinating, actually. Since I'm taking this music course, it's making me really pay attention to what I'm hearing - and I loved being able to distinctly hear what was being played. At any rate, the performance was superb. Another very expressive performance. While at the piano, Barry had this look in his eyes, kind of reflective, kind of distant - actually, the thought that popped into my head as I was watching him was that I was seeing someone thinking, "What can I do to change this?" So, if you can imagine that, I think you'll get a picture of what I was seeing.  Ooh, and at the end - he reached out and grabbed us again. He really reached for the audience while nailing that long note. Anyone see that DC show review by the reporter? Where he made mention of fans hearts skipping a beat, but that it wasn't AFib, it could be blamed on Manilow? Well, he got that right. How could our hearts not skip a beat when Barry reaches out and takes them from us? I started to say that he's holding our hearts in his hands, but the image that popped into my brain... Okay, adjust mental image to the little cartoon hearts with Cupid's arrows and the word, "I love you, Barry" written across... Much better... That image of the real thing was just plain icky - must teach my mind to not always be so literal! Okay, anyway... So, yes - our hearts don't just skip a beat - they stop entirely! Fabulous, fabulous performance. Barry went into Brooklyn Blues in a great mood. He was grooving with the groove. The music was fantastic - no sound problems there. You could clearly hear Brandon's sax, and all the horns later in the song. Barry made a comment about the lyric being interesting - it is - and Barry's interpretation of the lyric is even more interesting. It was a great performance. Barry nailed another long note - that one at the end of Brooklyn Blues. Tonight's note ranks up there toward the top as far as the longest. I'd say he was proud of himself. He made that little gesture, where you lick your thumb then touch it to your shoulder - yeah, he was sizzling... Then he grinned and said, "I'm just showing off" - well, tonight he really was. And we loved it! The Grandpa Joe segment was very special. Well, there were some sound issues during I Am Your Child. A strange, low, deep, buzzing, humming sound. Not enough to be distracting - just enough for me to notice - but then I notice just about everything, so I don't count. Barry's performance was kind of deep tonight - the look in his eyes seemed sad. His voice was beautiful, very heartfelt. That mood seemed to carry over into his monologue, where he talks about the recording booth. He got a little silly again during Nature Boy as baby Barry was singing. Using his finger to conduct, big Barry really emphasized the notes that baby Barry was singing. Actually, I had heard the ups and downs of the notes before, but tonight the way Barry gestured, I really recognized what this 4-year-old was doing. My ears aren't good enough to say what the range was, but it was really big range between the high notes and the low notes and the way he went back and forth. When you take into account the age he was when he was doing that - hey, it's pretty cool. I'd never really paid attention to that before... I'm sure the music class I'm taking has something to do with that - I'm actually starting to see the music notes, the way they would look on paper, in my head now when I listen to music - can't place them in the correct position in the staff yet, but still... This is fun... At any rate, Barry did make some funny faces during Nature Boy, but he also got a little more serious as the lyrics progressed. I loved the look in his eyes when he mouthed that final line with baby Barry - that one about "love and be loved in return". That was such a great facial expression. He always talks about it being a great lyric and a great lesson - and it is. But he's such a master at interpreting that lyric and making us recognize it. Then it was time for This One's For You. As always, he said he thinks of Grandpa - although lately, he kind of chuckles and says, "...for Grandpa" a second time, as if the song might be for more than Grandpa. Tonight's rendition of this song was so expressive - and he connected with the audience so strongly, I could have died and gone to heaven right then. For the first half of the song, he looked straight out into the audience with an expression that was pure sincerity. If anyone sitting in the audience wasn't affected, there was something wrong with them! I can still see that expression in his eyes - gives me chills! Then, about halfway through the song, for some reason, he pulled back into himself. For the rest of the performance, his gaze was far away, really distant. Probably just as well, since I might have really died and gone to heaven if he hadn't broken the connection he had going with us. That was intense! But that's okay - the rest of the performance was rock solid. It was very strong, especially after he stood up from the piano and came toward the front of the stage. Barry seemed very emotional as he finished the song. New York City Rhythm was very lively. Barry was extra cute during his Dancing With the Stars joke - really a lot of fun. And I'm not sure what all was going on with the dancers - there was something that wasn't quite the norm. I've seen this routine enough to know something was different, even though I couldn't tell you what it was. All the backups had big smiles on their faces. When Barry sat down at the piano to do his solo, he looked at them all with a funny expression and grinned before he started playing. This was another spot where the sound wasn't quite what it usually is. You could REALLY hear Barry playing his solo - I kind of liked, that, though. And then after the piano chase, when all the guys are playing the piano at the same time, now that was cool - Barry's piano was probably too loud, but still, it was neat to hear what was going on so clearly.  The 15 Minutes segment was awesome. Was Mike playing extra things on the guitar? Or was it just more of the sound things that were going on? Barry performed that song with Attitude tonight - with a capital A! Especially when he sang that line, "Just gimme my shot..." - whoa! Rock us, Barry! Loved it! He was cute tonight, after the pose that coincides with the final note of the song. (which I actually managed to catch with a clear, focused shot this time, thank you very much!) He kept striking that pose again, almost like he was making fun of it. It made everyone laugh.  Bring on Tomorrow was wonderful. But... If I was so excited about the 15 Minutes CD because it went in a rock direction, and if my first inclination toward music is rock, is it strange that the Big Barry Ballad from this CD is still my favorite of all? Probably not - because we know what Barry can do with a ballad. It's still my favorite, though, and one I eagerly look forward to. Barry wasn't quite as connecting with the audience as he sometimes is. The vocals were beautiful, though. When Barry walked to center stage for the last half of the song, the connection picked up somewhat. Barry was very expressive even though the feeling wasn't as tightly focused as it sometimes is. Portions of the performance at that point really stood out - for instance, when he sang the part about "told us we're crazy", and then especially "forgive and forget." Actually, I like seeing these different types of performances because when I get back to the room and think about it, I can see how Barry constructs these performances to generate certain feelings - I can see how he does what he does to us. My analytical mind finds that quite fascinating - of course, when I'm in the show, I couldn't care less HOW he does it - during the show, it's just "take me, I'm yours!" Ha! Barry was so cute as he took his bow for Bring On Tomorrow. As the lights faded away into a golden glow (yeah, there was a golden glow again), he pointed straight out into the audience and grinned that huge grin. Heart stopped again. You know, he makes our hearts stop like a zillion times every show. How is it he still has an audience left? How are we still alive? The man seriously alters reality, I think! Barry was very funny during Bandstand. I actually got photos of him doing the funny dances. Well, I kind of got sneaky for the first one - pretended to be taking photos of the backups. Ha! But then when everyone was doing the Fly and the Swim and all that, he got very silly with his facial expressions - and I caught a couple of good shots. For the most part, everyone on the stage seemed to be having a great time, and the audience did, as well. There was one interesting moment where Barry made a comment to the audience - something like, "look alive". Not sure what he meant by that - the audience really seemed to be enjoying themselves. It was a normal audience, for the most part - meaning not all fans. Oh, well... At the end, they did the bit where Keely is trying to pull Barry away from us and drag him to the back of the stage. I always miss that shot - I really want one of that... But this time as the curtain came down, I saw Barry and Keely give each other a big hug - a comical, silly hug - but still... WE'RE JEALOUS! Hee!  Mandy came way too soon. WAY too soon. The sound was really messed up for this one - sorry, it was just messed up. Barry's piano wasn't playing at all at first - and then when it did, it was so loud it was distracting. Yeah, that particular performance was kind of lost - Barry wasn't into it, and the audience really couldn't get into it. But, what the hey... Stuff happens... We know what it was supposed to be like - so Barry got an ovation anyway - and he deserved it, anyway. That ovation wasn't for one particular song, it was for years and years of Barry giving himself to us. Barry did look out at the audience a lot during I Write the Songs. I don't remember if the sound was fixed, or if I just wasn't paying any attention to it at that point. I don't think I cared at that point. I was caught up in that feeling you get - it's a mixture of happiness for what you've seen, and sadness that it's about to be over, and pride in Barry - there's just this feeling that floods over you. Barry was very silly during Copa - very! He used so many cute facial expressions, emphasized the lyrics so much. And yes, he did the whole "Ah love, ah romance, ah SEX!" bit. And did I catch a photo? Heck, no (actually, my mind isn't thinking "heck" - but this review is meant for a general audience)! In the moments before that, a voice in my head kept telling me he was going to do it. But I didn't get the camera ready. And, of course, if I get the camera ready, he's not going to do it! He was so cute - mock shock, hands on both sides of his face. And he was very silly when he reappeared on stage in his tux. I took a very quick shot as Barry came back up through the trap door - it's a little blurry, though because I did it very quickly because I just wanted to watch Barry. He didn't disappoint. The funny look he put on his face was priceless. Big, big eyes - and then after staring at us that way for what seemed like an eternity, he kind of made a little jump at us - almost like, "Boo!" It was so cute and so funny. And then he got funnier still as stepped back in front of the image of the old Copa shirt - he pretended to be connected to all those crazy graphics behind him, making funny faces and flailing his arms about. How could you not laugh? You know, he looks fantastic in that tux. But then after seeing those photos of him wearing that suit on Capitol Hill... I don't know which one is better - the tux or the suit? Oh, who cares? Either one can make you melt. And Barry is still closing the show with It's A Miracle. And the streamers are back. Colored paper streamers - no little silver missiles. I got covered in the streamers - in fact, I was having to try to keep them off my head. Came home with a bag full of them for my memory box. It was a special show - it needed some special memories to be stored away. No problems there...  Can't wait for tonight. This is the first time he's played my actual birthday in years. I'm really excited and looking forward to it. Can't think of a better way to spend it.
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