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This was probably one of the best shows I've ever seen in terms of performance. Everything was outstanding. I think Lana mentioned several standout songs. Almost everything was a standout! It was an incredible show.
Barry opened in the same bright red jacket and tie. That color looks fantastic on him. Yesterday someone told me that they didn't see how Barry could possibly top Thursday night's performance - and I told them, "Oh, yeah - he can - I've seen him do it time and time again." Well, he did it again!
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Usually when Barry comes out through the smoke, you see the smoke gradually fade and see Barry standing there. But tonight, we could actually see Barry jump (literally) into the middle of the doorway - and that was met with a huge cheer from the crowd.
Barry started the show with Happy Holidays, then went into White Christmas on the left stage side. Again, there was a Christmas tree backdrop (the lights on the tree really caught my attention tonight), and the backups were dressed in their winter coat costumes.
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Barry dove into his opening medley. He wasn't as playful during Daybreak, but that wasn't an indication of the rest of the night - he was very playful and seemed to be in a fantastic mood.
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We got Christmas Is Just Around the Corner again - I really love this song. They make it even more fun with the way they perform it. Barry really seems to enjoy singing it. I haven't heard anyone say they don't love it - it just really grabs you and doesn't let go.
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Barry's voice was outstanding tonight - really outstanding. Someone said they thought he seemed a little raspy at one point - I didn't notice that at all.
Weekend in New England was incredible - one of the best performances I've ever seen. Tonight I realized I was seeing much more emotion than just performance in the song. I had never really noticed that there was a difference between those two before, but there is. Barry has done some powerful performances of that song - but tonight it wasn't about performance, it was about emotion. And this grabbed me more than all of those other performances where he put so much of himself into performing the song. Tonight he put all of himself into the emotion of the song. I hope what I'm trying to say comes across - it was a new perspective for me. The audience did yell out loudly during the song. Barry tried to keep going, but he had to crack a smile. He did mutter something into the microphone, but I couldn't make it out. It was just a momentary break in the mood of the song, though - he picked back up almost immediately.
At one point Barry mentioned that this was the fan club convention - probably to tip off the casual concert attendees. (Is that better than calling them "civilians"? Because it's much easier to type "civilians"!) The audience stood through the first few songs - the audience stood a lot - probably for at least 2/3 of the show.
Barry did his little tap dance again during the decades medley - and again said that word that I can't put in the review. LOL But he appeared to be receiving encouragment from Monica, as you can see in the photos!
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They performed Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer again. The crowd loved it, and Barry and crew seemed to love doing it. When Monica sang her little solo part to perfection, the audience cheered loudly. LOL Ok, how many times has she performed flawlessly - and then after making one little flub, the audience cheers when she does her part flawlessly again?? LOL It's because we love you, Monica!
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Kye did his funny Santa voice - his REALLY funny Santa voice - during the song. How does he get that high? I couldn't hit notes that high when I was 5!! But it's hilarious - if he didn't do it, the performance of the song just wouldn't be the same.
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And Keely resumed her tapping of Barry's nose during the song. I remember last year she really bopped him once. She was much more gentle tonight.
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Tonight I really noticed the incredible lighting during New York City Rhythm - maybe because I was sitting further back than I normally do. It's stunning. Everyone again seemed to have a great time with the song. And if I thought there was a competition last night between the keyboardists, I was wrong - the competition was tonight! LOL They were just warming up last night! This one was really hard to call because all 3 of them threw in extras. But if I have to choose a winner for the night, it's Ron W.
The audience remained standing during Can't Smile Without You. As he has been doing, Barry really seems to get into the ending of the song. He puts a lot of energy into it.
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Looks Like We Made It was again a great performance - very sexy. Barry didn't seem quite as emotional about it as he did the night before. But that didn't affect the performance - it just changed the tone of the performance. That's something else that I picked up on tonight - just a slight little change in the amount and type of emotion that he puts into the song can really change the tone of the entire performance. On Thursday night, there were tears in his eyes at one point during the song, and it made the entire song kind of sad, like a breakup song (well, it *IS* a breakup song). But tonight, there were no signs of tears - and while it's still a breakup song, it made you feel as if the breakup was the best possible thing that could happen. What's up with that? LOL
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Memory was...what's a word that is incredible, fantastic, awesome, outstanding, and exquisite all rolled into one? You know, I used to hate this song. Now I look forward to seeing him perform it. Barry put tons of emotion AND passion into tonight's performance of this song - it's honestly the best I've ever seen. He had me fighting back tears - not just one of those times when a few tears sneak out - this was one of those I-have-to-bite-my-lip-to-keep-from-breaking-into-audible-sobs times. Okay, how can he do that to me when I hate this song?? His performance was absolutely unreal.
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Since Memory had already broken through the wall, even I Made It Through the Rain got to me tonight. This was also an outstanding performance - Barry put a lot more emotion into it than he usually does. Sometimes when he does the little monologue in the middle of the song, it's *just* a monologue - it's touching and we fans love to hear it because we know how much his grandfather meant to him. But there are other times when he really grabs your heartstrings with it - tonight was one of those times. When he did the part about feeling connected to something - it really grabbed you.
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They performed Islands in the Stream again as part of the decades medley. This one is turning into a crowd favorite - the audience tends to remain standing as they did with the Mayflower medley. It's a great song - it's really upbeat - it features all of the backups - and they all seem to enjoy doing it. Barry *really* seems to enjoy doing it. Most of the time Barry's dancing along to songs appears to be choreographed - but what he does during this song seems completely spontaneous.
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As I said, Islands is a very upbeat song song - you think of it as a fantastic love song. But last night I woke up from a dream with that song going through my head. Have you ever really thought about the chorus of the song? "Islands in the stream, that is what we are..." Okay, islands in a stream are separated - not only from themselves by the water, but also from the mainland - unless, of course, they happen to be actively volcanic islands, in which case there's a potential that they could eventually be joined. But "Volanic islands in the stream..." just doesn't seem to work as a verse. So, just why is it this is an upbeat song??? LOL Yeah, yeah - I know - I have way too much time on my hands. :-)
Okay, back to the review... Sorry, my mind just does that sometimes...
Barry again sang The Christmas Song. Tonight Ron W. came down to the piano to play for him. And last night Barry had mentioned that he needed a martini or something for the setting. So tonight, Kye brought out what appeared to be an alcoholic drink of some sort (who knows what it really was?) - scotch on the rocks or something - I don't drink, so I don't really know all that stuff. At one point Barry was looking into the glass with an expression that seemed to say, "What is this stuff?" Ron W was laughing so hard he almost couldn't play. Barry acted the part of a drunk as the song started, but then got serious a few lines into the song. I think bringing Ron W down to the grand piano was a nice atmospheric touch to add to the jazzy feel of the song.
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Then Barry came back out to the front of the stage to do The Christmas Waltz. It was wonderful watching him get into the mood for the song - watching him immerse himself in the music - and that's exactly what he did. It was as if watching someone immerse themselves in water - you could just see him sinking into the music, into the sounds of the orchestra. Barry made the statement that he loves Christmas - and that's pretty apparent by the way he performs these songs. I did remember to check out Kye and Melanie dancing during the song tonight, but there wasn't enough light for me to take a photo.
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River was also one of the standout songs of the night. There was a lot of emotion in this one - Barry had tears in his eyes again for the first part of the song. Then the groove picked up for the second verse, and you could see the music take over for Barry at that point.
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And Ships was also one of the best performances I've ever seen. Barry has taking his acting out of the roles to a new level. Tonight it was just incredible. He totally becomes the father. I love it. It absolutely gives me chills to watch him.
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Tonight Barry sang Mandy to the audience. He usually doesn't - he usually keeps his focus straight ahead. But tonight for some reason, he spent the majority of the song turned toward the audience. And yes, he's still wearing my favorite white jacket.
The audience stood for all of I Write the Songs - they usually don't stand until Barry gets up from the piano.
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Barry did his silly little Copa dance for us again tonight - when he came out of the smoke at the top of the stairs, he let loose and just started doing a silly little dance for what seemed like forever. He had everyone laughing again. I wish the lighting were better when he comes out on top of the stairs, because I would love to have a photo of that.
The platform came down like it was supposed to tonight - I heard Barry say something about it, but I couldn't make out what he said.
And then it was over. Way too soon, as always
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