FAN CLUB TICKETS
Well, we all know Elle and the promoter said that fan club tickets would be between rows 5 and 15, right? Well, the bad news is that this information is correct, so if you had hopes that in the end we would be get seats as good as 24/7 tour (like I had!) forget it. I ended up getting a seat on the 10th row. The good news is that it was in the center section, so you'll probably get a great view of the stage. You won't be so close to Tina though, except for Nutbush :-)
TINA
If you watched Oprah a few months ago and like me thought Tina was out of shape and was concerned she would never be her old self again, I have good news for you: IT'S STILL THE SAME GOOD OL' TINA!!!!! She's lost weight, the legs look wonderful, the "Foreign Affair" hair makes her look even younger, she's still got the moves, the voice is there - she looked and sounded absolutely fantastic, it really didn't feel like she'd been away for 8 years!
BAND
The band is the same from the 24/7 Tour except that James Ralston has been replaced with Laurie Wisefield as reported previously. Compared to 24/7, the band members are closer to the audience, instead of being all the way in the back. When Tina was presenting them towards the end of the show, she mentioned they were her original band and that they had all been waiting for her to come back :-)
SINGERS
Lisa Fischer, Nicki (can't remember her last name) were the two backup singers. Stacey Campbell was shown on the screens during the final credits but she wasn't there and she wasn't in the rehearsals either (as shown on EW). I wonder what happened, hopefully she'll join later.
DANCERS
Claire and Solange are there, joined by two new dancers. I don't have the tour book, but it has their names and background. Someone please post some info.The surprise is that Tina now has male dancers as well - the "Ninjas" - two asian, 1 black and 1 white
INTERMISSION
Intermission was 30 minutes long, the time before the concert restarts is shown on the screens. I have to say I really liked it. After Hero, we definitely needed some time to recover (it was so unusual and unbelievable!) and it gives the fans the time to go to the restroom and get some more beer :-) About 5 minutes before the 2nd part, they play a video montage of various moments in Tina's career to the sound of I Don't Wanna Fight. I thought it was a nice touch even though I'd much rather have her perform the song. During the intermission, as I walked to the restroom I saw Roger Davies, I went up to him and congratulaed him on the wonderful show. He replied: "Wait till you see the second part!". Another fan reported seeing Erwin there too.
THE SHOW
The set list we saw in the AEG video is the one except that they didn't do Show Some Respect.(The song choices and they way they flow is great because nobody sits down, there are only a few slow songs and the energy is there pretty much during the entire show. Let's talk about each segment in the first part: Steamy Windows, Typical Male, River Deep, WYGIWYS, Be Good - Black outfit (I really don't know how to describe clothes, so please forgive me)
Get back was played before the curtains were opened and it really sounded like it was beind done live, and someone else was singing it, it might have been Lisa Fischer but I'm not sure. Then the first bars of Steamy Windows start and the curtains are opened and Tina is on a VERY HIGH platform which descends before she starts singing. The arrangement is very similar to past tours, brand new coreography. They go straight into Typical Male which was seemed a bit slower to me and yes, it did have the samba segment. After that, Tina finally says hi and then River Deep.
WYGIWS followed with the same live arrangement, Tina had trouble with the lyrics on this one but nothing major (and that's why opening night is so great! it's all much more natural than after she's done it 100 times). Better Be Good - they changed it a bit and now they're using the haunting intro from the album version, I thought it was really cool; the rest of the song is delivered pretty much the same way as before and Tina goes backstage to change during the "Be good, be good to me" part, followed by some dance routine and then the piano solo. Acid Queen, What's Love, Private Dancer. This is when we see the "ninjas" the first time. An Asian guy with a Tina T-shirt (one of them) comes up onstage pretending to be a fan, then he's joined by another "fan" and 2 "security guards" start chasing them on the stage. It's a little bit corny IMO,
a few stunts here and there and we're all being distracted while Tina's putting on her Acid Queen red mini dress and a cape. Now this is a completely reworked version of the song, mashed up with The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" (yes, the CSI theme). I absolutely loved it and she even did the "Gather your wits" part.
What's Love followed, great crowd reaction but no sing-along. During Private Dancer Tina's joined by the dancers and backup singers, a brand new choreography, the video backdrop showed dancing women.
Hero
A mini-Thunderdome is set up onstage. The ninjas are now dressed in Mad Max clothes; Tina appears after a while in her original Aunty Entity costume (yes, with the earrings, the wig and the silver dress!), but with her back to the audience, she's got a VERY TALL guy by her side, it all looked very Cirque Du Soleil-ish, unusual for a Tina show, but it was awesome. Tina starts singing and then is lifted by the same platform used for Steamy windows, she then goes to the top of the Thunderdome and continues the song there, always with the big guy on her side. That's all I can remember because I was in such a state of awe...
The song ends with lots of explosions.
Help, Undercover Agent, Let's Stay Together, RainThe curtains are opened again to reveal Tina (in a black sparkling dress) and the band in a setup similar to the "unplugged" set from the Wildest Dreams Tour. The arrangements of the songs are also the same as the previous tours.
Stones Medley
Tina is joined by the dancers. Starts with Jumping Jack Flash, showing videos of Tina and the Stones, then goes into It's Only Rock and Roll. Tina begins the song then goes backstage to get ready for Goldeneye. Lisa Fischer actually does most of this song.
Goldeneye
There is a long intro with lots of video screen action and the ninjas and dancers onstage. It starts with one of the new blond dancer doing Flamenco dance and then goes into the James Bond theme. While it goes into the beginning of Goldeneye, you can see the golden eye (the same look as in the WD tour, the mechanics a bit different though) and then Tina comes out from inside of it, she's wearing a black gown. This was probably my favorite interlude of the show, really cool. Tina sings the song as she comes down the stairs on the right hand side then down on the stage.
Addicted To Love, The Best, Proud MaryTheblack gown is gone to reveal a mini-dress underneath; she had the dancers onstage during Addicted To Love and the video showed women playing guitars in a reference to Robert Palmer's original video of the song. The Best had great crowd reaction. The choreography for Proud Mary was the same as in the 24/7 Tour. Nutbush, Be TenderWhite shirt and black pants. Nutbush was the same as the 24/7 Tour, crane and all. Be Tender was OK, I'm not really a big fan of that song and really wish she'd replace with something else.
After the "always, for always" part, Tina and the band leave but the music is still playing... who's playing???? :-) In summary, it was an amazing concert, taking the best from her previous tours (Nutbush crane, WD unplugged, Goldeneye, etc.), plus some new choreography, more dancers and some great interludes. A few songs we haven't seen her perform in over 15 years (Typical Male, WYGIWYS) plus some really old ones like the Stones covers! Definitely Tina's biggest production and it's guaranteed to please everyone - from fans to the first-timers. I'll see her again in San Jose in 2 weeks and I'm really looking forward to it!
Have fun everyone! Rony