Well I did manage to get to the Albert Hall, by driving in, and I'm so glad I did. The concert was excellent, much better than I expected based on the low quality you tube clips, and the low quality people comments!
The band was on fine form, especially Steve. When he's still playing this well, why should they stop. Geoff and Jon were great, and I think the best I've heard them. I don't understand the criticisms of Geoff, based on what I saw last night. Yes, Jon D is not Jon A, but he's really grown into the role now, and keeps getting better.
Jay was excellent too, a very Alan like performance. Again I don't understand the critics of him. In my opinion Jay is a much better fit for this music than Lou Molino III of ARW was.
Billy is owning, and loving, that Chris role. Only criticisms would be that, apart from the times when his bass is being highlighted e.g. Heart of the Sunrise, the bass isn't high enough in the mix. And his backing vocals aren't prominent enough. I did wonder last night if he had a cold or something. A few times between songs I saw him go to the back of the stage and it looked like he was possibly taking medicine.
And the band seemed to be really enjoying themselves too, especially Jay and Jon who were pretty much smiling constantly.
Highlights for me were quite a few - Yours is no Disgrace, Heart of the Sunrise, No Opportunity Necessary, Does it Really Happen, The Ice Bridge. All superb renditions.
Weak points - Dare to Know (I don't dislike this song, but it didn't come over that strongly live), Wondrous Stories (is it just me, but I don't think this song has ever worked that well live, even with Jon A).
On the Silent Wings of Freedom - this was nice and was great to hear live again, but like everyone else, no idea why they would truncate it!
I was in the 11th row and the sound was really really good. Sometimes in the Albert Hall the sound can be a bit inconsistent, especially if you're nearer the back.
I believe the gig was pretty much a sell out. There were a few empty seats as a result of the train strikes, but not as many as I was fearing. I've heard reports of lots of empty seats, so perhaps it wasn't so noticeable from near the front.
The band was on fine form, especially Steve. When he's still playing this well, why should they stop. Geoff and Jon were great, and I think the best I've heard them. I don't understand the criticisms of Geoff, based on what I saw last night. Yes, Jon D is not Jon A, but he's really grown into the role now, and keeps getting better.
Jay was excellent too, a very Alan like performance. Again I don't understand the critics of him. In my opinion Jay is a much better fit for this music than Lou Molino III of ARW was.
Billy is owning, and loving, that Chris role. Only criticisms would be that, apart from the times when his bass is being highlighted e.g. Heart of the Sunrise, the bass isn't high enough in the mix. And his backing vocals aren't prominent enough. I did wonder last night if he had a cold or something. A few times between songs I saw him go to the back of the stage and it looked like he was possibly taking medicine.
And the band seemed to be really enjoying themselves too, especially Jay and Jon who were pretty much smiling constantly.
Highlights for me were quite a few - Yours is no Disgrace, Heart of the Sunrise, No Opportunity Necessary, Does it Really Happen, The Ice Bridge. All superb renditions.
Weak points - Dare to Know (I don't dislike this song, but it didn't come over that strongly live), Wondrous Stories (is it just me, but I don't think this song has ever worked that well live, even with Jon A).
On the Silent Wings of Freedom - this was nice and was great to hear live again, but like everyone else, no idea why they would truncate it!
I was in the 11th row and the sound was really really good. Sometimes in the Albert Hall the sound can be a bit inconsistent, especially if you're nearer the back.
I believe the gig was pretty much a sell out. There were a few empty seats as a result of the train strikes, but not as many as I was fearing. I've heard reports of lots of empty seats, so perhaps it wasn't so noticeable from near the front.
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