From javallas@WIMSEY.COM Mon Oct 7 01:59:10 1996 Date: Mon, 7 Oct 1996 01:13:51 -0700 To: app@roadkill.com From: javallas@WIMSEY.COM (Charles Javallas) Subject: Vancouver show.. no real spoilers... Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Length: 773 Awesome.. This show was worth waiting 20 years to see. The set list was the same as the previous spoiler announced. The band was tight, energetic, and ready to please. The crowd went wild when Alan announced that he had once lived in Vancouver. I had been a little weary about hearing the songs sung by different voices but Both vocalists put my pre-show nervouness to rest immediately. They were both extremely good and deserved the numerous standing ovations they received. You guys & gals will be so impressed with this show. My ears are still ringing as I was in the 8th row and I can't get the songs out of my head. I hope we see a bootleg version of this tour because it sounds much better this time around. You won't be disappointed Charles vancouver, BC From rguthrie@UVic.CA Tue Oct 8 15:12:59 1996 Date: Tue, 08 Oct 1996 15:10:23 -0700 To: app@roadkill.com From: Rick Guthrie Subject: Vancouver concert Cc: marydelc@total.net Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Length: 6379 It started promptly at 9:30; the heavy baseline of (the system of)Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether greeted the few thousand odd fans which the Queen Elizibeth Theatre in Vancouver holds. Alan Parsons first ever concert in Canada! The venue, while not huge, was personable, and comfortable, and the sound was far superior to most of the larger venues I have attended. I quickly lost track of all the songs which were being played, and the order that they were being played in. It's sort of like going to a comedy show, and coming home not able to remember a specific joke. The first set was good, but not outstanding. I say this knowing that I will get some heavy handed reactions from fans who believe that no criticism is possible, but let me qualify. I have listened to Parsons for years. I do have the entire set of albums (CD's now) including many of the imports (Freudiana, Gaudi etc...). They have long been my favorite band. As such, I developed a long list of my own favorite songs, singers, and I also developed an expectation of perfection (which is nearly impossible to duplicate live). Neil Lockwood opened up the set with the song from Tales, and his voice faltered somewhat in strength and clarity. Having heard his voice previously on On Air, I naturally assumed that this then was the Peter Beckett that I had heard about, instead of Neil. Peter Beckett then came in with a ballad, and while his voice was smooth, he didn't handle the mike well, and hit a couple of notes slightly flat. Again I was confused. Apparrently this wasn't Neil Lockwood either. However, the singing was still very good, and got better as they warmed up. The fact that I knew all the songs compensated for the fact that they were not always the favorites I hoped to hear. The enthusiasm from the crowd was contagious, and I was still having a great time! Now Neil began earning his pay. He started really using his voice, and working the songs hard. It was soon very clear who was who, on stage. This man is truly awesome. It may have taken a few minutes, but he really did justice to the songs. Peter Beckett was also getting better, but Time, for example is a tough song to sing, because you expect, even now, to hear Eric's voice floating the words out to you. To his credit, he hit the high notes beautifully. The highest point of the first set, was Ian's guitar solo. Up until that point, he had been on stage, but not dominant. Just playing away, in his trademark baseball cap, and letting the singers take center stage. As the solo started (I am embarressed to say, that I have already forgotten which song it was; however take this as a good thing, as I have forgotten only because he ended up doing so many, and they were all phenomenal) he stepped out to center stage, and began moving a bit more with the music. and more. and more. Until the whole place was him and his guitar, and it was just blazing! The first standing ovation came as he finished, about half way through the first set. Many more would follow. The energy began building rapidlly at that point, and it became clear, what a truly great choice Parsons had made in choosing Lockwood. The intermission was short, and they were back on stage, right when they promised. For my money, this second set was where the real show began. Alan Parsons talked to us a little bit about DTS, and about the confusion regarding availability of the CDROMS in Canada, and then introduced the On Air album. It started with the first song, sung by Neil Lockwood, accoustic guitar being played by Ian, no one else on stage. Very beautiful. Then the jet flew over (on the speakers of course), hitting afterburners, and the stage filled up, and the show rocked right to the end. They did every song from On Air perfectly. It was utterly amazing. Ian introduced Brother up in Heaven as the last of the On Air tunes they were going to play, and spoke with subtle but genuine emotion of the tragic Iraqui incident which cost him a cousin. Once again the focus was Ian and Neil, only this time the band came in to support them. It was a very touching piece of work. They went back to the older tunes, and this time played nothing but my favorites. It seemed that the energy in the theatre translated to energy on stage; both singers were phenomenal, and Ian was utterly amazing. Ian played solo after solo, the singers both pushed the songs and in some cases got more out of them. This was especially true for Lockwood, who's voice just didn't miss at this point, and he added numerous notes to really show us what his chords were capable of. The fans were so loud as they left the stage, I thought I would go deaf for sure. I was laughing and whistling with the best of 'em, but they were far louder than the concert had been. It had been planned beautifully. Peter and Neil, center stage, both singing Don't Answer Me; it was awesome! The second encore was at least as intense. The crowd was crazy at that point. Once again, they were back, and both singers took front and center. I believe it was an energized version of Prime Time, followed by, and ended with, Games People Play. The crowd lost it. The band did an mind boggling job at this song, and people were almost giggling when they left. Everyone was either talking animatedly, or singing. I felt, that I had truely gotten what I had come to see. The concert started (in my mind) a bit slowly, but once it picked up, it was unbelievable. My overall impressions were that it really showcased the incredible talents of Neil Lockwood and Ian Bairinson. I found it paridoxical, and somehow charming that the man who was responsible for so many great albums, for Dark Side of the Moon, Abbey Road, for Al Stewart and Pilot, and for 20 years of Project, was playing minor percussion and tamborine for his own band. The whole group was natural and genuine in their appreciation for the response they recieved, and in the little things they said throughout. I have seen more than a hundred concerts at various venues, due to work I was doing during my first degree. Even without my already strong bias towards the group, this concert would rate among the top few. If you haven't seen it yet, but are going to...ENJOY! Rick Guthrie. Rick Guthrie Center for Earth and Ocean Research University of Victoria