review of elvis the concert june 5 2003 paris france

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jailhouserocker
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review of elvis the concert june 5 2003 paris france

#12267

Post by jailhouserocker »

special reminder for the doctor
do not read this irelevant post full of langage mistakes and wrote (poorly) by a french black sheep :P
( dear doctor JC remember that you asked for this warning !! )

to be (little) more serious: writing a long post in english ( wich is not my natural born langage) is a hard task . sometime I can't precisely write or translate what I have in mind but believe me, I do my best
on that specific subject I saw stupid remarks from morons pretending to be smart but if you are "good people" feel free to correct me anytime ( the use of nice humor is welcome too )



a modest review of "elvis the concert" june 5 2003 "le zenith arena" paris france

it was my second time and probably the last one because it is alleged that this tour will be the last one.

public transport where on strike so the only safe choice was to go with our car
there was heavy traffic jam but not as worse that I was expecting. we arrived at the parking lot easily and were in the place right on time.
hopefully the security was aware that cameras were allowed inside the arena ( only for elvis concert anyway )
there was some advertising about lisa marie new album ( posters, flyers, music before the show ).I guess it is "family business" !!!!!
the capacity of "le zenith" arena is about 6000 seats. it was not a sold out concert but more than 90 % of the seats were occuped. not bad for a 25 years dead guy and with very minimal publicity.
strangely the crowd was not very aged mainly 25/30 years old . thas was really cool and full of hope for the future.
there was not only "die hard fans" , many peole were newbbies who have bought only the ELV1S 30 compilation.
the ambiance before the show was cool and people were very relaxed and really waiting for a good time.
we were seated on the back of the arena but it is not a real problem because the magic is more efficient if you are not to close of the stage

some years ago I was still very suspicious about this concept and was thinking" what a dumb idea" " 40 euros to watch a video what a rip off !!". but it's works ,man sware to god !!

if you think that your dvd dolby 54.41 megasurround with a big tv can be equal to this, you are wrong !
you will never raise the sound like a real concert without risking to be kill by your neighbor.
you can't invite 6000 screaming guests in your home and the tcb band will never play in front of your sofa

the elvis voice is so natural ( you can hear his breath ) . how easlily technology can fool us is terrific . that's why so many performers singing "live" are using playback tracks without being "caught in the act" !!!!!!!
the sound was loud strong and very clear a real pleasure listening

the lightning and the mixing of elvis footage with live shots from the band is very well done
like in the past, every time elvis give a sign or move ronnie is adding an extra drumming ( and this time elvis is behind ronnie ! ).
elvis himself introduce the band ( great effect ) talk to the crowd and ask for turning the light out during "funny how times slips away" ( very funny ! )

as I have explained before ( the trivia post about james burton ) when I saw the concert in 2001, james was absent because of his introduction at the rock'nroll hall of fame.he was replaced by lead guitarist of mondo cane group.

but tonight he was there and I was highly expecting his performance.

here is the song line up with my comments

Act 1

Theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey/Opening Vamp
See See Rider (Aloha)
Burning Love (Aloha)
Welcome to My World (Aloha) ( not one of my favorite ! )Steamroller Blues (Aloha)
I Can't Stop Loving You (Aloha)
Elvis introduces the cast. (Aloha)
Johnny B. Goode (Aloha) extended version with solos by the tcb band
You Gave Me a Mountain (Aloha)
That's All Right (TTWII)
Hound Dog (TTWI I)
Don't Be Cruel (TTWI I)
Heartbreak Hotel (TTWII)
Love Me Tender (TTWI I)
All Shook Up (TTWII)
Blue Suede Shoes (TTWII)
In the Ghetto (TTWI I)
Funny How Time Slips Away (EOT)

Sweet, Sweet Spirit Performed by Ed Enoch & the Golden Covenant with intro by Elvis from "Elvis on Tour".
How Great Thou Art

If I Can Dream (68 Special)

INTERMISSION

Act 2

Sweet Inspiration
Performed by The Sweet Inspirations.

Trouble/Guitar Man (68 Special)
Polk Salad Annie (TTWII)
You've Lost That Loving Feeling (TTWII)
Just Pretend (TTWII)
Mystery Train/Tiger Man (TTWII)
Are You Lonesome Tonight (TTWI I)
Bridge Over Troubled Water (TTWII)
The Wonder of You (TTWI I)
Suspicious Minds (TTWII)
I'll Remember You (Aloha) ( not on my top ten ! )
What Now My Love (Aloha)
A Big Hunk o' Love (Aloha)
My Way (Aloha)
An American Trilogy (Aloha)
Can't Help Falling in Love (Aloha)
Closing Vamp nooooooooo too soon encore ! encore !

to go further in the review and to criticize a little bit
a small technical problem (only few seconds) when elvis was talking after one or two songs, they were not able to remove the original applause ( very strange effect ).
the screening was better than the next time specially on the trouble guitar man medley. elvis image was very sharp and clear ( from the forthcoming dvd ? )
in my opinion aloha and 68 tv special works better than the movie footage. on" funny how time slips away" the footage and the sound were not topnotch.

during the intermission they screened a little less conversation clip with great effect and the band runs into trouble/guitar man complete ( as in the 68 tv show )

unfortunately I was a little disapointed with james guitar playing. he slowed down his riffs ( who can blame him at his age ) and played quite differently ( may be too smooth ). this does not mean that he was not good but it was a strange feeling.

having reconsidered the overall music, here is what I think : like in 2001 there was no rythm guitar player . I think that a rythm guitar player have been helpfull to obtain a better result on many rock songs. as we know john wilkinson was not part of the tour and nobody actually replace him.

ronnie was specially great ( and still "hard working" !!!! ) and the drums were upfront in the mix. the tcb band is still handsome and estelle always very beautiful. the extended version of johnny be good features solos by ronnie glen jerry following james into a cool version
elvis used at list 10 jumpsuits ( how could he be dressed and changed so fast ? LOL )

the absolute highlight was "suspicious minds" a large part of the crowd stood up or moved to the front of the stage and was very excited ( very very cool ! ) a real mindblower performance !

two french songs were featured "what now my love" ( gilbert becaud ) and of course "my way" ( claude françois jacques revaux ) vive la france !!!!
the patriotic "american trilogy" was very welcome by the french crowd with another incredible ovation ( who said that we don't like america anymore ? ) god bless america !!!!

at the end the band recieve a tremendous ovation ( they deserve it ! ) I will post some pictures soon ( hope there will be at least one or two good shots ) :roll:


hello I am michel !


Brian Quinn
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#12272

Post by Brian Quinn »

Thanks for the review Michel - your English is far better than my French!!

I saw the show twice here in the UK on the present tour and was also knocked out by it. When I first saw the show in 1999 I also noticed that James was not playing 'full lead' but using the 'rhythm' setting on his telecaster. I met him after the show and asked him about this and he said that he had to be mindful of the other cast members - whatever that means.


Brian



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Sonny
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#12276

Post by Sonny »

Thanks for the review Michel. Have you read mine? Look up Elvis Rocks Rotterdam if you're interested.
It sure was one hell of an evening!

By the way, your English reminded me of Inspector Clouseau...
No, just kidding.

Regards,
Sonny




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jailhouserocker
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#12280

Post by jailhouserocker »

good one sonny !
elvis was also a fan of blake edwards famous inspector :lol:

I apreciate your review too :


hello I am michel !

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Sonny
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#12285

Post by Sonny »

Thanks...

Bye
Sonny



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KHoots
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#12398

Post by KHoots »

Nice review. Always a pleasure to keep up with this fine show. Thanks for posting.


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