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THE EUROPEAN TOUR 1998
REVIEW
Review by Manish - Manchester, England 9 July 1998
I really didnt know quite what to expect from this show, Whitney's first in England for nearly five years and her first in Manchester ever. I've seen Whitney perform a few times before in London, but all of those shows had an audience I was familiar with (in terms of the way they react to her) and also keeping in mind that this time there wasnt an album out to promote.
It's too obvious for me to say this show was perfect. People will just turn around and say "yea well, you would say that, wouldn't you", but this show really was an outstanding performance from Whitney.
Being in the front row of the Nynex Arena, I thought it may be hard to capture the vibe of the show - it's so much easier to go with the flow of the audience than to be the ones to start the standing ovations and rapturous applause - but this all came naturally and Manchester loved Whitney. My friend was surprised with how much the crowds got into the show and the fact that they were standing in the balconies as well (something that doesnt happen much at that venue).
The set of songs for the night remained the same as previous shows in this tour, starting with "I'm Every Woman". To have Whitney Houston stand just feet from you is quite an experience. She quite obviously feeds off the energy of the audience and performs to her audience as opposed to performing a set just for herself with minimal interaction with the crowds (something that is more and more common place in concerts by nany of Whitney's peers). Bobbi danced with her mother perfectly (alot of practise had obviously occured as they both seemed to know exectly the same moves and the same time. DId she really need to be on stage without ear-plugs though?
Bobbi was constantly at the side of the stage watching her mother perform and at no point felt intimidated by the audience of 15,000.
Other special moments in the show included excellent performances of "So Emotional", "All The Man That I Need" and "Queen Of The Night". A noted change (which has not received a mention at all yet from anyone) is the performance of "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" which is no-longer underlined with that familiar keyboard intro, but takes more after the subtle (almost tribal), but urgent remix which was featured on the back of the single for "Why Does It Hurt So Bad" in 1996, remixed by Junior Vasquez.
The voice never faltered, remaining strong and the notes projecting perfectly. (Discussions with other fans after the show who had also attended the Paris show confirmed that Whitney was in better vocal form this night). Whitney continued to take a chance with her voice on notes and these chances all paid off. Perfectly.
Gary Houston did sound nervous in singing "Change The World" but was clearly more comfortable when singing "Endless Love" with Whitney later in the set. That song was performed to perfection and Whitney's vocal proved to be far superior to that of Diana Ross or Mariah Carey who have both previously performed this number.
The highlight of the night was an amazing rendition of "I Love The Lord" in which Whitney dropped to her knees. The Gospel set (which also included "I Go To The Rock" ) was met with approving applause and this only built up the expections of Manchester for the song that defines Whitney Houston's shows - "I Will Always Love You". Executed with perfect pitch and timing, Whitney really seemed to enjoy performing this number and did not seem to be struggling with the rather stretching version she recorded some 6 years ago.
A third outfit and an encore brought us the final song for the evening, "Step By Step". The song looks likely to be a mainstay in Whitney's future performances. Whitney was carried off the stage on the back of Bobby Brown at the end of the song.
The show was that good, that I didn't walk away thinking I missed hearing some of the classics Whitney chose not to perform as part of this tour.
Whitney managed to capture the interest of her audience and the fact that there was a mix of up-tempo songs and ballads didnt remove the energy that night.
On a personal note, it was great to meet some of the other Whitney fans that night including Sadiq, Paul, Graham, Nikesh and Yohan (all the way from Australia). The impromptu gathering after the show was great!
It was also a huge surprise to find my photo had been taken at the show and featured in the paper as part of the review of the show that night!
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© 1999 Manish
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