Sunday, September 16, 2012

Review & Photos: Stevie Nicks Live in Vancouver

Stevie Nicks Live in Vancouver, Canada 
September 15, 2012 - Voices in The Park
 Above photos By Jonathan Evans and LaraColleen


Above photos by Ambrosia and lennyfry
Stevie Nicks performs during Sarah McLachlan's School of Music's Voices In The Park concert at Stanley Park in Vancouver, B.C., Saturday, Sept 15, 2012. Photograph by: Arlen Redekop, PNG




REVIEW

VOICES IN THE PARK
Feat. Sarah McLachlan, Stevie Nicks, Bryan Adams, Jann Arden, Bill Clinton, The Boom Booms and more

When: Saturday

Where: Brockton Point (Stanley Park)

VANCOUVER -- Sarah McLachlan's Voices in the Park concert held Saturday at Brockton Point in Stanley Park was a resounding success.

An estimated 11,000 music fans came through the gates for a full afternoon and evening of music and inspiration featuring performances by McLachlan, Stevie Nicks, Bryan Adams, Hedley, Jann Arden, and a special speech by former U.S. President Bill Clinton, who spoke about the importance of music in his life.

Stevie Nicks opted for a full-on rock display focused on the classics:

a cover of Led Zeppelin's Rock and Roll (fitting), Rhiannon, Gold Dust Woman and so on.

Garbed in the same shiny black-and-gold polka dot cape she said she bought for the Stand Back video in 1983, Nicks did the best she could to fight the evening chill -- "I'm from California," she said.

Her voice was strained, her range much more limited than in her glory days. Nicks wields a bewitching kind of aura but the magic in Edge of Seventeen was all but gone.

Full Review at the Vancouver Sun
Soldiers Angel

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oops! Set list typo! (I'm sure Stevie knew what to sing anyway and more than likely sang it beautifully!). The photo with former president Clinton is touching. I wonder if she calls him Bill?

Anonymous said...

Wow, that's quite a firm grip on Bill's arm there!

Anonymous said...

*LOL* So I guess we should now call her other songs: Angle and Desert Angle to go with Soldiers Angle?

Anonymous said...

Stevie is a very touchy-feely person...as seen in the Bill Clinton Photo. I wonder how most people she comes into contact with feel about that.

Anonymous said...

Stevie is God...but her voices sounds shot in these two videos. She's been touring way too much and needs a break.

Anonymous said...

Sounds about the same. Besides you can't ever get a true fix on how anyone sounded live from an iPhone video cam. Sound is always low fidelity compared to video.

Anonymous said...

It's great that Stevie supported science (in DC last week) and now this music education benefit for Sarah McLachlan and soon another benefit in NYC..Stevie is a class act..and it was way to cold out there/up there in Canada for her vocal chords. Can't wait to see her film at Mill Valley next month.

Anonymous said...

She was awesome! Video sound does not do her justice. Thanks for an awesome night Stevie!

Anonymous said...

Was at concert and yes at times voice was raspy like she was fighting something. She had sang at Sarah's house outdoors the night before so maybe got chilled,(did mention it was damn cold here) However, she definitely was into her set very engaging and rocked it out.
We came back by shuttle bus and in the lineups conversations were centered around Stevie ...how she was the the highlight of the concert, people couldn't wait for the Mac Tour and hoping she would do a solo concert here. There is a real strong Stevie Fan Base in Vancouver!

Anonymous said...

Personally I think the "critic" in Vancouver had it out for Stevie. He went beyond critiquing and made it a personal attack.

I love the way her voice sounds on the Soldier's Angel video and I love that she gives it more of a rock edge when she sings it live.

The only ting I somewhat agree with in the review is that Stevie hasn't sung a decent version of Edge in years. It feels like she's on automatic and doesn't push herself to hit any of the high notes at all anymore, instead opting to speak her way through it in a monotone voice. Her last REALLY good live recording of the song was VH1's Storytellers where she rocked it out and went for the higher register throughout, particularly the "Suddenly there was no one left standing in the gall" stanza. Freakin' epic stuff.

Unknown said...

I too, thought the review a bit shrill. Look, mama's getting older, maybe not as "bolder" as we all like to think or want but... at the end of the day, we love her. I also agree that b-day concert should be on tape, was unreal! I watched and thought, "That's the girl I know and love."

Anonymous said...

Her voice sounds like shit on these vids. She is much, MUCH better than these videos display. Her voice on IYD is even better than it was on TISL!!!

Anonymous said...

Anyone else think Stevie and Bill Clinton are getting it on:)!!!!

Anonymous said...

Stevie and Bill, lol. Monica Lewinsky is shopping around a tell all book now. No word on the content, but the jacket will come Scotch-guarded ;)~

Anonymous said...

If Stevie's management company is worth there commission they are monitoring this blog - so Sheryl Louis here it is. Stevie played most of these songs in Vancouver already with Rod Stewart - so mix it up - drop the Fleetwood Mac stuff which has been played to death. At this point in her career play the non hits from previous solo albums plus the news hits from IYD if your limited to six songs. Is Soldier's Angel relative for a Canadian audience.....not really.

Anonymous said...

"Nicks's vocal range has shrunk to a fraction of what it once was, her one new song was embarrassingly unfocused, and her stagecraft was less witchy than clumsy. Still, she came so close to a rock ’n' roll train wreck that she was compulsively watchable" From Straight.com
I feel rather sickened about the treatment of critics, both professional and trollish, who are attacking Stevie Nicks for adding her international star factor to a local fest that raised money for an important program in this city.

What is with this idea that an elder in our music culture cannot age normally and naturally (which means losing some of her higher register)?Instead you denigrate her for not retaining her youthfulness and former band members.

I was one of the masses on the hill. 1/3 of the crowd left after the Nicks set. Whether or not you appreciate her vocal abilities at this stage in her life, I observed she was a huge draw for this fundraiser. Give her credit for the show she brought. We enjoyed her realness very much. I mean, would you rather she had lip-synched to hit the high notes notes, like Madonna, Brittany and all do?

I saw a great legend at a stage in her life -- the only chance I've ever had. I'm grateful to have had that opportunity for myself and my children. Being critical of her offering is just plain curmudgeonly, unimaginative and sad.

Anonymous said...

Think she had the right set for this concert. She followed Adams who had finished with "Summer of 69" so the crowd was in a rocking mood. There were many in my area ,in the reserved area, that were pleasantly surprised with "Rock N Roll" everyone knows that song.. so if some of the young crowd didn't know Stevie she got their attention with a song they recognize (it was a sing along where I was) and then she set the tone for the nicks classics, which in all honesty people wanted to hear on that night. (Arden and Adams also just sang their best known hits)
As for Soldiers Angel In the park setting it sounded so dirge like that it was eerie. Audience loved it. The Canadian flag was a nice touch and as a soldiers daughter I appreciated it. As previously mentioned a lot of people left after her set...she was the highlight of the night!
And yes I would like to see her in a concert doing some of her lesser hits but for this venue and this fundraising cause..It was a great set and she rocked!! Thanks Stevie!

Anonymous said...

Stevie Nicks rocks whatever escapes her lips, people open mouth and insert big foot before they think, you go and tour like she does and not really have much recoup time see how u are. She does great and I would listen to anything she sings, like the Beatles song. "Let it Be" leave her talent alone , I think that all the years she has sung that she earned her spot at the top of the music world. Let her Beee!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh please, who are we kidding. EVERY Stevie fan would FUCKING DIE to be in a crowd of around 1,000 and have her sing lesser-known songs like Fire Burning, Escape From Berlin, Rose Garden, The Highwayman, Nothing Ever Changes, Ooh My Love, Love Changes, etc. Will that ever happen? Probably not. I still cannot believe the fact that she has said numerous times that The Other Side of the Mirror was her favorite solo record and she never performs a single song from it.

Anonymous said...

These reviews are by canadians who hate on anything American! Canadians have big chips on their shoulders..we call them Queefers!

Anonymous said...

^ No, Canadians don't have big chips on their shoulders, nor to they hate on everything American...

Anonymous said...

Yeah, they pretty much do!

Anonymous said...

As stunning as Stevie is, she looks tired.

Anonymous said...

Looks like it must have been pretty cold there? She seems to be buttoned up pretty good. I'm sure the weather could affect one's voice. To me she looks and performs like someone 20 years younger. I give her credit for still hitting the stage at her age. In response to the comment above about "edge" performances, I think one of her best performances recently, (although a line or two ommitted due to time) was on America's got talent last year. By the end of the song she seemed really into it. Rock on Stevie. So looking forward to the Mac tour in 13'

Anonymous said...

Love Stevie, but more than ever, follow her because she is a legend who refuses to step aside and 'get outta the way' for younger artists.
She in a mentor, a survivor and a role model (since she got clean and sober).
howver, All that said to her credit, she has sang better days. I would hate for her to become as Sinatra and others did, a shadow of her former self...
Is it better to run the well dry? or to graciously retire before she can't deliver a show except to strut the stage and just be Stevie Nicks Living Legend?
it's a tough call. We love to see her...to appreciate and relish our pasts and relive those stellar moments in time when FM ruled the airwaves and a younger Syevie Nicks twirled like mad and enthralled us.

Anonymous said...

That's a tough call. She still fills venues but although on a smaller scale. It's nice to go out on top but as she has said what else is she going to do. It seems like she still loves it, but u would think she could be happy now traveling and spending her money!

Anonymous said...

Stevie still sounds fantastic. Sure, the range is smaller but so what? The voice still has a sweetness, roughness, tenderness and purity that's totally unique. Stevie doesn't need to sing mezzo-soprano to deliver incredible emotional effects. Listen to Joni Mitchell if you want to hear a singer who's ruined her voice. Stevie still sounds GREAT. Love her occasional falsetto - like when it showed up on SORCERER and gave the song an incredible lift. Her harmonies on FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH are amazing - i'll bet many of the current crop of girls wish they could do that. But they can't because Stevie has a totally unique timbre and tone that gives the chills.

Anonymous said...

Stevie needs to finally do that Country & Western record she's been promising us she's about to do next...for her whole career!!!!

StephaniePumphrey said...

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