#ChrisIsaak at #TheParamount 190728

Live tweeting the concert

reverse chronological order

Perhaps the revival aspect was facetious in view of the subsequent song, which was "Ring of Fire."

Just aside from the noise & flashing lights, this wasn't really my type of music. I liked #WickedGame and #RingOfFire and the Elvis cover, which I stupidly forgot to write down the title of -- and now I can't remember -- but it was one of the more famous ones.

****

The opening act was Chelsea Takami.  This is a very beautiful young woman who plays the guitar and sings.  She did a very workmanlike job.  She had good singing style, a lovely outfit, and accompanied herself well.

She didn't really grip me tho.

***

I think this was the Elvis song Chris sang

Probably my last @joshgroban concert

I've documented various problems with audio at Josh Groban concerts in this blog over the years.  I think I've finally had enough.

I went to see him in Uniondale, NY. The traffic was trying getting there, so dinner was rushed.

The parking at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum was steep: $30, on top of the $174 that I already paid for tix.  Thats like what you pay for parking in Manhattan. I didn't realize it would be so expensive before I got there, or I would have investigated alternatives.

Then we went in and found our seats. I had chosen seats on the floor, because they were near the secondary stage and I hoped we would get a better concert experience there.

Unfortunately, I soon noticed that they were flashing stage lights on us there from the row of lights near the ceiling over the stage. That was unpleasant. I really didn't want bright lights flashed in my eyes.  It's painful and i don't think it's good for my eyes.  There should have been some warning when I bought the tickets that there would be bright lights flashing.

Fortunately, there were quite a number of empty seats, so my friend and I went up to sit on the side.  That had a better view anyway.  Though our original seats were near the second stage, our view of the second stage would have been blocked by the audio people, who were seated high up -- even with and in front of the second stage.  We still got some lights shining in our eyes on the side -- but less often and smaller beams.

Basically, I hated Jennifer Nettles' performance. Like Idina Menzel at MSG last year, Nettles was way too loud -- but worse still she was playing a style of country music that I really don't like. Fortunately, she has a nice voice, that I really like, unlike Idina, but the music that accompanies the voice is just as important -- and that was not to my taste at all.

I tweeted Josh that I was unhappy.

One of those self-appointed Grobie police people tweeted back that I should give Jennifer Nettles some love or leave the arena.

I wasn't about to leave the arena after paying $174 plus $30 for parking plus driving for an hour and a half in heavy traffic -- not to mention that I drove my friend there as well, and she would have been disappointed to leave. I told the tweep #myob, but she kept on, so I blocked her.  The second person I've blocked in as many days.  I used to argue, patiently, with these people, but no more. Just block them, but not happily.

So I was in a pretty sour mood, when Josh started.

Unfortunately, he was too loud as well, just as he had been at MSG.  It's not just me with the sensitive ears who thought so.  Others who went to those concerts also told me that they thought it was too loud.

I ended up wearing ear plugs most of the time. I took them off when Josh was on the secondary stage and for the encore.

I did calm down some when he was performing because I do like his music, tho it was disappointing to have to use ear plugs to listen to it.

He was in good voice. I didn't notice any particular problem with his singing, which was a problem in some previous years, as I've documented in previous blogs.

He was wearing a bright orange suit.  That was odd for me.  He's always been very restrained in his dress: modest, dark colors, casual. He seems to have changed quite a bit in personality over the years.  I'm not sure what that's about -- not that I mind him wearing an orange suit.  He can wear whatever he likes, so far as I'm concerned -- but it's just a total departure from his past self.

It reminds me of an article that I read once that said that people tend to wear brighter colors as they age.  The author of that article speculated that it was an ancient instinct developed to distract predators from younger members of a tribe or family.  That author likened it to fish who swim in schools, where the older members instinctively swim on the outside of the school, so they can be picked off by predators, while preserving the younger members.

I did notice a YouTube video of Neil Diamond playing a concert when he was over 70, where he was wearing a sequined shirt, after having been fairly restrained in his dress as a younger man.  I noticed that both Idina Menzel and Jennifer Nettles, who are over 40, performed with lots of sequins....But Josh is only 37 -- hardly an old man.  I hate to think of him that way, but I have to recognize that he's been performing for 20 years -- and that desire to be bright and distracting on stage is overtaking him.  Scary. No sequins for Josh yet, but likely in a few years....

That reminds me as well how modest he used to be as a younger person, never letting anyone see his arms or legs -- yet in the past year or so he tweeted out a photo of himself in a swimsuit on an inflatable swim toy in a pool.  Surprising to someone who has been following him for a while -- not that it's bad.  His extreme self-consciousness in the past was a bit peculiar, but still it's a change.

Interestingly, also, during one of his monologs he again commented on the tendency of fans to fondle his butt during meet & greets.  His ongoing discomfort with being fondled has been a recurring theme during his concert monologues -- and is one of the reasons that he no longer goes glad handing in the audience -- or at least not as much as he used to.  Yet, this time he said he was ok with it.  Curious.

Of course, his music has changed somewhat also.  His collaboration with David Foster was characterized by intellectually interesting and complex arrangements, often with modern classical influences.

Now he's going for a more stereotypical sound.  He seems to have always had some kind of jealousy towards mainstream pop, rock, and country performers.  His engaging people like Idina Menzel (rock) and Jennifer Nettles (country) and that underwhelming Hutchinson guy during the Stages tour typifies that strange feeling that somehow he wants to fit in with the mainstream and get those Grammys (sp?).  I'm not buying it. I liked the more complex music. I'm not impressed with the music that gets Grammys.  The only opening act that I've seen with Josh that I liked was @elew

Josh did play the piano some, but not the drums.

I was pleased to see Ruslan Sirota, whose playing I very much admire.  Unfortunately, I couldn't really appreciate him with the ear plugs on.

I was very pleased to see Tariqh again.  He's been the most reliable of Josh's band, but, recently, there was a TV appearance with a totally substandard substitute guitarist. That served to bring to my attention how much Tariqh, who is or has been the chair of the guitar department of the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music, contributes to Josh's sound.

The one really bright spot for me in this concert was the violin solo for You Raise Me Up (YRMU).  Josh used a local violinist who was an ordinary looking middle aged women -- not someone young and sexy.  In the past, I've been critical for Josh not using older women in his choirs and orchestras.  The women always had to be young, beautiful, and shapely.  She played the solo perfectly nicely, despite not being the cover girl type.

Afterwards, I bought a magnet at the merchandise table.  I figured it would be a nice parting memento of my last Josh concert -- and the end of my 9 years of being a Grobanite.  I proceeded to lose it almost immediately, as I think it fell out of my pocket in the bathroom -- kind of a final slap in the face after an unsatisfactory concert experience -- tho perhaps it was a sign from the universe that I wasn't going to get that bit of closure.

Anyway, I think this was the set list (written hastily during the concert, without much attention to capitalization.  I might have missed something:)

Bigger than us
you are loved
won't look back
granted
pure imagination
oceano
musical interlude


Small stage
Wandering kind
She's always a woman to me


Duet
Where we belong fragment (improv with Ruslan and Jennifer -- humor)
You were always on my mind (cover)


alone again
bring him home


Back to main stage
Instrumental interlude
musica Del corazón
River
alla luce
99 years with Jennifer nettles
yrmu


Encore
Twya
Bridge over troubled waters

I'm puzzled that he's not performing "Symphony" on this tour. That was the first single released on this record, and it was one of my favorites -- also the most similar to his prior work.  I guess, now that he's in a relationship he's happy with, those frustrated songs about rocky relationships aren't on the menu.

Another issue was that I tried to post on FOJG to set up a meet up before the concert. We used to do that all the time.  The thread seemed to have been deleted. What? We're not allowed to meet for dinner now?

****

BTW, I elected not to get tix to Josh's Tanglewood concert this summer, because the audio issues were so horrible there last time https://straightarrow372.blogspot.com/2014/08/tanglewood-83014.html

feeling like saying it aloud -- and yet not quite

He's so much younger.  He still has the body of an adolescent.   He doesn't have the full bone & muscle structure of a man.  He looks like a boy.

If you prefer boys, what happens when he gets to be a full adult? Do you lose interest?

You are a man.

Sometimes I fear you're anorexic tho.  You certainly featured  some of those in your video. Believing that as an adult you should have the body of a boy is dysmorphia.

Does @adamlambert look like Jesus?

I've seen several people posting online that since Adam Lambert has grown a beard and longer hair he "looks like Jesus."  That's a peculiar assertion.

Jesus lived 2,000 years ago in the Middle East.  He almost certainly looked like what modern day Arabs look like:  black, culy hair, dark eyes, olive skin, short stature.  Yes, he likely had long hair and a beard -- but that doesn't mean that everyone who has long hair and a beard looks like Jesus.

Adam is 6'1", has blue eyes & straight hair.  Tho he often dies his hair black, it's really a lighter color.  Moreover, even though he is Jewish, his features are generally northern European. He most certainly does *not* look like Jesus.

There's a famous painting often referred to as the "beauty parlor Jesus"  There is this desire to see Jesus as being pretty.

This painting features a Jesus with slightly wavy light brown or ash blond hair -- plainly northern European. A lot of people do not notice this inconsistency.  Actually, if you look at Renaissance Italian paintings of Jesus, they also depict him with much lighter hair than he would really have had.

Some researchers are claiming that there are geometrical differences between the faces of gay and straight men  https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-41188560

Personally, I feel that Adam has what I would call an "angel face," and yes I think a lot of gay men have that.  I wonder if that type of face is more likely to register as divine for some people, maybe most people.  I wonder why that would be.

I started wondering whether the model for the beauty parlor Jesus might have been gay, but apparently the painter said he painted from a vision, not from a model -- so maybe not -- but maybe so, as one doesn't know what the subconscious is inspired by.

Does one buy -- or listen to -- MJ's work now?

Some people think they should boycott MJ's work, because of the allegations aired on the HBO special.

Of course, there are a substantial number of fans who think that the allegations are fabricated

link to fan blog purporting to refute the allegations

I cannot say for sure whether they were fabricated or not.  I wasn't there.

Also, being from a family where it was conclusively demonstrated to me that my ex's recollections of child abuse were false memories, I wonder whether these men had false memories implanted by a therapist.  Many people think that there is no such thing as false memories, or that false memory allegations are made by parents to hide their wrongdoing. I am persuaded that they do exist.

But let us suppose for a moment that the allegations are true.

This issue arose for me a couple of times before with novels.

The first time it arose is when I bought the book "Sees Behind Trees" by Michael Dorris.  At the time I bought this book, the author had already committed suicide due to allegations of sexual abuse of children.  I knew of him, because he had been affiliated with my college. Yet, I was curious about the book.

I bought it and I loved it.

It never really occurred to me not to buy the book because the author had done something bad.  The man is dead.  He's not going to get any money out of it.

Dorris, like MJ, did a lot of charitable work for kids.  Dorris's work was particularly with respect to fetal alcohol syndrome. He was inspired to this work after he adopted a Native American kid who had this syndrome.  Yet, his interest in charity work for children led to his unfortunately being in a position to abuse children.  He was never found guilty of this, because he committed suicide before there could be any consideration in court.  Many people assumed that his suicide was an admission of guilt, though he apparently maintained his innocence at the end.

Here's a wikipedia article about him

wikipedia article about michael dorris

The issue arose a second time with respect to Marion Zimmer Bradley, who wrote a much more famous series of novels called "Darkover."  I read a lot of these novels and loved them.  They were actually all purchased by my ex -- and he took them with him when he moved out -- got custody, as it were.  So really these books are in my past. I think I read all or most of them.  I'm not seeking to buy more.  Yet, if you ask me what my favorite superpower would be, it would be that of Hawkmistress -- to commune with the minds of birds.  That was a character out of one of Bradleys' novels. That's a question that is often asked as interesting trivia when people are interviewed.

Recently, many years after reading these novels, I learned that Bradley had been accused of abusing her children. The person who told me about this said that she could never read or purchase Bradley's novels, because of this allegation.

This made absolutely no sense to me.  Bradley is now deceased.  Any money that would come from the purchase of those novels would go to the children who were abused, not to her.  Boycotting the work would hurt the kids who were abused.  The same would be true of Dorris.

The two situations are not analogous.

In Bradley's and Dorris's cases, the amount going to their children would be relatively modest.  In Jackson's case, the amount of money going to his family is huge -- and perhaps they don't need more.  Moreover, it is widely assumed that Katherine Jackson's share of the money will go to Jackson's siblings -- and many fans see them as moochers.  Though now they really do seem to be working for a living, which is a pleasant change.

In Jackson's case, there has been no allegation that he abused his own children.  Of course, the Jacksons are very private people and any such allegation would likely not be made public -- or at least not yet.  On the other hand, his children are and have been subjected to ongoing abuse from the public because of the celebrity and notoriety of their father.  They need security to protect themselves both from fans and from haters.  They need therapy to deal with the constant wild allegations -- many of them utter fabrications that are constantly hurled around about their father -- not to mention his untimely death. That abuse of the family by the public is, in my opinion, a reason to feel concern for them, despite their apparent wealth -- and despite their apparent ability to book work in the entertainment industry due to their fame.

I conclude that, even if the allegations were to be proven true, I would not stop listening to Michael Jackson.  I don't think I'll necessarily buy any more of his records.  I've got several.  The newer ones I haven't liked as much.  Moreover, I went once to the Cirque du Soleil tour about him.  It was interesting and well done, but none of those performers had Jackson's charisma.  Ultimately, it was good, but not so exciting that I would go again.

I may still go to see his brothers perform. I know they're not as exciting without him, but I still would like to support them.  I was really moved by a YouTube video of Evgeni Plushenko dancing with the Jacksons. Here are the brothers, performing without their lost brother,  along with the magnificent figure skating and dancing of a famous fan to accent their work.

Plushenko and the Jacksons

I found this moving because of the enduring power of MJ's art to inspire people throughout the world, which is of course why I started the #QuixoticQuest.

I can only hope that the controversy would stimulate more people to learn about MJ -- and his quest to Heal the World.

Drifting from @joshgroban to @adamlambert

So, am I really doing this? Am I really becoming a Glambert and stopping being a Grobanite? 

I’m telling myself I don’t actually like “Feel Something”, but then I’m listening to it over and over and I do like the new video.  I find Adam hypnotic. 

Perhaps I did at first with Josh.  More recently I’ve been horribly frustrated with audio issues at his concerts — and vocal issues: as Josh struggled with what I think is a gradually deepening voice, which he doesn’t quite recognize is changing.  He tries to belt those high notes that he really can only sing well in head tone now, though he could sing them without head tone twenty years ago.  He’s doing much better with a new voice coach, but sometimes I still hear it.

I drifted to Josh after being obsessed with Michael Jackson for about six months. I told myself I wanted to hear someone with a lower voice — and also someone who is alive.  But maybe a higher voice is starting to call me again.  Certainly there are no issues with Adam sounding strained on his high notes as Josh sometimes does.

When Adam first competed on American Idol, I didn’t listen. I guess I heard a little bit and decided that it was the type of rock that I don’t like — or at least didn’t like back then.

I’m thinking that perhaps my taste in music is changing.  After years of just turning popular music off, because I hated rough singing and crudely strummed guitars that sounded non-linear, I’ve maybe started to have a greater appreciation for emotion in singing.  Also, maybe loud strumming at the hands of a master like Brian May is different from what normally appears in popular music.  In any case, Adam is not, for the most part, a rough singer.

Well, I’ve bought tix for arena concerts this summer for both Josh and Queen.  We’ll see what happens.

I’ve always been irresistibly drawn to gay and depressed men.  Josh is depressed, but Adam is both.  I’m not applauding the fact that I have this type of attraction. It’s a type of “Q” I think, but it’s something I don’t really accept about myself.

Creative types have to be depressed, because depression and creativity are closely linked neurological processes.  Maybe the reader will enjoy the articles produced by this google search link between creativity and mental illness  Also, I suspect that a person cannot muster the drama necessary to be an international celebrity performer unless they have some pretty serious mental health issues.  The drama has to come from somewhere.

So my attraction to depression is part of why I get celebrity obsessions.  Josh through his stories about fulfillment through the arts --  helped me discover, as well, that part of the obsession is my own desire to perform. It's been a while since I put up a youtube video under this pseudonym.  I should.

It’s interesting that both of these guys have mixed Jewish and Protestant ancestries as I do. That also makes me feel connected. Curiously, Adam’s life story is strangely similar to Josh’s, in terms of having pursued performance related education throughout his childhood.

And, yes, as I did with Josh, I’m composing a fan fiction novel to try to get obsessive, disturbing fantasies about Adam out of my head. If I finish this novel, it will be my fourth of this genre, under a different pseudonym.  I wonder if this time I’ll actually put Adam’s real name in it, as opposed to using a fake name to hide the identity of who I was fantasizing about.  Fan fiction seems to be more accepted now.  Maybe it’s ok.

And then there’s this odd thing.  At first, part of what drew me in to Josh at the beginning was this growing realization that he was reading my tweets — and those of other fans — surreptitiously. I don’t think that’s true any more. He’s trying to get away from twitter.  It makes him seem less immediate, I guess.  Before, I felt that I was almost getting to know him.

Recently, I tweeted to Adam a question about why his earrings don’t change much with his different outfits.  I tweeted this question after looking at many, many photos and videos, where the earrings were mostly the same.  Then, immediately, I see photos and videos where the earrings are totally different.  Coincidence? Maybe. Then, again, maybe not.  

I guess that sense of contact is intriguing — different from my view of celebrities as impossibly distant.  

****

I even made a graphic for Adam, the way I used to do for Josh.  

@joshgroban Fandango Event 2/12/19 -- Fire and Ice

It started out with my friend, Night Owl, telling me she couldn't come with me, because she had the flu.

Then there was the wintry mix weather -- not really safe.  I sort of wondered whether it was worth going to see a movie of a concert that I attended, when it might mean risking my life.

I borrowed my son's Subaru, because it has all wheel drive.  I was forced to confess to him that I mistakenly threw out the key that he made for me for the car, so I had to take his key.

I had to shovel the driveway when sleet was still falling, because I wanted to get to the theater.

As I wanted in, I mentioned to one of the theater personnel there that I smelled smoke.  She replied "I Know."  I walked on in.  I figured it was nothing serious.

I got there about five minutes late, so I missed the first song.

This was at the City Center in White Plains, NY.  There were actually only about 10 people at this venue -- probably because of the bad weather.

I got to see "You Are Loved."  It was magical.  The sound was perfect.  I could see and hear Tarikh and Andre singing.  Josh's voice sounded perfect.  The packed arena looked like fairyland.  There was no chance that I would be seen, way up in the nose bleed seats, but at least I got to see the arena from the stage.

If you've been following this blog, you know that I've made a point of documenting sound problems -- usually too loud, or frequency distortion -- in Josh's concerts.  This was just the opposite.  Perfect sound, with the wonderful speakers of the theater.

Then the screen went black and they told us we had to go out, because there was a fire.

As we walked out, I could smell that the smoke was worse.

They had us wait in the Atrium of the Mall.  After a while, they said they were not re-opening the theater.  The fire was not in a trash can, as one of my fellow concert goers had optimistically hoped, but rather in the wall of the theater -- wiring perhaps.  For a while, the Shoprite below the theater was closed as well, but they reopened that later. I got some passes for a later event, tho, obviously it wasn't going to be this event.

So frustrated.