Shine All Night

Last weekend I had the privilege of attending Martina McBride and Trace Adkins’ Shine All Night tour stop in Buffalo, NY. This concert was one of the most enjoyable live events I have seen. (The fact that I only had to pay $5 for my ticket, because I went with my school, and the fact that we got to ride to the concert in a limo was only a tiny part of the reason!)  

Rising star Sarah Buxton opened the show, and was accompanied by Jedd Hughes. I had never heard or seen her perform before, so that was  kind of neat. I think she sang a handful of songs, including “Big Blue Sky,” “Outside My Window” and “Radio Love.”  

"Ride"

 

Trace Adkins sang next. He opened his set with “I Got My Game On” and “Swing.” Despite some of the things I had heard, Trace was actually really fun to see live. He sang a good mix of upbeat (“Songs About Me,” “One Hot Mama,” “Marry for Money,” “Ladies Love Country Boys,” “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk” “Hillbilly Rich/Hillbilly Bone,” etc) and slow songs (“Muddy Water,” “All I Ask for Anymore,” etc). During a break in the set, Trace saluted his band, whose bus had gotten into an accident the week before. The band received a standing ovation and much cheering from the audience. Of course, no Trace Adkins show would be complete without “You’re Gonna Miss This.” Observe Trace at his best in the video below:  

  

After a brief set change it was time forMartina McBride! Her band rose up from beneath the stage and began to play the intro to “Ride” as Martina appeared too. (Picture the beginning of “All That Jazz” in Chicago.) From the first few notes, I could tell she was going to be fantastic. After “Ride,” Martina sang “When God-fearin’ Women Get the Blues,” “Walk Away” and “Happy Girl.” During the latter, the woman behind me scolded me for recording the song, which is one of my favorites. It totally ruined the song for me, ironic isn’t it?  

I quickly recovered though when Martina sang: “Wild Angels,” “Where Would You Be,” “My Baby Loves Me,” “You’re Not Leaving Me” and my current favorite, “Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong.”  

Check out “Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong” here:  

  

Then the band stripped down the large scale appearance and sang “Help Me Make it Through the Night” and “Anyway” in front of a curtain. After an interlude in which the fiddler showed off her awesome skills, the opening chords of “Concrete Angel” began. For this one, Martina was seated on a giant glowing crescent moon that moved over the audience as she sang, and brought her to a small circular stage in the back of the arena. At this smaller stage she sang the beautiful “I’m Trying” and the spirited medley of “Love’s the Only House/Blessed.” While making her way back to the mainstage, Martina treated the crowd to the fan favorite, “This One’s For the Girls.”  

When Martina reached the mainstage, she really showcased her vocal abilities by powering through “A Broken Wing” and “Independence Day.” Then it was over and I was in shock that anyone could sing that well for that long. The rest of the crowd seemed to share my opinions and we defintely weren’t going to let Martina get away from us without an encore. After a lot of cheering and applauding Martina reappeared and treated us to renditons of “Livin’ on a Prayer” and “Hit Me With Your Best Shot.” Then it was really over, and I had to reluctantly put an end to a concert that I won’t soon forget.  

Definitely check out the Shine All Night Tour when it comes to your area! You won’t be disapointed.

Sunset Boulevard

Last night, I finally got around to watching 1950′s Sunset Boulevard, which, it turns out is a fantastic movie. Some post-viewing research informed me that it was nominated for eleven Academy Awards (although it only won three), including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. I think we all know though, that awards don’t neccessarily mean something is appealing to the masses, so let me further prove that this film is worth seeing.

Reason #1: Gloria Swanson- I haven’t seen this woman in anything else, but apparently she can act. She portrays former silent film actress Norma Desmond. After twenty years of not working, the 50 year old Norma has slipped into a state of madness. She lives in a fantasy world where she is still worshipped by her fans and will one day “return” (she hates the word “comeback”) to the screen. In the mean time, she lives in her mansion on Sunset Boulevard with her butler and a dead chimpanzee while working on her own screenplay. Gloria Swanson captured all this with dignity and ease. While watching it, I couldn’t help but wonder if she created the character with Vivien Leigh in mind, because there were hints of the Blanche Dubois-era Vivien Leigh in her. It amazes me that Gloria didn’t win the Best Actress Oscar for this role.

Reason #2: William Holden- With Gloria Swanson as such a strong lead actress, it would seem that the lead actor would have a difficult time not  being upstaged. However, William Holden manages to successfully match Gloria’s acting. Holden plays Joe Gillis, a struggling screenwriter who stumbles on the life that Norma is living. He somehow finds himself Norma’s companion and the editor of her screenplay. He is essentially trapped in the life that she lives and is conflicted over how to deal with Norma’s madness.

Reason #3: The concept- The film faces the issues that many Hollywood studios of the time were facing. Actors struggled to find work once they reached their late 30s and 40s and studios were having trouble finding scripts that were good enough to produce. The film uses the names of real filmmakers of the time, some of whom even make cameos. These little details of authenticity make the film feel more like a documentary than a work of fiction. It proves to be an interesting look at Hollywood, both back then and now.

As a fan of movies, both old and new, I thoroughly enjoyed Sunset Boulevard and the way it parodies the struggles of actors to hang onto their fame. I invite you to check it out and leave me a comment!

The 2010 Grammys

I know it’s kind of cliche to write an entry on the Grammys, but I’m going to do it anyway. I’m assuming most people have heard about the awards and the performances enough that I don’t need to do an actual recap. Instead, I’m just going to mention some of the highlights for me.

1. Lady Gaga/Elton John- this performance was so incredibly strange for me. I like Elton John and Lady Gaga but I just didn’t get this performance.
2. Taylor Swift/Stevie Nicks- I think it’s pretty well known by now that Taylor did not sing well. I was watching the awards with my two roommates, one of whom is a music major and she was pointing out every time Taylor sang off key. It was amusing and sad at the same time. I think Taylor is a good songwriter, but she does not sing well live. That brings me to my next point…
3. Beyonce beats Taylor Swift for the Female Vocalist Award- I was overjoyed when Beyonce won this one because she can actually sing. Like I said, I don’t think Taylor sings well live, and although I do have a lot of respect for all of her accomplishments, I don’t think it’s fair that she keeps winning Best Female Vocalist Awards at these award shows.
4. Lady Antebellum singing “Need You Now”- I love Lady Antebellum, I love this song and I think they did a great job, but I wish they had sung “I Run to You.” It would have been a really special moment, especially since they had just won Best Country Duo or Group for the song.
5. The Michael Jackson tribute- I’m sure it would have been a lot more impressive if I had actually been able to watch it in 3-D. The vocals were all good though. I definitely never thought I’d see those singers on the same stage.
6. Jennifer Nettles singing with Bon Jovi- I loved seeing them sing “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” (and “Livin’ on a Prayer”) together. It brought back wonderful memories of the last time I saw Jennifer sing that song live (at the Sugarland concert I went to in October).

These were the moments of the awards that I had the most to say about. All around, I thought last year’s ceremony was better. I thought the performances were better last year and the ceremony was just more exciting.

What I’m really curious about, is how they decide which awards should be given out in the pre-ceremony and which ones should be given out on the live broadcast. If anyone knows, post a comment and let me know!