Late last year, I bought tickets on the afternoon of the first day of
ticket sales, and already failed to get the section I preferred.
Anyhow, I got good enough seats for my purposes. If you see the poster,
the tickets prices were not too high, so this concert set for May 10,
2015 quickly sold out.
On December 7, 2014 though, there was a surprising announcement of a
postponement of this much-awaited concert. Sam Smith posted a message
online to explain that he had "serious issues" with his vocal cords that
needed to be addressed by an American specialist. He added that this is
"horrible" for him and he is truly very sorry. Tickets for the original
date will be honored for the new date yet to be announced. By July 15,
2015, the new date was confirmed to be November 21, 2015.
*****
By about 9 p.m., the house lights dimmed and the show was about to
begin. There were flashes of light on the stage whenever Sam Smith's
distinct tenor voice started to sing. The first three songs he sang were
not too familiar to me but they were very catchy just the same: "Life
Support," "Together" and "Leave Your Lover."
In his spiel, he mentioned he about his cancellation, which is why
this night is a "specially special night" and he intends to sing harder
than he does. Since Smith only has one album so far, it was not
surprising that some fans knew ALL his songs by heart, singing along
with every lyric. Then as the light turned red with designs on the
floor, we hear the strains of "I'm Not the Only One," a song that went
to No. 3 in the UK and No. 5 in the US. The whole audience was singing
along with him the whole time during this well-loved song.
Smith candidly told us a lot of personal stories behind the songs in
his debut album "In the Lonely Hour," an album that signified himself
being as honest as he could in the language of music. He called this
album "a diary of mine." The next song is the first "really honest
honest song" he wrote, "I've Told You Now." The next song I have not
heard before, but it was really rousing and uplifting, "Nirvana." His
signature vocals, head tones, and runs were all so especially on point
in these poignant songs.
The next two songs were familiar upbeat songs that Smith had. He does
not really dance too much in these songs, just like Rick Astley did
back then in his upbeat songs. Everybody was singing along to catchy
chorus of "Like I Can" and dancing along to the Sam's dance instructions
in the super-groovy "Restart." His next number was a medley of R&B
covers including "Tears Dry on Their Own" by Amy Winehouse, "Ain't No
Mountain High Enough" by Diana Ross and "Le Freak" by Chic, which
featured the strong vocals of his three back-up singers. The lighting
effects of the stage were spectacular during this medley.
He then slowed down the pace again, singing two songs that he felt
are the heart and soul of his debut album. He talked about falling in
love with someone who did not love him back, now that he has moved on
from this heartbreak, the resulting songs are now not his songs anymore,
but his audience's songs already. The first of these songs is the
pensive "Not in That Way," which he mixed with Elvis Presley's "Can't
Help Falling in Love" to the audience's delight. The second is the very
popular song "Lay Me Down," his first hit as a solo artist, hitting No.
15 in the UK and No. 8 in the US.
Smith upped the tempo again with his infectious next song "La La La,"
a No. 1 song in the UK, No. 19 in the US, credited as Naughty Boy
featuring Sam Smith. He ended his regular set with the only song in his
album that was not about love, but about another artist he did not like
who sang not for passion but for money. The song is "Money on My Mind,"
another No. 1 song in the UK. He mixed in a familiar line from Cece
Peniston's anthem "Finally" in the final chorus of that song.
The audience clamored for more as the house lights were dimmed. After
a while, the keyboardist started to play a slow melody. Sam Smith came
out and said that he will sing his 2012 song with Disclosure called
"Latch," his first US Top 10 hit that peaked at No. 8. He asked everyone
to shine their phone lights as he sang a slowed-down version of this
hit song.
The next song was a letter his "first boyfriend" which drew cheers
from his fans, "Make It to Me." He saved his biggest hit for last "Stay with Me" (No. 1 UK, No. 2 US). He called the night "amazing" an opinion
which I am sure his audience all shared. That last song gained a new
meaning as the fans all wanted him to stay on with them.
The concert was finished in little over an hour only. I was a bit
disappointed that he did not sing "Writing's on the Wall" from the
latest James Bond film "Spectre." Nevertheless, with Sam Smith's candor,
friendliness and his soaring vocals, this is surely one of the best,
most sincere concerts I have attended ever.
This review was originally published in the author's blog, "Fred Said."
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com