Glutter Presents: Big Name Pop Artists and No Name Jazz.

The Concert Series

Glutter Plugs and Doodles

A lot of people asked last week, “Who else have you seen?” And I couldn’t really remember, so I wrote it down. It turned out to be nine pages long. So I have split them up into seven categories, and shall post one a day for a week.

There People Need No Introductions

–Madonna:

Madonna is Madonna. Unlike anyone else. I could never do this show justice. It was more a pop opera than a concert. Millions of screens, incredibly sexy dancers, very Asian Influenced. Anime, Kung Fu (She had a wire at one point that pulled her above of the audience where she kicked her way down.) It was pure pop bombardment. She teased the audience by playing “Don’t Cry for me Argentina,” with tango dancers on stage, but never singing it. She sang, “What is feels like to be a Girl.” In Spanish. There was so much going on every second that for the hour and a half it was sensory overload. There is no way to describe it, because to point out one thing is to let everything else slide.

–Leslie Cheung:

Glad I got the Chance. No one will EVER wear feathers, glitter and skirts with as much flair and glamour ever again in this world and especially not when they are 40.

–U2:

Achtung Baby Tour – Until I saw them, I had no idea why Bono was such a big deal. After I saw him, he’s was more than a big deal, he made me fall in love even if I was way in the back, and I mean way in the back. You have no idea how far in the back. It was in the Anaheim Stadium: capacity 65 000. In the concert they dropped down masses of fake dollar bills with their faces on it instead of the presidents. At one point the video projection kept flashing “Fortune Cookies are NOT Chinese.” Ha Ha. If you thought the album sounded good, I hope you get a chance to hear “One,” “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses,” and “Better than the Real Thing,” Live once in your life.

–Buena Vista Social Club:

Only time I ever saw a truly truly deserved and heart felt Standing Ovation which was for Mr. Ruben Gonzales. He was so frail he could hardly walk and was helped to the stage at the end. I will never forget the look in the eyes of the others in the band. Ibrahim Ferrer was as cheeky and joyous as he seemed in Wim Wender’s documentary and Omara Portunodo sang with tears at one of her torch songs. So much loved passed between them and the audience. All we can do is thank Ry Cooder for rediscovering these world class musicians and I was honored to have experienced their grace, song, and skill.

–Morrissey:

We only went so we could hear him sing Glamorous Glue, “We look to LA. For the Language We Use. London is Dead, London is Dead.” I wondered if this song was big anywhere else, but man did it own the rotation of airplay in LA. The pleasant surprise was to hear him play the old Smith songs at the end. Those are the ones everyone knows the words to.

–Dee-Light:

The fabulous Miss Kerr was indeed fabulous, but I challenge anyone to name another song outside of “Groove is in their Heart, ah ah ah ah.” This was all I had to say about the show.

–Lemon Heads:

Evan Dando took his pants off and stood there in his boxers which were blue and white stripped. He was pretty gone. He didn’t go off stage to throw up from his withdrawal, which was what he was doing for part of the tour, legend goes. A much older woman once said, after she heard the story. “Your generation is so tame. In my day, he would have had nothing on underneath.”

–Beyond:

Ten years after Gar Khui’s death. The crowd was so adoring it was infectious. The set designed in a way for those with the cheap seats to get closer to the band, with a second stage rising to the cheapest sections. It was terribly touching when they put up a life size projection in the middle of the main stage that had Gar Khui playing the guitar along with them. The band together as it was. (Although Gar Keung told me it was actually someone posing as him, otherwise they would not be able to sync. I was like, “Don’t tell me that!! I didn’t have to know!”) And babes, NEVER wear a pink get up with a sailor and a mustache again. My first thought was, “Is Gar Keung doing a Leslie? Is he trying to tell us something?” He wasn’t. Just a styling error.

–Spanish Harlem Orchestra

Plus many famous Jazz musicians in New York in Feb, when we trolled Harlem Jazz clubs (Lennox Lounge, American Legion Post #398, Showmans) and others in the city (Notable: Smalls). If it wasn’t for Joel, I would not have known I was listening to some of the greatest Jazz musicians alive today. Didn’t even matter, if they were famous or not, I never heard proper live jazz before and it blew me away every second. A new passion born.

– Gypsy Kings:

So many guitars at once. Most of all I loved the expression of the men, and what mac daddies they were, at 50, filly shirts, tight pants and shiny material. And boy did they enjoy all these beautifully dressed women getting up on stage to dance at the encore. I saw a guy in a blue shirt try to get up and the security was onto him in seconds, “I don’t think so mate! Off!” haha.

–Ultra Lounge:

Kulu’s Liquid on Sundays. They were incredible acid-jazz for the lack of a better name. Best original music in Hong Kong. Wish they would really get together and record something, although I understand that improvisation is part of the experiment. Luckily I have a lot of DV.

–Anita Mui:

I saw her four times in the last 18 years. The first time when I was 11, and she bestowed me a kiss when I went to shake her hand, the last time was a week ago. She is dying and it was hard to watch her chemo-embattled body, in the feeding frenzy of fame. I prefer to remember her as she was in her last concert. Keeping up with dancers half her age, able to sit backwards on a chair, lie down, kick her legs up and sit back up, all the while holding a single NOTE. She embodies what DIVA means, and I will write more about her soon.

Glutter Presents: The Concert Series,
Week November 12 to 19th 2003.
Time: 3am (GMT Plus 8)

Thursday: Bands, Rock, Metal, Grunge, Hip Hop
Friday: Alternative -Lollapalooza 94
Saturday: Big Name Pop Artists and No Name Jazz
Sunday: Deeejaaays and Electronic
Monday: Massive Electronic Acts -Organic 96
Tuesday: Drum ‘n’ Bass
Wednesday: The Kiddie Cheese Days.