Re: TWW

[chrisw@fciad2.bsd.uchicago.edu (Chris Williams)]

>also, i heartily recommend the video/cd double pack of live at the 
>hammersmith. one you have the boxed set, you gotta start getting your 
>fix through these other, more obscure items, and 'hammersmith' is my 
>fave recent kate purchase since fiona smythe copied me the cathy demos 
>gratis last year and i then found em on cd for $25 in NYC . . . you may 
>already know how much cuts like 'james and the cold gun' gained in their 
>live version from the 'live on stage' ep or the boxed set, but the 9 
>live cuts found on the 'hammersmith' and not elsewhere are fantastic! 
>'hammer horror' live is fantastic, IMHO, as is 'oh england my 
>lionheart,' among others.
>
>personally, the stage show is a bit dated to my jaded, madonna-shaped 
>tastes, but i know IED and others would disagree. either way, the cd is 
>fabulous and you can't get it except with the video . . . . .

   It should be pointed out that Madonna's stage show would not be 
possible without Kate's tour. You really need to read the reviews
of the tour to see the real impact that it had. It was an astonishing
revolution in the way shows were presented. Since then, practically 
every female vocalist appears with a pair of dancers and props. *Now*
it's old hat, but it was a brave move.

   Just one example: Kate's headset. She *invented* it. Nobody was 
producing headsets, as nobody was trying to sing while being flipped
around in the air. She had her sound engineer make it out of a coat
hanger and a tiny Sony microphone.

   Of *course* it looks "a bit dated." It was 15 years ago! Anything 
that gets copied by everyone else for years eventually looks dated.
If she tours again, she would try to do something as advanced. This
is a possible reason why she hasn't done so. 


                          Chris Williams of
                             Chris'n'Vickie of Chicago
                               chrisw@fciad2.bsd.uchicago.edu (his)
                                 vickie@njin.rutgers.edu      (hers)