Post by davidhr on Apr 7, 2015 8:07:28 GMT -5
Lara’s ‘first ever’ North American tour came to a close this past week, with her show in Richmond Canada (near Vancouver) last Thursday. The setlist was a little longer than usual – Lara herself did 16 songs (plus the percussion number), perhaps because it was the last show, with both the Russian Song and Adagio presented. Once again, ‘La Difference’ replaced ‘Calling You’. Here are some of the more complete videos:
Vancouver (4-2-15):
Adagio: www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI4G9gudIDo
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dukVIm3edA
vk.com/lf_cp?z=video109874072_171038066%2F049e7acf77f2aa9969
Alfonsina y el mar: www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH_-6vsPOnA
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ugqQuvqFUs
Caruso: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LE8VYhueYo
I Will Love Again: www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxPfIQqs-rE
Je suis malade: www.youtube.com/watch?v=leg1gI7vRe0
Mademoiselle Hyde: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qUUtenokEc
Make Me Yours Tonight: www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4SfABrOrbk
Pas sans toi: www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI4G9gudIDo
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3obDL_DeLBU
Russian Song (Love Like A Dream): www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjqHjkdHkRo
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD5jA0r2LNI
You probably saw Ocelot’s review, as a comment to the last Update; for completeness sake, I’ve copied it here:
--------------------------------------------------------------
“I just got back from the Richmond Show. The theater wasn't quite full (there were a lot of empty seats along the outside of the theater), but the crowd was very enthusiastic. There was a strong Russian presence, along with a lot of French-Canadians. Lara had a cold from the air conditioning in Atlantic City and also mentioned that Vancouver was one of the places she had longed to go to perform a concert. Lara had trouble getting people to sing along with "I Will Love Again", but when she tried again with the Russian song it was a success. I went with my mother, and the person sitting beside her described herself as someone who enjoyed Lara's music but not a fan, but later was in tears and super-emotional (her husband was the fan). The show was amazing, and the versions of Caruso and La Difference were some of the best I've heard from her, though towards the end of the show you could tell that she had a cold and wasn't as powerful or clear as earlier in the show.”
---------------------------------------------------------------
and (translated) from Andrii Dydyna on the ‘Lara Fabian Connecting People’ site:
-----------------------------------------------------------
So, yesterday my dream came true and I finally got to see my favorite singer Lara Fabian perform in the River Rock Casino in Richmond, BC. Yesterday's show just proves that Lara is one of the greatest singers of our time. Sometimes, when watching her shows on Youtube her voice may seem a bit weaker than when she was in her 30s. In fact, even though she was sick for which she apologized for at the beginning of the concert, her live performance is way better than what we can see on Youtube and her Adagio was as good as in 1998 or 2000 when she was being produced in the US. Bravo Lara! Looking forward to seeing you here in BC again… Thank you Lara for an incredible night.
-------------------------------------------------------------
The cold was a persistent accompaniment along the way, and we heard several times that it acted as somewhat of a drag towards the end of some of the shows, but as the videos indicate, Lara still excelled throughout. She had very good attendance at all her venues, with the Russian contingent making up a substantial portion of the audience, as well as her French speaking fans (obviously true in Montreal). The fans who commented were fairly well unanimous as to their enjoyment, and that of those around them. So, it would have to be labeled a success from that standpoint.
From the larger perspective of engaging with the North American press…clearly her interviews (in French) with Radio Canada reminded people of her existence and made some headlines (primarily in Europe) with the topics discussed last week (e.g., Charts in France on why Lara goes to Russia despite the official homophobia: www.chartsinfrance.net/Lara-Fabian/news-96541.html; and on the failure of her American career: www.chartsinfrance.net/Lara-Fabian/news-96515.html). A search online acknowledged the North American concerts, but outside of that, there was little to indicate her presence. As far as I could tell, there were no press reviews of her concerts, no (other) interviews with her in the various locales, no general coverage of the concerts at all. Perhaps one component of that is some of these shows were not actually in big metropolitan centers, but ‘near-by’ (as was this last concert). In North America, especially in the U.S. and English speaking Canada, Lara continues to remain ‘le Secret’ to those not ‘in-the-know’.
[It was noted that at the various locales, in addition to the ‘North American’ version of the (best of) ‘Essentials’ album, ‘Le Secret’ was also available to the audience, e.g.,
www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1623585341191561&set=a.1623552387861523.1073741864.100006203327465
Good to know that Lara has not given up on it; it was represented by ‘Il est lune’ at these concerts and the ‘La Vie Est Lá Remix’ on the ‘Essentials’ album].
Ironically, the most press she received was for the ‘interaction’ with Rick Allison visa vi her Radio Canada interview where she categorized their time together as, in effect, old friends’ whose time had passed. As noted in the last Update, what followed appeared to be a message from Rick on FB indicating he questioned whether he was really an ‘old friend’, having evoked so much misery in her path (with phrases such as ‘from my small being to your immensity’ – ending with a curse), and he proposed that she retire their songs from her repertoire in favor of others more current. Two Twitter posts with similar content were also seen. Various organizations picked up the story (e.g., ici.radio-canada.ca/regions/ontario/2015/03/30/005-lara-fabian-controverse.shtml; www.jeanmarcmorandini.com/article-335028-l-ex-compagnon-de-lara-fabian-rick-allison-furieux-l-insulte-va-te-faire-f.html#VRgcYIS6ZfuJU3PG.99). After Rick’s posting that his FB page had been hacked – and that he was actually happy with that ‘old friend’ categorization – some skepticism was voiced about whether the hacking was really true, and whether he was now regretting his emotional response (
Practically speaking, it makes little difference – Lara apparently has no plans to continue working with him, as much as many in her audience would like it. Lara has said that her next French album will be more in the mode of ‘Pure’ and ‘Nue’, but how that can be without Rick as her writing partner is not obvious. Some combinations just work – Rogers and Hammerstein, Simon and Garfunkle, Lennon and McCartney– and when they break up, lightning is not easily captured in the bottle again. One thing we know is that Lara never ‘looks back’ – once she splits with someone, there isn’t a reunion (musically), and most of these ruptures have a personal component as well. To some extent that is understandable, since music and musical creativity are closely tied to emotions, especially for someone like Lara. She has indicated many times by her actions that this is not just a business for her.
Now Lara has some time off before she’s back in Europe, with a concert in Stockholm, Sweden on April 20th, followed by three more concerts, every other day, in Estonia and then (two) in Finland. One imagines the setlist will be pretty much what we’ve seen in the past few weeks; the only uncertainty is whether she will talk primarily in English or in French in these locations. My money is on English
[given that her promo for Sweden was in English]. Maybe there will be more press interviews in these other places, where her appearances might make more of a splash.
In other news, ‘Odacity’ finally released the setlist for the second CD (https://www.facebook.com/odacity/photos/a.579336748757359.1073741825.534028323288202/954352564589107/?type=1&theater). As can be seen, there are four remixes of ‘Make Me Yours Tonight’, three involving Tom York and one by Mustafa Ceceli, as well as the Dave Audé remix of ‘Every Woman in Me’. A ‘youtube’ version of the latter can be found at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lez2OERN-qw
while (again), an extract of the beat for one of the Tom York remixes is at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=449wvu_apBg
Because of the novel aspect of the Tom York remixes, they have gotten some publicity, as blurbs for these ‘electro/dance duos’ with him can be seen at:
magmuzic.wordpress.com/2015/04/04/lara-fabian-tom-york-duo-electro-choc/;
souslesprojecteurs.fr/2015/04/best-off-lara-fabian-remixee-par-tom-york/12715;
and
musiquelike.publicoton.fr/lara-fabian-a-la-sauce-electro-549684.
Here’s a translation of the last article:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lara Fabian a la Electro sauce
Even when one is a huge star it is necessary to remain in the news and ‘trendy’, many are the stars who have understood this and knew to adapt to the atmosphere of the times, from Madonna to Mylene Farmer through Kylie Minogue or still Lady Gaga, all have been remixed by the greatest.
Lara Fabian, who was an exception to the rule until the present in remaining true to French variety has also decided to get to the taste of the day by including a remix of her latest hit "Make me yours tonight" by the French producer Tom York.
This new version will be included in the double [CD] best of "Selection" to appear on April 28. Lara Fabian will you become the new queen of the trendy nights? Answer in a few days...
--------------------------------------------------------
And one more (in translation) (http://newmusicrelease.publicoton.fr/lara-fabian-prend-un-coup-de-jeune-grace-a-tom-york-549204):
--------------------------------------------------------
Lara Fabian takes a facelift thanks to Tom York
Remember, fifteen years ago Lara Fabian changed her tune and proposed the title "I will love again", album [sic] and single of the same name, result a big hit across the Atlantic and a younger dynamic, more club, electro sounds that allowed her to explore new musical terrain and conquer another public without denaturing her superb voice.
Fifteen years later, some millions of albums sold worldwide and a big hit "Make Me Yours Tonight" in Turkey, accompanied for the occasion by Mustafa Ceceli, here the more club sound returns on a remix of the same title.
This new version is the work of French producer Tom York, who has already produced a remix for the group One Republic and occupies the clubbing charts for three years already.
Odacity Records which will release the Best Off "Selection" of Lara Fabian has posted an excerpt from that storied remix to help fans of the singer wait until April 28, and we look forward to be able to listen to it in its entirety.
Lara Fabian is back in the clubs for our greater pleasure.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
It will be interesting to see where this goes. As the last article indicated, the lure is that it may capture the same success that ‘I Will Love Again’ did. That possibility may well depend on how successful ‘Odacity’ is in making it available in different countries…If it does become a big hit, one wonders what Lara will really think about that, given her comment last week (on Radio Canada) that ‘I Will Love Again’ did “not truly represent” her, intrinsically.
Nothing so far from the Lara Fabian Turkey site concerning people in other countries obtaining this album through them, but that presumably will be coming.
And don’t forget, that the day before (April 27th), the album ‘Les stars font leur cinéma’ will be released, with Lara’s version of ‘Unchained Melody’. One would say that with that title, in combination with the ‘electro-dance’ version of ‘Make Me Yours Tonight’, Lara will have covered the spectrum!
Interesting photo(s) of the week (two from Rebecca Dru) at:
www.facebook.com/166959643357708/photos/pcb.821973127856353/821973111189688/
www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152620955841082&set=p.10152620955841082
and for Easter from ‘Lara Fabian Italy’:
www.facebook.com/164644456884508/photos/a.191385857543701.56967.164644456884508/1077509692264642/
Some time off now, presumably, for Lara with her family – and to recuperate from her cold, and any stress her ears may have experienced – before hopping back into ‘northern’ waters in a few weeks. Hopefully Lara is happy with her recent excursion, enough so that she will repeat it in different North American locales in the years to come.
David
Vancouver (4-2-15):
Adagio: www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI4G9gudIDo
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dukVIm3edA
vk.com/lf_cp?z=video109874072_171038066%2F049e7acf77f2aa9969
Alfonsina y el mar: www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH_-6vsPOnA
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ugqQuvqFUs
Caruso: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LE8VYhueYo
I Will Love Again: www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxPfIQqs-rE
Je suis malade: www.youtube.com/watch?v=leg1gI7vRe0
Mademoiselle Hyde: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qUUtenokEc
Make Me Yours Tonight: www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4SfABrOrbk
Pas sans toi: www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI4G9gudIDo
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3obDL_DeLBU
Russian Song (Love Like A Dream): www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjqHjkdHkRo
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD5jA0r2LNI
You probably saw Ocelot’s review, as a comment to the last Update; for completeness sake, I’ve copied it here:
--------------------------------------------------------------
“I just got back from the Richmond Show. The theater wasn't quite full (there were a lot of empty seats along the outside of the theater), but the crowd was very enthusiastic. There was a strong Russian presence, along with a lot of French-Canadians. Lara had a cold from the air conditioning in Atlantic City and also mentioned that Vancouver was one of the places she had longed to go to perform a concert. Lara had trouble getting people to sing along with "I Will Love Again", but when she tried again with the Russian song it was a success. I went with my mother, and the person sitting beside her described herself as someone who enjoyed Lara's music but not a fan, but later was in tears and super-emotional (her husband was the fan). The show was amazing, and the versions of Caruso and La Difference were some of the best I've heard from her, though towards the end of the show you could tell that she had a cold and wasn't as powerful or clear as earlier in the show.”
---------------------------------------------------------------
and (translated) from Andrii Dydyna on the ‘Lara Fabian Connecting People’ site:
-----------------------------------------------------------
So, yesterday my dream came true and I finally got to see my favorite singer Lara Fabian perform in the River Rock Casino in Richmond, BC. Yesterday's show just proves that Lara is one of the greatest singers of our time. Sometimes, when watching her shows on Youtube her voice may seem a bit weaker than when she was in her 30s. In fact, even though she was sick for which she apologized for at the beginning of the concert, her live performance is way better than what we can see on Youtube and her Adagio was as good as in 1998 or 2000 when she was being produced in the US. Bravo Lara! Looking forward to seeing you here in BC again… Thank you Lara for an incredible night.
-------------------------------------------------------------
The cold was a persistent accompaniment along the way, and we heard several times that it acted as somewhat of a drag towards the end of some of the shows, but as the videos indicate, Lara still excelled throughout. She had very good attendance at all her venues, with the Russian contingent making up a substantial portion of the audience, as well as her French speaking fans (obviously true in Montreal). The fans who commented were fairly well unanimous as to their enjoyment, and that of those around them. So, it would have to be labeled a success from that standpoint.
From the larger perspective of engaging with the North American press…clearly her interviews (in French) with Radio Canada reminded people of her existence and made some headlines (primarily in Europe) with the topics discussed last week (e.g., Charts in France on why Lara goes to Russia despite the official homophobia: www.chartsinfrance.net/Lara-Fabian/news-96541.html; and on the failure of her American career: www.chartsinfrance.net/Lara-Fabian/news-96515.html). A search online acknowledged the North American concerts, but outside of that, there was little to indicate her presence. As far as I could tell, there were no press reviews of her concerts, no (other) interviews with her in the various locales, no general coverage of the concerts at all. Perhaps one component of that is some of these shows were not actually in big metropolitan centers, but ‘near-by’ (as was this last concert). In North America, especially in the U.S. and English speaking Canada, Lara continues to remain ‘le Secret’ to those not ‘in-the-know’.
[It was noted that at the various locales, in addition to the ‘North American’ version of the (best of) ‘Essentials’ album, ‘Le Secret’ was also available to the audience, e.g.,
www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1623585341191561&set=a.1623552387861523.1073741864.100006203327465
Good to know that Lara has not given up on it; it was represented by ‘Il est lune’ at these concerts and the ‘La Vie Est Lá Remix’ on the ‘Essentials’ album].
Ironically, the most press she received was for the ‘interaction’ with Rick Allison visa vi her Radio Canada interview where she categorized their time together as, in effect, old friends’ whose time had passed. As noted in the last Update, what followed appeared to be a message from Rick on FB indicating he questioned whether he was really an ‘old friend’, having evoked so much misery in her path (with phrases such as ‘from my small being to your immensity’ – ending with a curse), and he proposed that she retire their songs from her repertoire in favor of others more current. Two Twitter posts with similar content were also seen. Various organizations picked up the story (e.g., ici.radio-canada.ca/regions/ontario/2015/03/30/005-lara-fabian-controverse.shtml; www.jeanmarcmorandini.com/article-335028-l-ex-compagnon-de-lara-fabian-rick-allison-furieux-l-insulte-va-te-faire-f.html#VRgcYIS6ZfuJU3PG.99). After Rick’s posting that his FB page had been hacked – and that he was actually happy with that ‘old friend’ categorization – some skepticism was voiced about whether the hacking was really true, and whether he was now regretting his emotional response (
Practically speaking, it makes little difference – Lara apparently has no plans to continue working with him, as much as many in her audience would like it. Lara has said that her next French album will be more in the mode of ‘Pure’ and ‘Nue’, but how that can be without Rick as her writing partner is not obvious. Some combinations just work – Rogers and Hammerstein, Simon and Garfunkle, Lennon and McCartney– and when they break up, lightning is not easily captured in the bottle again. One thing we know is that Lara never ‘looks back’ – once she splits with someone, there isn’t a reunion (musically), and most of these ruptures have a personal component as well. To some extent that is understandable, since music and musical creativity are closely tied to emotions, especially for someone like Lara. She has indicated many times by her actions that this is not just a business for her.
Now Lara has some time off before she’s back in Europe, with a concert in Stockholm, Sweden on April 20th, followed by three more concerts, every other day, in Estonia and then (two) in Finland. One imagines the setlist will be pretty much what we’ve seen in the past few weeks; the only uncertainty is whether she will talk primarily in English or in French in these locations. My money is on English
[given that her promo for Sweden was in English]. Maybe there will be more press interviews in these other places, where her appearances might make more of a splash.In other news, ‘Odacity’ finally released the setlist for the second CD (https://www.facebook.com/odacity/photos/a.579336748757359.1073741825.534028323288202/954352564589107/?type=1&theater). As can be seen, there are four remixes of ‘Make Me Yours Tonight’, three involving Tom York and one by Mustafa Ceceli, as well as the Dave Audé remix of ‘Every Woman in Me’. A ‘youtube’ version of the latter can be found at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lez2OERN-qw
while (again), an extract of the beat for one of the Tom York remixes is at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=449wvu_apBg
Because of the novel aspect of the Tom York remixes, they have gotten some publicity, as blurbs for these ‘electro/dance duos’ with him can be seen at:
magmuzic.wordpress.com/2015/04/04/lara-fabian-tom-york-duo-electro-choc/;
souslesprojecteurs.fr/2015/04/best-off-lara-fabian-remixee-par-tom-york/12715;
and
musiquelike.publicoton.fr/lara-fabian-a-la-sauce-electro-549684.
Here’s a translation of the last article:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lara Fabian a la Electro sauce
Even when one is a huge star it is necessary to remain in the news and ‘trendy’, many are the stars who have understood this and knew to adapt to the atmosphere of the times, from Madonna to Mylene Farmer through Kylie Minogue or still Lady Gaga, all have been remixed by the greatest.
Lara Fabian, who was an exception to the rule until the present in remaining true to French variety has also decided to get to the taste of the day by including a remix of her latest hit "Make me yours tonight" by the French producer Tom York.
This new version will be included in the double [CD] best of "Selection" to appear on April 28. Lara Fabian will you become the new queen of the trendy nights? Answer in a few days...
--------------------------------------------------------
And one more (in translation) (http://newmusicrelease.publicoton.fr/lara-fabian-prend-un-coup-de-jeune-grace-a-tom-york-549204):
--------------------------------------------------------
Lara Fabian takes a facelift thanks to Tom York
Remember, fifteen years ago Lara Fabian changed her tune and proposed the title "I will love again", album [sic] and single of the same name, result a big hit across the Atlantic and a younger dynamic, more club, electro sounds that allowed her to explore new musical terrain and conquer another public without denaturing her superb voice.
Fifteen years later, some millions of albums sold worldwide and a big hit "Make Me Yours Tonight" in Turkey, accompanied for the occasion by Mustafa Ceceli, here the more club sound returns on a remix of the same title.
This new version is the work of French producer Tom York, who has already produced a remix for the group One Republic and occupies the clubbing charts for three years already.
Odacity Records which will release the Best Off "Selection" of Lara Fabian has posted an excerpt from that storied remix to help fans of the singer wait until April 28, and we look forward to be able to listen to it in its entirety.
Lara Fabian is back in the clubs for our greater pleasure.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
It will be interesting to see where this goes. As the last article indicated, the lure is that it may capture the same success that ‘I Will Love Again’ did. That possibility may well depend on how successful ‘Odacity’ is in making it available in different countries…If it does become a big hit, one wonders what Lara will really think about that, given her comment last week (on Radio Canada) that ‘I Will Love Again’ did “not truly represent” her, intrinsically.
Nothing so far from the Lara Fabian Turkey site concerning people in other countries obtaining this album through them, but that presumably will be coming.
And don’t forget, that the day before (April 27th), the album ‘Les stars font leur cinéma’ will be released, with Lara’s version of ‘Unchained Melody’. One would say that with that title, in combination with the ‘electro-dance’ version of ‘Make Me Yours Tonight’, Lara will have covered the spectrum!
Interesting photo(s) of the week (two from Rebecca Dru) at:
www.facebook.com/166959643357708/photos/pcb.821973127856353/821973111189688/
www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152620955841082&set=p.10152620955841082
and for Easter from ‘Lara Fabian Italy’:
www.facebook.com/164644456884508/photos/a.191385857543701.56967.164644456884508/1077509692264642/
Some time off now, presumably, for Lara with her family – and to recuperate from her cold, and any stress her ears may have experienced – before hopping back into ‘northern’ waters in a few weeks. Hopefully Lara is happy with her recent excursion, enough so that she will repeat it in different North American locales in the years to come.
David
