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10/03/04 - PALACE THEATRE,
ALBANY, NEW YORK Review
by Alicja Bodziony:
Tonight, we scored 2 second row tickets, right orchestra,
in front of Keith about an hour before the show. But, there were 3 of us :(. We
had to figure something out. Decided to skip the opening act as it was the same
from the previous two nights and it wasn’t pretty (good for those folks who
wanted to sit through the concert :) though). So we’re outside the restrooms
downstairs scheming and Lance, Bryan’s guitar tech passes by going upstairs
and says “come on girls, the opening act is just about to come on”.
My sister said we’re going to skip it and he’s like “But Why”????
Then I said cause two nights in a row was enough. He then comes down and gives
us each a pick, guess he thought the same of her ....lol. We also met up with
another badfan downstairs, Cheryl from Ohio, to whom we had given two of our old
tickets as we saw her seats were pretty far back when we passed by her. We’ve
seen her at the other two shows so figured we mind as well have someone enjoy
them. Anyway, we got to talking and she said how she asked Bryan after the show
the night before to sing “Thought I’d Died And Gone To Heaven”
as she’s never heard it live before. And we’re like no kidding, we heard
him play it for the rehearsal (had our ears glued to the stage doors). She got
so excited and so did we cause we wanted to hear it as well. So we go in after
the opening act and the two seats next to the ones we bought were open so all
3 of us sit and wouldn’t you believe it, no one claimed those seats, the
lights go down and we all wind up under Keith’s mic. We turn around and Cheryl
is right behind us, woohoo, she made it to the front. So they start with “There
Will Never Be Another Tonight” (again, I wonder why? hehehehe), and soon
after Bryan says that a young lady asked him to sing “Thought I’d Died
And Gone To Heaven” tonight, at this point we’re all screaming cause
we know he’s talking about Cheryl. He than says that she’s probably
here tonight and then looks in the crowd and finds her and asks her what her name
is? And then dedicates it to her: “This one’s for you Cheryl”.
How amazing is that? And again after the song he pointed to her that it was meant
for her. We were thrilled for her! I’ve never heard Bryan introduce a song
that way cause someone wanted to hear a song, it was so cool and exciting for
us too cause we knew the little story behind it :). Thanks for sharing Cheryl,
and Bryan, you are an absolute STAR!
So you guys, if you want to hear something
at a future gig, give it a try and make it known to him and it just may happen
:) 
During
the show, Bryan said that he was reminded earlier that day that he played his
first US gig in a club in Albany. He must have been reminiscing about the old
days cause he said he’d play something from his 1981 album. Then introduced
“this one’s called ‘Lonely Nights’”. I was not prepared
for that and pretty much lost it after that ..lol.
It was a rare, extraordinary
moment. They should really consider including it in the set list more often :)
It was an excellent audience that night! The WYG girl was good, she was there
with a friend who was pregnant but she said not as pregnant as the lady next to
her. At the end, Bryan said she can get some t-shirts for herself and all her
pregnant friends ....lol.
Keith was marvelous as usual, we kept taking pictures
of him and he would get embarrassed at times, what a cutie! We were pretty snap-happy
at all the shows so hopefully we’ll get some good photos :). There was this
photographer there at all 3 shows snapping away the entire shows on and off stage.
Wish I could get my hands on his photos....lol. Could it be that maybe he’s
getting some shots for a CD booklet or a tour book? since the name of the album
has something to do with being on the road and touring?
Last thing I’ll
say about these shows, is that I can’t say enough about the security at these
gigs. Supposedly, we weren’t allowed to take pictures but everyone was snapping
away. They were pretty laid back (can’t say the same for AC though), they
just made sure no one got to the pit that wasn’t suppose to be there hehehe.
******************************************* Review
by Michael Eck (Times Union):
Canadian rocker Bryan Adams made his stateside
debut in Albany in 1981 at J.B. Scott's, a fondly remembered Central Avenue nightclub
that also hosted notable early performances by Pat Benatar, B-52s and U2. Adams
reminisced about that gig at the Palace Theatre on Wednesday night, and he even
offered a few impromptu tracks(including "Lonely Nights") from "back
in the day." Adams became a superstar in the
'80s, and if he's not quite a radio staple these days he still pleases fans with
plenty of old favorites. The crowd at the Palace sang
along with "Summer of '69" and "Cuts Like a Knife," and one
supporter, Sarah from Glens Falls, even took the stage to duet with her idol on
"When You're Gone." She really did know
"all the words" as she promised. She also rocked with an abandon that
nearly put the headliner to shame. Adams even honored
a request for "Thought I'd Died and Gone to Heaven," and throughout
the evening he played straight to the standing throng of fans he encouraged to
dance and sway near the stage. The 95-minute show
actually kicked off on autopilot, with Adams and his wrecking crew racing through
a handful of tunes before they began to let their hair down. Once
he started chatting, though, everything seemed to relax a bit. Adams
occasionally leavened the big rock with pseudo-unplugged numbers like "Back
to You," which found him strumming a big acoustic while the band still crackled
behind him. When he traded his ax for an electric,
Adams rocked, too. On "It's Only Love" he
cranked out the rhythm while lead guitarist Keith Scott took a long six-string
solo that was as high on the histrionics as it was on the fretboard. Scott knocked
out some nice slide licks on "Back to You" as well. The
band also featured phenomenal pop drummer Mickey Curry, who served time with Hall
& Oates and the G.E. Smith band in the '80s. Curry
drove Adams's biggest hits, like "Heaven," "Somebody" and
the encores of "Run to You" and "This Time" with both a big
beat and a supple feel. Adams' stage set was a simple-looking,
but high-tech affair that showered the stage in a swirl of lights. Opening
act Jen Chapin veered in the opposite direction of her host, offering a sparse
set of songs accompanied solely by upright bassist Stefan Crump. Chapin's voice
worked nicely against Crump's nimble playing, but the songs need to be a little
stronger to survive such a stark, bare-bones approach. | 
