Ottawa Fan Reports July 13, 2008

Fresh from his own world tour, Denis (aka Bricko) has turned in a report of the Ottawa concert.

I reserved my tickets before going to Europe.... it was in April or may I don't know. I was very exciting when I got my ticket! It's the first time I will see and hear Donna live! For sure my tickets are reserved with a fan from Montreal area.

After 6 weeks in Europe, it is my turn to see Donna....a chance that I left many years because Donna hasn't make many tours in Canada (except Toronto). I was afraid to see a live and more tour when I reserved my tickets because in Ottawa it was a festival, a Donna's tour wasn't on the official schedule.

The order of the tour songs is the same as the other official stamp your feet tour, except that we hadn't had intermission. It explained the extended songs like she works hard for the money and crayons for the dress changes... Two songs were omitted on the official tour, I will go with you and Be myself again.... I'm sure Canadian fans would appreciated it but it wasn't on the list! Surely more appreciated than sand on my feet that was a little bit lesser welcomed But in general, it was a really good show. Impressive, Donna give a good show, she's easy with her new song, performed her new album very well and it's not the word. I discovered a new dimensions for some songs!! Crayons is my favorite since i heard live... just see the remix I made of it :)

- Denis (aka Bricko)

I was in Ottawa last night to see Donna. So, here is my review. It's hard for me to describe what I felt in English, but I can say one word...WOW. It was fantastic. She looked great and her voice was so beautiful. It was a festival, so an outdoor show with thousands and thousands of people. She is really the Queen. Like the other cities, she did the same songs, except for Be Myself Again (big disappointment for me, really want to hear that one live) and Con Te Partiro. It was a 1 hour in half show non stop with full energy. For the encore she did Fame (she was hot) and of course Last dance. My big surprise and favorite part of the show was Crayons. SOOOOOO good live and the crowd really loved it. Very colorful. It has to be the next single. And her voice was so beautiful on I'm a fire. I spend a night to remember and wish I'll see her again soon.

- Mario, Montreal

The wait is over. My wife and I went to see Donna Summer at Bluesfest in Ottawa Sunday night, July 13. Bluesfest is held yearly in an open-air venue in the middle of Ottawa, in an area called LeBreton Flats. It was a beautiful night - one might even say a "magical, mystical night" ( ;-) ), perfect for an outdoor concert. Donna even thanked God for the breeze!

Here's a list of the songs Miss Summer performed (if my notes are correct - yes, I took notes!):

The Queen Is Back
I Feel Love
Dim All The Lights
I'm A Fire
(wardrobe change)
Sand On My Feet
On The Radio
Mr. Music
Crayons
(wardrobe change)
Enough Is Enough (duet with Mary)
MacArthur Park (with the bridge!)
Stamp Your Feet
(wardrobe change)
Slide Over Backwards
Selah (Mary Bernard)
(wardrobe change)
She Works Hard For The Money
Bad Girls
Hot Stuff
(wardrobe change)
Fame (The Game)
Last Dance

The song list is the same as yours, but Con Te Partiro and Be Myself Again were missing, both of which I would have loved to have seen and heard live. I of course loved the old material; of her new songs, I'm A Fire - awesome, Sand On My Feet - smooth, Mr. Music - cool, Crayons - better than I expected, I have a better appreciation of this song, Stamp Your Feet - energizing, Slide Over Backwards - not sure, but appreciated nonetheless, Fame (The Game) - rockin'!

My overall impression of the performance? The woman can sing! No really, she hit notes and held them, much to the appreciation of the audience. It wouldn't surprise me to learn that her vocals were a bit enhanced to sustain a note, but honestly...WOW!

Although we had reserved 'gold circle' seats (at $125 a pop), we were disappointed with where they were located - the FAR left of the audience, not even in front of the stage. Thank goodness we had a jumbo screen in front of us. People who paid general admission were able to get close to the centre of the stage. They may have been 'parked' there a while though... The reserved-seating fold-up chairs were bound together, making sitting comfortably almost impossible.

The concert? The audience was quite subdued for the most part. I KNOW!!! When Donna was talking about how long she has been performing, there were some 'shout outs' to her, which seemed to visibly affect her, bringing a few tears to her eyes. We do love our Diva. She needs to know that! (Did I mention that the last time she was in Ottawa was 30 years ago?!) Donna seemed very comfortable on stage, even somewhat dynamic with her movements and her stage presence. There wasn't too much banter with the audience, but she did say that making records was minor compared to being able to perform live. How true. The audience appreciated her performance, but didn't go the extra mile. At one point, one of the band members picked up a white towel and spun it over his head in an effort to get us cheering louder. As seen in other reviews, the new material was appreciated but not as well
received as the classics. The song by Mary was nice, and she too can sing, but it seemed out of place. I'm not sure if any others in the audience made the connection that she was Donna's sister. Standing and dancing seemed prohibitive in the reserved area. After all, we paid dearly for seats. We couldn't obstruct anyone's view, even though our own view was somewhat obstructed by the people standing in general admission. Too bad. Only during the final four songs was anyone in the 'gold circle' up and dancing. Donna seemed to rush through the introduction of the people on stage with her. I didn't see Bruce with the other background singers. The show started after some Bluesfest announcements at 9:30 p.m., and ended around 11:15 p.m., with no intermission.

At the other end of the venue (remember this is a large open area) was a merchandise tent, where there was stuff from the day's performers - for Donna, this was comprised of three different t-shirts at $35 apiece (black tee with Crayons graphic, black tee with She Works Hard For The Money graphic, and a yellow tee with the I'm A Fire graphic in orange), a black Crayons tank top was also $35, a black hoodie at $60, and an 8"x10"-sized Crayons postcard at $5. I was disappointed there were no programs.

After the show, I walked to the front of the stage to see if I could catch a glimpse of Donna. I did get to see her get escorted from the stage to her tour bus in the dark. Once outside the gates, a few die-hards (including me) waited by the service entrance near the tour buses to see if we could somehow see the diva. "No can do" is what we were told, "There is no scheduled meet and greet". It was late and understandably "Donna need to rest". Cathy, how did you ever get to meet our Donna?

All in all, a truly great show, marred only by the poor (and expensive) seating arrangements. Next time (I sure hope I don't have to wait another 30 years!), I'll know better.

Here are the pics I promised. Some are quite good. All taken without a flash. (There didn't seem to be any issues with audience members taking pictures. I even got a video - the last minute or so of The Queen Is Back.) I used the 'Natural' setting on my Fuji FinePix S700, a great camera for the money. My favourite is DSCF1592 - has a bit of a Crayons look to it. Let me know what you think. Feel free to post them on your website. With or without my 'review'.

Your friend unknown,
Ed

I wanted to send a quick report on the Ottawa concert. Donna's concert was the final event of the 11 day long Ottawa Blues Fest. It was a fantastic show! The show started at 9:45 and lasted about for about 90 minutes. It was a perfect night for an outdoor concert - with the moon overhead and a nice breeze in the background. The concert park grounds area was packed full. It was a fun crowd!

Donna looked great, and sounded great! Her voice was awesome! The song set was very similar to the previous concerts mentioned, except she didn't sing Con Te Partiro or Be Myself Again. Donna did sing Fame, and it was a nice fit between Hot Stuff and Last Dance. I'm A Fire and Stamp are great performed live. Donna's outfits do look great in person. The new stage set is incredible. I noticed during Mr. Music the iPod's have iDON printed on them!

I always like to watch the crowd at Donna's concerts. It's amazing to see fans of all ages - singing along with the songs - and knowing all the words!

I think I'm going to have to book some more concerts this Summer!

Rob
Wilmington, Delaware

Photos from Ed Click for larger versions

Ottawa Bluesfest

July 13, 2008

© 2008, the authors, photographer