Customer Reviews

Barbra: The Concert

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

In September of 1994, Barbra Streisand released her thirty-fourth album entitled, BARBRA: THE CONCERT. This album is her fourth live concert album to date. When Barbra had released her first three live concert albums in 1968, 1972, & 1987, they all took up only one disc, since Barbra did not perform as many songs in concert. But this live album takes up two discs, since Barbra has performed many more his than before, as well as having a few more conversation pieces, than the first three times round. A great live album and very personal.

Disc One

OVERTURE
Nothing special.

AS IF WE NEVER SAID GOODBYE
From the album BACK TO BROADWAY (1993). This song is very beautiful and it was the perfect choice to open this live album.

OPENING REMARKS
Conversation piece.

Medley: I'M STILL HERE/EVERYBODY SAYS DON'T/DON'T RAIN ON MY PARADE
"I'm Still Here": New song. "Everybody Says Don't" From the album BACK TO BROADWAY (1993). "Don't Rain On My Parade" From the original motion picture & motion picture soundtrack FUNNY GIRL (1968). Great medley.

CAN'T HELP LOVIN' THAT MAN
From the album THE BROADWAY ALBUM (1985). Great song.

I'LL KNOW
From the album SIMPLY STREISAND (1967). Great.

PEOPLE
From the album PEOPLE (1964). She sings this beautifully here.

LOVER MAN
New song. Great.

THERAPIST DIALOGUE #1
Nothing special.

WILL HE LIKE ME?
From the album PEOPLE (1964). Great.

THERAPIST DIALOGUE #2
Nothing special.

HE TOUCHED ME
From the album MY NAME IS BARBRA, TWO... (1965). Great.

EVERGREEN
From the original motion picture & motion picture soundtrack A STAR IS BORN (1976). Beautifully sung here.

THERAPIST DIALOGUE #3
Nothing special.

THE MAN THAT GOT AWAY
From the original motion picture & motion picture soundtrack A STAR IS BORN (1976). Great.

ON A CLEAR DAY (YOU CAN SEE FOREVER)
From the original motion picture & motion picture soundtrack ON A CLEAR DAY YOU CAN SEE FOREVER (1970). Still a classic song after all these years.

Disc Two

ENTR'ACTE
Nothing special.

THE WAY WE WERE
From the album THE WAY WE WERE (1974). From the original motion picture & motion picture soundtrack THE WAY WE WERE (1974). This song is one Barbra's most beautiful and she sings it as she sung the original.

YOU DON'T BRING ME FLOWERS (Solo Version)
From the album SONGBIRD (1978). Great.

LAZY AFTERNOON
From the album LAZY AFTERNOON (1975). Great song.

Disney Medley: ONCE UPON A DREAM/WHEN YOU WISH UPON A STAR/SOMEDAY MY PRINCE WILL COME
New song. Beautiful renditions to these Disney classics.

NOT WHILE I'M AROUND
From the album THE BROADWAY ALBUM (1985). Great.

ORDINARY MIRACLES
New song. Great.

YENTL Medley: WHERE IS IT WRITTEN?/PAPA, CAN YOU HEAR ME?/WILL SOMEONE EVER LOOK AT ME THAT WAY/A PIECE OF SKY
All songs from the original motion picture & motion picture soundtrack YENTL (1983). Beautiful. All of these songs are just amazingly beautiful.

HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN
From the album THE BARBRA STREISAND ALBUM (1963). Great.

MY MAN
From the album MY NAME IS BARBRA (1965). Great.

FOR ALL WE KNOW
New song. Great.

SOMEWHERE
From the album THE BROADWAY ALBUM (1985). Still Barbra's most beautiful cover to date.

This album is very, as I said before, personal. If you would like to have BARBRA: THE CONCERT, Barbra Streisand's fourth concert album, then you better make sure you all get it if you don't have it already. Time is not going by any slower, you all know.

I think some of the other reviewers either missed the point or let their personal feelings about Ms. Streisand bias their review. Streisand has always been controversial in the public's eye, but this album should not be judged on how you personally feel about the artist. The truth is that this Barbra finest album of the 90's. After many over produced studio albums that left her voice buried in the background, Streisand wisely keeps the arrangements subtle and frees her fabulous voice (still the best there is) and gives fans what they were hoping for.

The previous remarks about "self love" are silly. Streisand offers us a rare and intimate look into her past and feelings. This is simply the most open she has ever been to her fans. And we love her for it.

***Oh, yes. I just wanted to clear something up. The last reviewer refered to Streisand's 1983 film YENTL as a "flop." Just to let you know, YENTL was made on a budget of about $14 million and instantly made back it's money. To this day (counting it's original theactrical intake of $30 million plus video rentals) Yentl has grossed over $50 million in the US alone! Maybe it wasn't a blockbuster, but it was a surprise hit all the same.

Even on this later career performance, the voice of Streisand is crisp clear and moving as no other. Her instrument is a little glimpse of heaven. The tweaked opening number As If We Never Said Goodbye is AMAZINGLY PERFECT selection. Her performance is unbelievable. Of course this is true of each song. How she kept this up for a couple of hours with no errors in beyond the imagination. The banter in between with the audience and fictional therapists is equally entertaining. The Concert is an album you can listen to over and over and never tire of.

I bought this album a few years ago, and up till now, it is almost all I listen too! Now, the Timeless concert may have a little better song selection, but this concert was an intimate bonding, and instead of the usual "Greatest Hits", Barbra sang not so famous songs that relate to her, and that just happen to be amazing!
It starts off with a great Ouverture, reminding us of the fabulous songs in Barbra's repetoire. "As if we never said goodbye", the perfect opening song, starts of this enchanting evening, with a better lyric to accomodate the evening, and an amazing reorchestration. Then, after her hillarious remarks, Barbra swings to the funny yet true I'm stuill here/ Everybody says don't, and ends it with the best version yet of Don't Rain on my parade, with the greatest orchestration full of energy, making you want to sing along. The we relax with a wonderfull rendition of Can't help lovin' that man from Showboat, and then after talking about her early crush with the movie star, Barbra sings a delightfull duet, I'll Know with Marlon Brando. Then, the Barbra trademark People is sung with a great orchestration and a wonderfull energetic ending, which puts everyone in the mood which only Barbra can do.
Then, after a short Lover Man, we sit in on three therapy sessions separated by Will he like me, a great song from People, He touched me, a soft then strong ballad, Evergreen a very lovely love song, and a montage of three of Barbra's movies. Then, she sings a great The man that got away, followed by a newly orchestrated and brilliantly sung On a clear Day, to end a glorious first act.

Act two starts with an entracte, then The way we were, beginning offstage, then Barbra apeeras singing it, one of her greatest songs. Then, after a funny comment, sings a solo of You don't bring me flowers. After that, she sings the wondeful calm and serene Lazy Afternoon. Then, she goes into a Disney Medley, a great selection of songs. Then, Not while I'm around, a wonderfull softie for her son. Then Ordinary miracles a new and terrific feel good song, powerful and profound.
Then, the highlight, the Yentl Medley, stressing on the emotional Papa Can you hear me, and the powerful, soaring, and wow, incredible, A piece of sky. Then, Happy Days, a great classic, saluting new beginings. Then three encores, the wondefull My man, from Funny girl, the sweet For all we know, and the powerful ending, Somewhere.
Great concert, highly recommended

After insisting for years that she didn't enjoy live public performances, Barbra Streisand finally came out of hiding and delivered exactly what all of her fans had been dreaming of - and much more. Despite giving many live performances over the years on television shows and fund-raisers, this was actually the first real concert tour of Streisand's career. She decided it was time to finally conquer her intense stage fright and, at the same time, give something back to the fans who had been begging to see her perform live for years. The show's pricey tickets sold out instantly, and fans eagerly awaited the day of the concert. Little did anyone know that Streisand would not only meet the huge expectations that had been placed before her, but that she would greatly exceed them - the `93-`94 concerts will be forever remembered as one of the best things she has ever done.

From the slow emergence of the perfectly-selected opening song "As If We Never Said Goodbye" to full-throttle splendor of the closing selection "Somewhere," Streisand treated her audiences to a spectacular evening. She opened herself up more than she ever had before, and allowed her fans to spend time with the woman behind the superstar. The first act of the show was more like one of her sixties television specials (particularly My Name Is Barbra) than a traditional concert, with insightful and humorous "therapist" monologues peppered throughout the first half. Streisand effectively reminisced about many of the events that shaped her life as an entertainer, and the song selections perfectly complemented the stage dialogue. The songs performed in this half are not the typical "greatest hits" set that most artists perform, but were selected because of what they represent in Streisand's life. It works flawlessly, with the well-known selections ("People," "Evergreen") folding into the context as easily as the lessor-known material ("I'll Know, "Will He Like Me").

The second act is performed more like a traditional concert, however Barbra still lets her guard down quite a bit when she discusses her relationships to her son and goddaughter, both of whom she dedicates songs to. The concert that was recorded for this particular album was performed at Madison Square Garden in New York, and the fact that she was performing in her own home-city makes the show even more poignant. She sounds absolutely terrific, and shows us once again why she is the greatest vocalist of all time. While she unarguably has a gorgeous, God-given singing voice, it is the nuance and emotion that she commandingly brings to every song she sings that really places her in a class by herself. Listening to her explore the lyric of well-written song is easily one of the most exciting things there is, and that sentiment is expressed multiple times throughout this remarkable record. This recording of THE CONCERT hit the Top Ten on the Hot 200 and reached Triple-Platinum Status in sales, which is amazing for a double-disc, live album.

I put on my headphones with this CD after watching her concert in my VCR. I don't know how many times I have heard and watched Barbra's concert. There were times when I used to watch and listen to this more than four times per day ! Now I'm 18 and I have thirty three CDs and all Barbra's movies. And This CD is the most I like ... Oh, my ! God Bless her voice when she sings "Papa I can hear you, Papa I can feel you, Papa watch me fly." This is a part that lifts me up to Heaven, and, in fact, I feel as though that 'Papa' were watching me fly !!!

While an impressive recording in itself, this is by no means Streisand's best concert performance. That honor still belongs to her 1968 Central Park "happening". Fatal flaws on this recording - absolute lack of spontaneity, too many diva ballads and way too much talk. For sheer versatility and a glimpse of a real talent at its peak, check out her "A Happening in Central Park" CD.

This product was billed as brand new but was received with no wrapping. After opening the initial mailing envelope, it was an unwrapped case. Also, the liner notes were folded very haphazardly with the creases placed down the middle of paragraphs. With that being said, my wife loves it and had thanked me several times for it. It also shipped very quickly.

When Barbra Streisand decided to tour in 1993, it was the first time in a long time she would perform for the general public. Seeing as she rarely performed live, when the tickets were put on sale, they sold out in a matter of hours, and Streisand was probably nervous about putting on a good show. However, put on a good show she did, making this live album her most essential.

Unlike most of her live albums prior to this, Barbra doesn't just come out, sing her most famous songs, and that is that. In fact, she takes some of her standards, like "People" and "Evergreen," as well as some lesser known songs, like "Will He Like Me," and uses them to tell her personal story, as well as her views on politics, dating in the 90s (the therapy monologues are introspective and pretty funny at the same time), and her son and goddaughter. Not only do you get the pleasure of hearing her beautiful voice, still sounding good at this point, but you'll end it feeling like you know her better than you did before.

Like I said before, she sings all the must-sings, but this is not just a recording to hear her sing the hits. It is also the recording to discover some hidden gems in her catalogue, like "Lover Man" and "I'll Know" from Simply Streisand, or "Lazy Afternoon" from her mostly forgotten album of the same name, or even her take on "For All We Know" from the Prince of Tides soundtrack.

The only flaw in this recording is the dialogue. You can tell she doesn't feel very relaxed or comfortable (not surprising, though), and it doesn't come across as too natural either. Anyone who has heard her later live releases or have seen her in concert after can comfirm that she has gotten more comfortable over the years, but in this recording, the tension is still there. But that doesn't diminish what was probably a spectacular night for all involved.

If you are a Barbra Streisand fan, you must get your hands on this album. It's not the same as going to a concert, but it comes pretty close.

Her timeless style, impeccable tastes, gorgeous voice and commanding presence shine through in a confident blend of her signature tunes that highlight her most magnificent career. Every music collector should have this gem for his or her treasure chest. A TRIUMPHANT MILESTONE in live performances of ANY genre. Andy Fobes*, Ocean Springs, Mississippi