Customer Reviews

Sarah Brightman - One Night in Eden

5 star:		(83)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I was under the mistaken impression that Amazon were there to sell products, not put people off. The childish and spiteful Editorial review by Marshall Fine is completely inappropriate and misrepresents this excellent concert entirely.

While I respect the views of the people who had reservations about the concert, Fine's so-called 'review' is a very different affair. That this creature should attack Sarah's 'pudgy build' - precisely the same kind of comment that triggered Karen Carpenter's ultimately fatal anorexia - speaks volmes about the kind of fool he is.

Sarah, like Marilyn (size 14) Monroe, has a beautiful womanly figure. Marshall Fine obviously prefers 100 lb catwalk models to normal-looking women who understand that females are supposed to retain body fat, as a survival mechanism, they being the childbearers of the species.

That aside, this is a wonderful concert which features many great songs and is a visual delight. Sarah looks gorgeous throughout, as you might expect.

ONE NIGHT IN EDEN on DVD with SARAH BRIGHTMAN is the next best in the world - only SARAH live is better. The picture and sound on this DVD is excellent.

Sarah's warm-heartedness charisma is amazing. She looks so beautiful, her happy smile and her warm eyes sparkle with joy. She is so talented - her voice is so warm and bright - no matter what style she sings: opera, musical or pop. Sarah has definitely the best and most beautiful voice in the world - ever.

ALL SONGS ARE OF COURSE LIVE - SARAH DOES NOT USE LIP-SYNCHRONIZING IN HER CONCERTS.

The concert starts with IN PARADISUM+EDEN, in Gregorian style. Incredible beautiful.
SO MANY THINGS are fantastic. Queen's WHO WANTS TO LIVE FOREVER with Sarah, is so phenomenal performed. She looks so lovely with the wind in her hair.

Albinoni's ADAGIO is used for the song ANYTIME, ANYWHERE. It is in my opinion one of the most beautiful song in the world. LASCIA CH'IO PIANGA and NELLA FANTASIA are two wonderful arias.

NESSUN DORMA should always be performed by a soprano - and nobody does it better than Sarah.

CAPTAIN NEMO/LA MER are astounding - Sarah floating in wires, looks like she swims underwater - fantastic sound.
IL MIO CUORE VA (the theme from Titanic) is so incredible performed with Sarah's bright soprano voice. Sarah's version is much better and beautiful than the original. It's so beautiful!
ONLY AN OCEAN AWAY and FIRST OF MAY are so fantastic.

WISHING YOU WERE SOMEHOW HERE AGAIN and MUSIC OF THE NIGHT - two of Sarah's signature songs, are always so wonderful performed. DELIVER ME - Sarah sings together with an African native choir - it sounds great. TIME TO SAY GOODBYE is even more beautiful when Sarah sings it solo.

ONE NIGHT IN EDEN is together with LA LUNA - LIVE IN CONCERT the best entertainment products in the world. Thank you Sarah for all the fantastic songs you have given to the world - without you and your voice the world would not be so beautiful.

SARAH there is NO ONE LIKE YOU - HEAVEN IS HERE.

Sarah fans will find "One night in Eden" on video, to be as moving as the CD, but slightly less clear in sound quality. About 15 min. into the video, Sarah builds the suspense,singing slower, more relaxed music. Then she sings music by the composer Ennio Morricone and others, changing into her opera style voice.

With that said, I found the vast selection of material, along with her suspense build quite thrilling. When I purchased "One night...", surprisingly, I expected the concert to be boring. As I've never seen her perform before this video, I didn't know what to expect. In the end, I liked it very much.

Look for great visual effects in this video. They're original and reflect Sarah's love of the oceanic life. The visual presentation of "One night..." is based on what I call her "Gothic chic". Sarah's wardrobe is anything but simple! Whether she is singing, drowning in deep red lights and electric candles, I think you'll appreciate the CD even more. But of course, the sound is less clear, and the acoustics steal her voice of it's true power.

The video seemed to end too fast, as result of the suspense being over with, halfway through Sarah's repertoire. Note that the conductor wasn't too formal, so the orchestra performed on more of a casual feel. I won't call the video "audio genious", but it was great. I can't wait for "La Luna" to come out on video. Let us not forget, Mountain lake broadcasting has to get their hands on it for 3 months 1st, before the actual public video release. Remember how we had to wait for "One night...".

Well, as a huge Brightman fan, I think you'll like the video. Get it yourself, rather than as a gift. That way, the suspense will be stronger. Enjoy!

"One Night in Eden" combines several different Sarah Brightman albums into one performance, including songs from Timeless ("Who Wants to Live Forever"), Dive ("Dive," "La Mer," "Captain Nemo"), and three songs from Phantom of the Opera ("Phantom Overture/Little Lotti," "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" and "Music of the Night"). The rest of the selections are from Eden, Sarah's 1998 set of classical crossover/cover songs that included "Dust in the Wind" (Kansas), "Il Mio Cuore Va" (James Horner/Celine Dion), "Eden" (Hooverphonic), and a number of classical selections ("Anytime, Anywhere" from Albinoni's Adagio, "Nessun Dorma," "Lascia Ch'io Pianga").

"One Night in Eden" presents us with a lavish staging that is full of dark atmosphere, especially in the opening numbers, complete with hooded dancers and gothic costumes. The selection of songs was excellent, combining the best of Sarah's works in recent years. I particularly enjoyed the selections from "Dive" as Sarah rarely performs her early albums. The sound and picture quality were both crystal clear, with sharp colours and good sound mixing (unlike some issues with the Sarah Brightman La Luna VHS). If you are already a Sarah Brightman fan or are just starting out, "One Night In Eden" is a wonderful concert with many memorable moments, and a look at Sarah Brightman's beautiful soprano voice and her ability to easily perform both classical and pop.

Tracklisting: Introduction/Bailero, In Paradisum, Eden, So Many Things, Who Wants To Live Forever, Anytime, Anywhere, Lascia Ch'io Pianga, Nella Fantasia, Nessun Dorma, Dive;/Captain Nemo, La Mer, II Mio Cuore Va, Only An Ocean Away, First Of May, Phantom Overture & Little Lotti, Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again, Music Of The Night, Deliver Me, Time To Say Goodbye, Artist Interview

"One Night In Eden" is a live footage of the first "The Eden Tour" concert, which took place in Sun City, South Africa. Some people call her albums kitsch but even though, I'd recommend this absolutely FANTASTIC dvd to anyone who likes good music (not to mention Sarah's fans).

Most of the songs are taken from the excellent "Eden" album. Moreover, Brightman sings some of her (and audiences') favourites: the "Phantom" songs (composed by her ex-husband Andrew Lloyd Webber) and, of course, her arguably greatest hit "Time To Say Goodbye', which she sings alone (i.e. without Bocelli). Sarah uses material from previous albums as well: "Who Wants To Live Forever" (from "Timeless"; one of the songs she most often performs), "Captain Nemo" (a fantastic success) and "La Mer" (both from "Dive").

The tracks are as follows: 1. Introduction - we hear "Bailero" and are presented with African nature and some shots with Sarah 2. "In Paradisum" 3. "Eden" - one of the best moments of the show. Sarah performs this piece along with six dancers-choirists 4. "So Many Things" 5. "Who Wants To Live Forever" 6. "Anytime, Anywhere" - a truly spellbinding song; sung partly in English and partly in Italian. In my view, that's the best song on the "Eden" album and the best song of the whole concert. 7. "Lascia Ch'Io Pianga" - written by George F. Haendel 8. "Nella Fantasia" - music by famous E. Morricone; thanks to Ferrau's lyrics turned into an interesting song 9. "Nessun Dorma" - very well-known aria from Puccini's "Turandot"; notable 10. "Dive/Captain Nemo" 11. "La Mer" - Sarah "swims" through air with two dancers in an "underwater" scene 12. "Il Mio Cuore Va" - an Italian version of incredibly popular "My Heart Will Go On" 13. "Only An Ocean Away" 14. "First Of May" - a song written by Bee Gees; it was later included in European version of "La Luna" album as an encore track 15-17 songs from "The Phantom Of The Opera" by Lloyd Webber 18. first encore - "Deliver Me" sung with an astounding African choir "Kwantle Ga" 19. closing piece - "Time To Say Goodbye"

As for the special features, there is only an exclusive artist interview (monologue?) - quite interesting; it lasts about ten minutes. It's a shame there are so few additional features, the potential of the dvd format could be used much better.

Overall, that's an amazing dvd. It's thrilling, it's fantastic. It's worth having.

"Born half a century too late" oh really?
I'm glad that Sarah Brightman is singing in an original, her own style, and not following trends that are popular right now. She has a great voice and people would listen to her no matter what is 'in'...singing what is 'in' and 'modern' is for people who can't sing classics.
Her originality, voice, and creative shows and themed CDs is what draws me most to her music; and many other people who listen to her songs.
So don't listen to the editorial review, if you like Sarah Brightman and musicals/classical music you would like this.

First of all, who is Marshall Fine? I guess he is built like a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. Sarah is not only not "pudgy", but has a lithe, graceful figure to go with her angelic face. Mr. not Fine needs glasses. Those who compare her to Madonna don't recognize class when they see or hear it. Sarah has the amazing ability to sing both pop and opera. She goes out of her way to please her fans by giving them more than just a concert, but an eye-pleasing theatrical fantasy. And isn't fantasy what Eden is about anyway? Who has ever really been there? Sarah shows us a piece what of Eden could be through her superb performances.
The filthy cine-curmudgeon guy, which (...) Princeton University says means "a crusty irascible cantankerous old person full of stubborn ideas", who said, "...no one with that voice, still magnificent even at the beginning of its decline, needs to do the (...) to sell her sound.", seems indeed quite sick. After reading his indecent, tacky excuse for a review of Sarah's Eden (which he is not worthy of reviewing) I reported him to Amazon for using profanity. I hope they remove his offensive, sleazy so-called review.
The talented Sarah Brightman is truly a Diva in every sense.

Sarah is beautiful and has a wonderful voice. The VHS tape has excellent sound quality and excellent video quality. She sings about 20 songs in this concert in 92 minutes - just amazing. The viewer is in for a real treat. The concert is classic and romantic.

(Amazon Marketplace)

Not sure what's torturing Marshall Fine or the cine-curmugeon, but I couldn't disagree with their nit-picking more. This is really a good show. Marshall, you may want to avoid piggy-backing your opinion on the basis of a few old farts in the audience sitting on their hands - they look like beer-bellied skid-markers who probably were dragged out by their wives. Anyway, Sarah Brightman is one of the world's most gifted voices and this is one of her best shows - a really nice mix of pieces in this concert and her singing soars. How can you bitch about what she's done with "My heart Will Go On"? If the Italian lyrics knock you off your moorings you probably need an oil change or at least a genre change. It's a beautiful rendering. The whole DVD is outstanding = 5 stars for Sarah. her other DVDs don't come close to this one in my opinion.

I must comment on official Amazon reviewer Marshall Fine's inappropriate comment regarding this artist's "pudgy build". Amazon, I can't believe you'd allow this type of hurtful, harmful and ignorant comment. What the H-E Double Hockey Sticks does her BODY have to do with her singing talent and/or appeal? Marshall Fine should not be allowed to make such comments in this arena.

We've come a long way, baby, but not far enough if there are still men out there like this. (and no, Marshall, contrary to what you are probably thinking, I am not pudgy, just understanding that women come in many different body types -- hey, I'd like to review YOUR BODY so let's you post a pic online, ok?)