Kent,
Last night my wife Barbara and I rolled down to the Northern Lights Theater
at Potawatomi Casino near downtown Milwaukee to see Sheena Easton in what
appeared to be a sold-out concert. This is my fourth time seeing Sheena and, at
age 60 (can it be true?), she continues to put on a great show.
Sheena’s voice
seems as strong as ever and she belted out most of her own hits and a selection
of well-known covers for 80 minutes. She was backed by a tight four piece band
(drums, guitar, keyboards, and sax) and the outstanding vocal
backing/harmonizing of Phillip Ingram (brother of James and founding member of
Motown group “Switch”).
Besides the great vocals, Sheena demonstrated charming
stage presence (better each time I have seen her), including a true knack for
comedic banter with the audience.
Her set list included her hits Telefone
(Long Distance Love Affair), Strut, When He Shines, Almost Over You,
Morning Train, and The Lover In Me. Easton/Ingram duets included a
mix of Sugar Walls/You’ve Got the Look (part of a four song tribute to her friend
and collaborator Prince), We've Got Tonight (originally done with Kenny Rogers)
and a short Motown medley. She also did the classic How Deep is the Ocean
from her No Strings album and the Dionne Warwick (or Sandie Shaw) favorite, Always
Something There To Remind Me.
Sheena’s final song, as always, was the James Bond
classic For Your Eyes Only. (Though she does not mention it on stage, it is
interesting to note that this is the only Bond intro song that includes the face
of the vocalist in the intro - watch it and you’ll understand why).
My only
disappointment was the absence of two of my favorites, Modern Girl and Do It For
Love. But I can’t complain ... I thought the show was great and the crowd
enthusiastically agreed. In ads for the show Sheena is described as
“enchanting” ... I concur.
Bob Verbos
PS - The Northern Lights Theater is a great place to see a concert and
frequently has performers from the 70s and 80s. The prices are very reasonable
and the covered parking is free. The theater has about 400 seats so there is not
a bad seat in the house.
Sounds like a great place to see a show ... very intimate.
We missed Sheena that last time she was here at The Arcada Theatre due to a scheduling conflict. My one brief encounter with her happened several years ago when she was one of the headliners at The Gay Pride extravaganza that was going on in the city. We (and a little over a million OTHER people) tried frantically to get a glimpse of her on the outdoor stage but it was virtually impossible. I was able to stick around long enough to catch about four songs (all "audio only") before the crowd literally moved us on our way. Would love the experience to catch the whole show sometime. (Ron - any plans on having her back anytime soon?)
Thanks for a great review! (kk)
