Read a review of Tori's Clearwater, FL concert from the April 2, 2005 edition of TBO.com, which will also likely appear in The Tampa Tribune newspaper.
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Thanks to Christoffplatts for pointing out this concert review to me. You can read it online at tbo.com or below. All the reviews from the April 1, 2005 show in Clearwater, FL can be found here.
At Ruth Eckerd Hall, The Story Was Tori
By KARLA JACKSON
kkjackson@tampatrib.com
CLEARWATER - Like a fairy queen in a magic garden, Tori Amos transfixed a capacity crowd of nearly 2,200 Friday night at Ruth Eckerd Hall with her mystical, melodious repertoire of fan favorites.
On tour to promote her newest CD, ``The Beekeeper,'' released in February, Amos straddled her piano bench like it was a bronco, simultaneously playing piano and organ on many of her songs, such as ``Original Sinsuality'' and ``Seaside.'' The effect made it seem like she had a stage full of musicians even though she appeared solo.
She performed cuts off nearly all of her CDs, from 1992's ``Little Earthquakes'' to ``Beekeeper.'' Crowd favorite ``Happy Phantom'' had a fun, honky tonk feel to it. ``Winter,'' another one of her early pieces, was melodramatic and theatrical, as was the newer cut ``Jamaica Inn.''
Amos' keyboard work is as confident and complicated as ever, but she makes it look easy, even as she stands up to hammer on the high keys and swings around to play the organ, her full pink skirt spinning around her like cotton candy.
In homage to her early days, Amos did a two-song set she called ``Tori's Piano Bar,'' which included covers of Billie Holiday's ``God Bless the Child'' and Elton John's `` Candle in the Wind.''
``I used to love it when people would come up to the piano and ask me to play their requests,'' she said while introducing the set.
However, Friday night's performance was not the time for that, she said. ``Nothing you say tonight matters,'' she replied to a loud-mouthed fan shouting out a request. ``Maybe next time.''
Opening act Matt Nathanson of San Francisco won over the early birds in the audience with his self-effacing manner and excellent acoustic guitar during a short 20-minute set. He sounded a lot like pop star John Mayer, but with more of an edge.
