StrangeLittleTour
London, U.K.
December 7, 2001
Updated January 12, 2002
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Tori performed in London, U.K. on December 7, 2001 at the London Apollo Hammersmith during the 2001 StrangeLittleTour. Set ListThanks to Pookie and Deborah Finding for being the first people to email me the complete set list, and to Gretchen Curtis for being the first to email me most of the set list! '97 Bonnie & Clyde 1st Encore: 2nd Encore: ReviewsLatest reviews are added to the bottom of the page. Be sure to check the Tori Concert Reviews Forum for reviews as well! From Alex MacphersonAdded January 12, 2001 - Alex wrote the following review for his student newspaper in the U.K. TORI AMOS There is, on one of the many internet sites devoted to Tori Amos, a poll of her most what-the-fuck moments. Pseudo-masturbatory live performances, foul-mouthed usher abuse and playing 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas' - at Hallowe'en - are all included. It's tongue-in-cheek, but nonetheless admirably showcases Amos' gift for the unexpected which, together with a startling emotional intensity, makes her one of the most thrilling live acts in rock. Both qualities - and more - are on full display tonight. Opening with her cover of Eminem's '97 Bonnie & Clyde' (taken from last year's concept covers LP Strange Little Girls), a portrait of Amos dressed as the song's murdered wife dominates the stage while, concealed offstage, she whispers the lyrics in a chilling monotone. Backed by frenetic, urgent horror-movie strings, it's disturbing and utterly compelling. This mixture of violence and delicacy pervades Amos' music tonight. Her cover of the Boomtown Rats' 'I Don't Like Mondays' is innocent and lullabic, tender vocals set against twinkling Rhodes organ chords, yet 'the lesson today is how to die'; meanwhile, fighter pilots are shot down over virtuoso piano playing in the elegiac 'Not The Red Baron'. This dichotomy is encapsulated in 'Ju·rez', a (true) tale of mass mutilation and rape in the Mexican desert. Brutal on record, with abrasive beats pounding Amos' piano into submission, it's a revelation in stripped-down live form: Amos stands to reach into the piano and begins to pluck and slap the strings from inside the instrument, all the while alternating between visceral, howling despair and vampish detachment. Amos' emotional hold over her audience also makes for moments of sheer, transcendent beauty, whether phrasing with stunning gravitational pull during 'Honey' or rasping her way through 'Me And A Gun' - the a cappella account of her own rape - hunched on her piano stool and bathed in a single white spotlight. The old shivering-victim label has long since been outgrown, though; after the harrowing 'Me And A Gun' comes the flowing absolution of 'Time' in a powerful juxtaposition of drama and dignity. It's moments like these which confirm Amos as one of the greatest performers and songwriters of our time; to be able to witness this talent first-hand is nothing less than a privilege. From Gretchen CurtisAdded December 7, 2001 - I did not actually go to the show but a friend of mine, Carole a.k.a. Galaxygirl let me listen to the show on her mobile!!! How funny (or sad) is that? Anyway, I thought you might like to know what songs Tori played tonight. When I phoned Carole up (don't worry, her phone was set to vibrate :)) Tori was right in the middle of 97 Bonnie and Clyde. I don't know if there were more songs before that but after that she played: Juarez
1st Encore:
2nd Encore: Sorry about that! Anyway, it was an amazing show and I really wish I could have been there. It was really good of Carole to let me listen. The reception was mostly pretty bad (imagine riding in a car over stone boulders listening on a cd player to a bootlegged show that was taped outside the venue she was playing in!!! ha ha ha) but it was worth it to hear a bit of Tori. Ok, it wasn't THAT bad or I wouldn't have stayed on, but still, you know what I mean. The show didn't seem to take too long but saying that, she may have played a few more songs before I rang. She did tell some stories and stuff, but I really had no idea what she was saying. I'm sure loads of people will tell you what she said. I'm interested to hear it too because it all sounded very funny. From PookieAdded December 7, 2001 - Just got back from amazing Tori gig in Hammersmith Apollo, London. Set list: Bonnie & Clyde '97 (no sign of Tori, behind a curtain??) Juarez Tori had a chat with us about how cold it is on her tour bus cos their heating failed last nite - and apologised for being a bit croaky in the voice. (her singing was still fab tho!) Putting the Damage On Tori sounded and looked fantastic!! really really enjoyed it!!!
Added December 7, 2001 - Brilliant, even though she had a hoarse voice (had to drop a few high notes on 'Time') and joked about sounding like Stevie Nicks.
She said the heating had gone on the tour bus and when she felt Tasha's legs they were like icicles. She said, 'I stayed up all night keeping her warm. So...I'm fucked'.
Added December 8, 2001 - Just got back from seeing Tori at Hammersmith Apollo in London and I know you'll probably get people sending more accurate setlists but I'm so excited and I just had to email you! Wow. I've seen her about 10 times in concert, but this time she really, really impressed me. She is so professional and so, so good.
Comments onİa few 'incidents' and some of the songs:
Tori was ill!!! She was drinking some kind of hot drink (I could just about see her slurping it down in the dark between songs throughout the entire show) and early on in the show she said she was "fucked"! Something to do with the tour bus heating being shit. And I thought "oh no what if she can't do the show?" But it was amazing. She still sang beautifully and her voice sounded really sexy too. I think she deliberately avoided high notes (especially in Time) but I don't think I would have known she was ill if she hadn't said. She sounded reeeeeeally croaky and much more ill when she spoke to the audience (around 3 or 4 times), but her singing voice was still gorgeous. It just shows how goddamn professional she is. When she was talking about being ill, she said "hey, but you guys like Stevie Nicks, right?" Ha ha - and how fitting that she ended with Landslide!
I Don't Like Mondays was absolute perfection.
Not the Red Baron - one of my faves, really beautiful, but seemed slightly rushed.
Playboy Mommy - on the wurly - really beautiful. She did the Champagne story. I just find it really weird that she turns it into a big comedy thing (she got quite rude!) when the song is so painful.
Me and a Gun - the creepiest I've ever seen it. She was hunched over throughout and sang it so slowly. God. The lighting made her look like a ghost. Before she started the song - I could tell it was Me and a Gun cos she was facing the audience - people were shouting out and making requests, and I was just thinking "Oh no, shut up, you shouldn't be shouting things out now!" I was cringing a bit.
Fairly major incident - Before Cruel (the 2nd encore), Tori was on her way to the wurly and (it all happened so fast) someone was on stage, and the security guard ran on and took her off. It was only a youngİgirl who obviously was up there to give something to Tori, but it was really frightening.İIt all happened so quickly. The security guard seemed to almost knockİTori over and Tori looked quite shocked. Full fucking credit to Tori for gettingİover it INSTANEOUSLY and carrying on with the show. Wow.
The final four songs: my heart melted. I often read people's comments about crying at concerts and think "oh come on, don't be daft!", but I have to say I almost cried. Cruel was amazing on the wurly. She transformed it. I wish I could remember how the new version went but it's gone. Only Women Bleed - oh my god. I've never heard this before, but it was gorgeous. Can't wait to get my hands on the Strange Little Girl single. I'm On Fire was utterly beautiful and Landslide was heart-breakingly gorgeous (and a lovely little nod to her earlier Stevie Nicks reference).
All in all, brilliant. I think we are very lucky - Toriİwas obviously ill, and if she was a lesser artist she probably would have abandoned the show. She is so professional and dedicated. I'm lost for words.
I took my flatmates with me tonight and I was really nervous about how they'd react - they don't know her music too well. I was so nervous that I didn't even look at them or speak to them during the show. Well, they loved it. Jayne said she was inİtears throughout the show, and especially loved Time and I'm on Fire.
Anyway Mike, I hope you find all this informative!
(Still can't believe those last four songs!!!!!!!! Oh goddd! Wish she'd played Etienne, Butterfly and Cool on Your Island, but I'm on Fire made up for it.)
Added December 8, 2001 - i came to the meet&greet and it was going well until around 3:00 when the
security guards came up and transformed our neat little line into this big
mess on the opposite side of where we had been standing. tori came maybe an
hour later, and all of these 6-feet-tall people all started pushing at the
front and passing things over to sign. i couldn't see her at all, just the
corner of her hair and an eye at one point. terrible, since i'd been waiting
3 1/2 hours. but it wasn't like i'd read about, where tori stops and hugs
people down the line - only one or two people actually got to speak directly
to her, and i don't think anyone had a picture with her. it was just this
signing mess. anyway, i did get the little mental yoga project book passed
over and i know she got it. at least.
the show came then, and it was so beautiful. much shorter, since tori was
hoarse and had been up in the cold all night with tash, but it was wonderful.
she sounded incredible. i was crying over bonnie & clyde, with the woman
through every step of that song. then an amazing ju·rez, putting the damage
on (which also had me in tears), little amsterdam (this might have been my
favorite of the night, so religious and mesmerising), upside down (a lovely
surprise), i don't like mondays, honey (which tori kissed! - wonderful as
well), leather (very cute), suede (just incredible), not the red baron,
playboy mommy on the rhodes, me and a gun (spotless. not a single cell phone.
perfect), and a gorgeous time. then i ran to the bathroom and came back just
in time for the encores, cruel, and my second close favorite, only women
bleed. breathtaking. and finally two equally wonderful covers, i'm on fire
(was this a debut?) and landslide. overall, much too beautiful, much too
wonderful, and much too short. wherever she is, i'm thinking of her, that
beautiful woman. thank you tori, and i only hope she's read some of the
mental yoga book (which had some of my poetry in it as well) :)
Added December 8, 2001 - The set list tonight was:
97 B & C 1st Encore Cruel (with a little Amazing Grace ad-lib bit) 2nd Encore (which I really didn't think we'd get, due to crazy girl on the
stage)
I'm On Fire (FABULOUS!) Tori sounded really croaky during 97 B & C, and when she came out she let us
know that the heat on the tour bus went out last night, and in the middle of
the night, Natashya's legs "felt like icicles" so she was up all night
trying to make sure she was warm. She said she knew she was croaky, and she
was sorry, but she was "a bit fucked."
Despite that, she was very much in control of her voice and actually sounded
EXCELLENT for the rest. There were a few croaky bits but she recovered. It
was really, really a good show. :)
Added December 8, 2001 - I'm now almost expecting to see the mug of hot drink on stage - there was a
certain amount of banter about drinks during the show. I was sitting back
at the end of row T, so I'd brought some opera-glasses-sized binoculars.
The top half of Tori's costume seemed half-way between a matador's jacket
and a formal Kimono - beautifully embroidered with an almost paisley
pattern, one sleeve was red, running into a shoulder piece and the other
sleeve was darker and much shorter. The lower half was a vertically
patterned dark, almost black dress split up both sides (safety pins to stop
it going too far), with a high corsetish-style belt over the embodied
jacket. The ensemble was finished off with fishnets and serious black
high-heels, held on by wide ankle straps.
(20:43)
* '97 Bonnie & Clyde
I'm 99% sure it was the album version, rather than just a backing track to
vocals, but there were a couple of clicks in the vocal that made me wonder.
There was a camouflage-style curtain in front of all the instruments, so you
couldn't see during the track but Tori walked on after the curtain was
dropped at the end of the number.
* Juarez
Very much played-with. It's a fairly intense track anyway, but this was on
another step. She was beating the strings with a certain amount for force.
* Putting the Damage On
She then talked about how the heating didn't work on the tour bus, and she'd
been up all night with Tasha, because her legs were like icicles, and as a
result she "was a little fucked". This showed - a lot of the higher
registers were dropped an octave.
* Little Amsterdam
(on Bosey and Electric piano)
* Upside Down
* I Don't Like Mondays
(on electric piano) Magnificent!
"I kicked this track off the record at Olympic Studios". Big mistake! I
thought she was going to go into Cooling at this point but it turned out to
be -
* Honey
Her voice was a growl at one point - which actually worked quite well.
* Leather
I've heard this is her "get it back together" song... but I do enjoy it in
the set
* Suede
(Started on Electric Piano, ended up using both)
* Not the Red Baron
* Playboy Mommy
(on the Wurley). Proceeded by a version of the champagne (Krug) anecdote -
"I'd just got some money and I didn't have to swallow for it"
* Me and A Gun
Sitting at the Bosey, lit from behind.
* Time
Some of the higher lines were dropped an octave.
(21:54. Off-stage for no more than a minute or two)
1st Encore:
From the crowd: "Play something for Neil Gainman"
* Cruel, segued with "Amazing Grace".
(On the Wurley)
* Only Women Bleed - I want this track!
(22:06. Ditto)
2nd Encore:
* I'm on Fire All in all, a very fine set, even if by her own admission, she was a little
under the weather. I didn't see clearly what happened when someone ran on
stage, there were too many people standing in front of me. On the other
hand, she did come up bow over the audience at the end of each section, then
finally shake hands with a few people at the front
Added December 8, 2001 - during hey jupiter the lighting was just perfection - so atmospheric and moody and then...... just as tori sang "im trying not to move its just your ghost passing through" she was top lit with just one peachy orange spotlight and the stage smoke swirled up into it and it just looked like a spirit rising or soaring away. it was so moving and a very clever effect.
thanks for listening!
Added December 8, 2001 - I can see that so many people have already submitted setlists so I won't bother doing that, but I will talk about how special the show was last night. This was my first Tori show, and I was especially pleased that it happened here in London. The show started with an amazing opening act, Ben Christopher, who really won the crowd over I think. I wasn't familiar with him before but I will surely keep my eye open for him in the future. A short break of about half an hour, until Tori opened the show with '97 Bonnie & Clyde. Haunting lyrics from Tori offstage, while on stage a photo of Tori, with a blonde wig, under a spotlight made for a really errie beginning. The crowd was mesmorized. The massive black curtain falls and Tori enters from stage right. What a beginning. There was a lot of talk throughout the show with Tori giving her champagne story, and also talking of the frigid tour bus. She did sound a bit hoarse, and was drinking from a cup through the whole show, but her vocals were superb and probably even more effective on some songs. I don't have much more to add about the show other than the fact that given the fact she was sick and probably very tired, she gave her heart and soul for the performance. You can see that she loves her music and her fans very much. And it is because of this that I think so many people connect with her and her music. She gave a wonderful performance and is truly a diva.
Added December 8, 2001 - i am following Tori in europe, and i got last night set list which was VERY VERY different from what she actually played.
thought some people would find it intersting (i've never seen anything like this before).
here we go:
97 BC
CRUEL
BACHLORETTE Added December 8, 2001 - i just saw that there are a few reviews from the last night show already. never minde, i just swob the setlist then.
we came from camebridge and just arrived in time to have a ok place for the m&g. well, it took quite a while till tori arrived and people started getting bit grunchy, because it was soooo freezing. but when she came everybody seemed very excited. i was very thrilled, because i haven't been to a show since the plugged tour. tori looked really great and she signed most of the peoples posters and covers. even when the people in the front didn't think about moving away it worked out some how to pass stuff to the front and get it signed.
the show was smashing, even when tori had a sore throught and singing 'time' she sound like tom waits himself. but she really was great even when she left out the hight parts in some songs.
after the show we waited for her, hoping to speek to her again. but the security guys told us off. well, we still waited but when we saw her car leaving through the back exit at midnight we went home. it really seemed that she didn't feel well, otherwise she would have stopped by again, as she usually does.
anyway, it was a brilliant day! and guess what! tomorrow i'm off to berlin, to see her from my front row seat in my home town! i can't wait :).
Added December 8, 2001 - overall, i was pretty disappointed with the whole night. i got there around 2 and waited over 2 hours for her to come out. there was a crowd of people lined up and one of tori's guards came out and made us all move (causing people to lose their places, which is the single most annoying thing when you have been waiting and have earned your place in line). when she finally came out, she was only allowed to walk between a 6-7 foot barricade to sign things. people were trying to push their way to the front. i don't see why she couldn't have walked down the length of the barricades that were set up (that's were the majority of the people were standing!) i managed to get an autograph and then forced myself out of the crowd only to see her walking away to get to the sound check. i think they were running very late because tori had to walk/jog to keep up with them to get inside. also during the show she mentioned the heat going out in the bus and having to keep 'tasha's' legs warm and then something about he
r being 'f*cked.' also she drank tea after almost every song.
one very good perk for me was right before she played 'honey.' she said something like, 'this next song is one of my favorites from under the pink' and i was sitting there thinking 'honey honey honey' and i wispered to my friend that i thought she was gonna play honey so my friend encouraged me to yell it out. so i yelled 'HONEY!' and she just smiled, said 'yeah' and went into the song. that made my night.
i hope other people enjoyed the show. not the best i've seen. it really did seem like it was rushed and that tori wasn't in the best of moods. also one other thing i noticed is she didn't leave after me and a gun and in previous concerts she used that song as a breakig point where she would leave and come back for the encore.
that's about all i can remember from the night.
Added December 9, 2001 - I see you have loads of comments already!
I was really looking forward to hearing 97 B&C, and it was really electric not being able to see Tori while she did it. I could hear her voice was very croaky- I thought she was going to have to stop the show! But when the curtains dropped she did Juarez with one leg up on the piano stool, and after told us she was trying. She said she liked the red buses we have in this country- she could live on one of those cute things!
Later she told a story about being in Champagne with some girls who fell out, so they all had a bottle of Krug each, and she fell off her platforms, q. playboy mommy. I hadn't heard that story before- I felt really sad, but then I remembered she has Tashya now.
She seemed in a really good mood and made kissing sounds for Honey- her fave. She was "out of her mind" to kick her off the album, she said!
I thought Tori was a bit cross with the security guard who hussled the little girl off the stage- it was like she wanted to hug her I think.
In Time she was very obvious about the way she avoided the high notes. In the encores she played 3 songs I've never heard her do, and they were lovely. She told us where the Wurly came from- she said she didn't do the paint job- and Cruel and Playboy sounded great on it. I thought it was funny she followed Leather with Suede!
Added December 9, 2001 - Overall an amazing performace, particularly as Tori was feeling under the weather. I went to the pre-tour show in London back in August and this show was 10 times better - she's clearly in the swing of things with the tour now, and had so much energy and presence. Lots of chatting from Tori and banter between herself and the audience.
The show started as usual with 97 Bonnie & Clyde. Her voice sounded pretty raspy at times (one of your earlier reviewers was almost convinced it was the album version -- without a shadow of a doubt Tori was singing live!), but I think that only added to the whole eerie, spooky effect. During the 'just the two of us' pre-recorded chorus Tori improvised over the top with 'just you and Dada' or something like that. This was a great opener to the show -- her voice sounded so eerie at times -- I felt goosepimples when she whispered 'there goes Mama into the water".'
The curtain dropped with the final string crescendo, and Tori came on stage, all beaming smiles and waves. I was in the circle so can't accurately describe her outfit, but she was wearing an outfit with one short sleeve and one long sleeve, trousers with quite a high slit up each side, and the whole thing seemed to be made out of a ton of material!
She stood and started pounding the piano, and sang 'no angel came' repeatedly before properly launching into Juarez. I thought this was a great version -- it was more up-tempo than the album version and Tori was hammering on the piano strings and almost seemed to be rapping each verse. She stayed standing during the song and put her leg up on the stool.
Next came a faithful version of Putting the Damage On, on the piano. After this she said 'so, let's have a chat about buses!' and went on to tell us that the heating had gone down on the tour bus the night before, and she had been up all night with Tashya as her legs had been 'like little icicles, so now I'm fucked'!
She then played Little Amsterdam on the Bose and organ, then launched into Upside Down, one of my absolute faves!! During this song she deliberately missed the high notes and sang an octave lower on the 'I found the secret to life' bits -- probably because of her sore throat.
After this she played I Don't Like Mondays, and then introduced the next song, saying that she'd missed it off a previous album, but plays her most days - 'this girl coming up terrorises me, like every day of my life, and it's like mwah [she scrunched up her eyes and made a kissing noise]'. She then launched into the gorgeous Honey.
Next came Leather, with the typical legs crossed, head down whilst playing the first note. When she sang 'don't you want more than my sex' somebody in the audience shouted out 'yes I do', and Tori paused and smiled.
Suede was excellent, as was Not The Red Baron (I think she did an intro mixed with Amazing Grace). She led into Playboy Mommy with a little story, saying something like 'isn't champagne great?' Then she was rambling a bit, saying 'oh, I don't mean that to people who have been in AA or whatever".and I know quite a few people who have".I just mean".er"sorry for being so crap!' She said she had taken some girlfriends on holiday (not to the Champagne region, as a previous reviewer said, but she was drinking it), and these girls started fighting with each other. She said 'I thought that was pretty nice of me, taking them on holiday' and somebody shouted out 'could you afford it?' She said 'well I'd just made some cash, so what the fuck!' (Laughter and applause from the audience) 'and I didn't have to swallow for it either!' (even more cheering and applause). So she said that these girlfriends were fighting and she was trying to calm them down by handing bottles of Krug champagne around. She had just bought these huge clumpy Prada shoes and they were staying in a two storey building. She launched into the song by saying something like 'so I was a bit squiffy from the champagne and standing at the top of the stairs and then"".in my platforms I hit the floor, fell face down".' And carried on the song.
As an aside, I was wondering whether this actually what happened when she had her first miscarriage (i.e. being on this holiday and falling down the stairs), or whether she was just using the story to introduce the song.
After this, the lights went down for Me And A Gun. I knew this song was coming because you could see Tori take the microphone in her hand and compose herself before singing. Lots of people took this opportunity to shout 'I love you Tori' and shout out requests for songs, which was really annoying because you could tell she was getting ready to perform this powerful song and she couldn't start until the loudmouths shut up.
Time completed the main part of the show (again, avoiding the higher notes because of her throat).
The first encore began with Cruel -- the best live version of this I've ever heard, as it was slowed right down and played on the Wurley, really nice and mellow. Before this though, a girl ran onto the stage as Tori walked towards the Wurley and Joel rushed over and grabbed her. She was trying to give Tori some flowers or something, and it looked like Tori didn't want Joel to do anything to the girl as she kind of put her hands out towards him to stop him doing anything too drastic.
Only Women Bleed on the piano was amazing -- for some reason I thought she sang this in a really sensual way, more so than usual!
Final encore I'm on Fire and Landslide. What can I say -- absolute perfection! Only downside was no Meet and Greet with Tori outside on her way out -- I kinda thought they wouldn't as it was pretty cold and her voice was sounding rough. The security guy was a bit rude to us I thought ( I see from the tour programme Joel is now 'Security Director' - the guy giving us a hard time must have been one of his minions!), saying in a really patronising voice 'haven't you got places to go? This just ISN'T going to happen tonight!' I had hoped to see Tori in person afterwards, but I know she was feeling unwell.
Added December 10, 2001 - Michel and I managed to get the original set list of london concert after begging for 10 min!!!
here it goes:
1st encore:
2nd encore: Added December 10, 2001 - I know it's a little late, but I feel really strongly about some things that
went on at the Tori concert on the 7th. I absolutely hate to moan, but a
certain group of people in row G (you know who you were) really spoilt the
show. From the reviews I have read so far it seems that most people
construed the heckling as light banter. However, as Tori spoke for the
first time, one of them shouted some sarcastic comment about the M&G, to
which Tori responded "Love back at you" or something. One of them then went
on to request a song, while another responded "Don't listen to her...she's a
Kraut" - how lovely in these times of tolerance!
When Tori went onto talk about her trip to Champagne at the start of Playboy
Mommy, after Tori said she took her friends on holiday, the comment from the
crowd was "Well, you can afford it", and it was said rather sarcastically.
At another point, one of them stood up on their chair and pretended to surf
on it. I can't even tell you what they were saying during Me and a Gun -
luckily they weren't shouting loud enough for Tori to hear. If she had, I
don't think she would have come on for an encore, and in fact, we were
surprised she did after all the things she did hear.
I think they were all drunk, or stupid or both. If any of you are reading
this, you should really be ashamed - it spoilt the show for us, and I am
sure the show was spoilt for all the other people who had to keep turning
around to tell you to shut up.
It is such a shame that these people had to come along and heckle - we
really couldn't fathom what they were even doing there - they were really
good seats, and there were plenty of other people who would have loved the
chance to be so close to Tori.
Despite all of this, Tori herself was fantastic. I went to the M&G for the
first time, and really appreciated the fact that she came along in the cold,
and took the time to speak and sign things. Both me and my boyfriend were
actually embarrassed for Tori that these people were being so mean - both to
Tori and to the other people who were sitting around us.
One thing that I don't think has been mentioned is the fantastic support
from Ben Christophers - great voice, and great music.
I am soooo sorry to have to moan about this, but I have now been to 6 Tori
concerts, and before this, none had the uneasy atmosphere that pervaded on
Friday.
Added December 13, 2001 - I am happy to be able to say that I got to see the concert and especially in row D smack in the middle. In fact, I felt very lucky and honoured. I really enjoyed the show, regardless of the large ammount of money I had to pay to see her up close. You can never spend too much money to see Tori and as a fellow fan sitting in front of me said, "you never regret it afterwards" (thanks mate)!
I thought her performance was amazing and...what a presence!!! Yeah, she was a bit under the weather, but it didn't seem to matter a whole lot. I thought it was quite cool how she played with the octaves in Time when she couldn't sing high for long. In fact it's so typical of her to make a sweet joke when she gets things wrong and her face, I thought, was saying "oops can't quite go up there, but it's ok, lets make the best of it". That's the thing with Tori: it's really ok to be who you are, whoever you are! ...oh, well, except those people shouting more than their fare share. I can't see why you'd go to see Tori if you're not going to be nice to her. Love coupled with uncontrollable envy? (just a thought)
Still, I thought she was better at the union chapel, though it makes sense that Tori in that particular venue would be beyond imaginable beauty. I know she can give a lot more to her fans, but I guess she wasn't feeling very strong and she had good reasons too. I somehow feel unlucky in that sense, but not to take away from this amazing experience. I was thrilled and had tears in my eyes (again).
I liked her response when during the concert a woman shouted "come to my house". She paused for a second and then warmly and positively said "I will come to your house". Of course she wouldn't, but the way she said it it felt real. I feel she comes to my house. She comes to my soul, my internal world with the people I love in it, and my soul is my house. And she enjoyes being there. She so touches you, this woman! Of all the things she said, this is the one that will stay with me.
Added December 18, 2001 - A review of this London show appeared in the December 13, 2001 edition of The Daily Telegraph newspaper in the U.K. Read the review at telegraph.co.uk or below.
No band but tons of emotion
David Cheal reviews Tori Amos at the Hammersmith Apollo
IS Tori Amos better with or without a band? Discuss.
This is the kind of question that has probably been posed a thousand times on the zillion websites devoted to this singularly gifted and endearingly peculiar singer-songwriter-pianist, and before this show, the third and final night in a brief UK tour, on which she was accompanied only by her own collection of keyboards (Amos would probably call them a "family" in her anthropomorphic way), my preferences were resolutely in favour of the with-band experience. Three years ago, following the release of her sensational From the Choirgirl Hotel album, I saw her in Liverpool, backed by bass, drums and guitar, and the experience was so overwhelming that the memory of it still brings a chill to my spine. Compared with a solo show at the Albert Hall some years earlier, when she had been at risk of being swallowed up in the vastness of the auditorium, it was a revelation.
But at the end of this show, I came away feeling thoroughly satisfied. Amos's piano-playing was so dynamic, her left hand so rampant, and the songs so strong, that at no point did my mind's ear conjure up an imaginary rhythm section. (It helped, too, that the venue is more conducive to solo performance than the vast rococo biscuit barrel that is the Albert Hall.)
She was suffering from a cold - the result, she said, of a unheated tour bus - which meant that her voice was a little raw and more limited in range than usual, but this had little effect on the emotional impact of the songs. She was forced, for instance, to drop down an octave on her version of Tom Waits's Time, but this did not detract from its tingling melancholia.
Similarly affecting was her stripped-down version of I Don't Like Mondays (also taken from her strange, recent album of cover versions, Strange Little Girls). Of the home-grown material that dominated the show, Playboy Mommy, with its rolling rhythm and aching melody, was exquisitely sad, while Suede was sparse, peculiar and haunting.
I still think that Tori-plus-band has the edge over Tori on her own, chiefly because a backing band enables her to incorporate more of her dark, clattering, groove-based material. Nevertheless, this was a mesmerising and emotionally fulfilling performance, and my only real gripe - apart from the thoughtlessness of the mad stage invader who almost frightened the object of her fixation to death - was that I suspect that we got rather less of her than if she had emerged from a snug tour bus in full health. Added December 18, 2001 - Simon Cook and James Chapman sent me a press review of the London show that appeared in the December 14, 2001 edition of The Daily Mail newspaper in the U.K.
Strange little girl grows up
LIVE: TORI AMOS Hammersmith Apollo
This was part of Tori Amos's self-styled Strange Little Tour.
But, appearing unaccompanied for the first time in seven years, the singer
shunned the more bizarre - and unlistenable - aspects of her last album,
Strange Little Girls (a largely drab collection of covers), and concentrated
instead on the virtuoso piano playing and soaring vocals which initially made
her so stimulating.
Choosing only the most simple and stark songs from Strange Little Girls,
Amos opened with an eerie version of Eminem's '97 Bonnie & Clyde. She later
sang delicate covers of Tom Waits's mournful Time and I Don't Like Mondays,
once a hit for The Boomtown Rats: her vocals, given a husky edge by a recent
cold, were particularly effective on the Waits track; I Don't Like Mondays,
sung as a lament, sounded better on stage than on record.
But Tori was at her best on intimate, original songs and the night's most
memorable moments were a jazzy Playboy Mommy, played on an electric piano
which once belonged to Sixties folkrockers Country Joe & The Fish, and an a
capella interpretation of the harrowing Me And A Gun.
Peppered with mischievous asides, Amos's hour-long set raced by and she was
given a standing ovation before returning for two encores, both non-original
numbers which did not appear on her recent album.
If Alice Cooper's Only Women Bleed (which was released as a B-side) and
Bruce Springsteen's I'm On Fire had been included, Strange Little Girls would
have been a much stronger record.
So before little amsterdam she said something like 'hi guys how are you?' People started shouting requests but one girl said can we do something for you, which got a laugh! She said yeah you can, get me a warm bus. She then said 'lets chat, about buses. No not the red London buses, I love those. No, I'm talking about my tour bus. So we were on there last night and the heating broke. I felt Tash's legs and they were like icicles. So I had to stay up all night keeping her warm . So basically now... I'm fucked! I know it's rough but...' and then she went into the song.
before Honey she said that the song was one of those song that haunts her and she kicked it of UTP when she was in Olympian studios, and she must be out of her mind.
Finally she told the Champagne story. It was as usual but she talked about how she took all her friends to France because "I'd just made alot of money, nothing wrong with that". She also talked about how two of her friends decided they were gonna kill each other, so she plied them with mine. Unfortunatley she too had the wine and then... into the song.
She coped really well with the girl who ran on stage. I think Joel was a little shaken too, cos he come on stage when she went to the front to bow after the following encores.
On her playing: I thought she did really well. But I don't agree about her voice. It wasn't at its best. She was definatly suffering. She changed the octave on multiple lines (in Honey she lost it and growled for like 10 secs which got a big laugh.) She did well. Cruel, suede etc were totally reinvented.
Finally a big down side for me... NO UTP. (Except Honey!)
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Review by Etienne79
Hey all! The London show was my first Tori show (and this is my first time here!) and it was just an amazing experience!
Anyways, I got a look at the "setlist" from the stage after the show and it was quite different from what was actually performed. It included...
Beauty Queen/Horses
And some of the songs that Tori did sing weren't included, like Upside Down. Perhaps this list was dumped at the last minute 'cause Tori was, in her words, feeling "fucked"! I really would have loved to hear Marianne though, shame...
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Review by Paul
Bachelorette was also supposed to be in the final three encore songs that ended with I'm On Fire and Landslide instead. I'm happy with hearing I'm On Fire tonight. This show worked better for me than Manchester last night
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Review by stereoboy
Oh man - the biggest anti-climax I have ever felt at a Tori show after I saw the setlist at the end. She had the following songs down to play and did none of them...
Sugar
I can't believe she cut those 9 songs out and replaced them with Upside Down!
I know a lot of people loved her choice of set, and of course I understand she was ill, but her choice of set last night was along the lines of just about every song I don't reall like! Exceptions being I Don't Like Mondays and Time which were fab!
Guess I'm spoilt by my memories of the uber-Tori-gig at the Royal Festival Hall in 1999.
Oh - and Bonnie And Clyde - as I was sat at the far side of the stage I could see between the curtains to the mixing desk and she was singing it live from about a third of the way through onwards - she had these massive headphones on!!!
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Review by shaz_uk
I went to the show lastnight, unfortunetly l got a little ill and missed some of it but what l seen was amazing, it was my first tori show ever and her voice was fantastc and she is so nice, l got her to sign a peice of paper for me also *s*
But the song 'Time' did it for me, what can l say apart from brilliant!
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Review by Ben (Lorax)
So I was at the London last nite & I have to say that it was such an amazing performance, even more so knowing that she was under the weather.
I was in the circle & it really was such a beautiful evening. Even knowing that Some of my favourite songs were on the setlist but not played, doesn't put a damper on things, cuz she played such other wonderess ones. I'm on Fire ws amazing & TOTALLY unexpected .
Also can one clarify if Upside Down showed for the first time this tour last nite.
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Review by Susan
I'm sure I'm the umpteenth person to post a review of last night's Hammersmith Apollo show, but for what it's worth here's my reaction.
The support act was interesting, but not really my sort of thing. Tori's set started (I think) just before 9pm with 97 Bonnie & Clyde. She then came on stage and started playing Juarez, the straight on to Putting the Damage On. I love this song but thought it was a little early in the show to play it.
She whipped through the rest of the set pretty quickly. There was a great deal of coughing in the audience during Me and a Gun which was annoying. She ended with Time around 10pm. We had two encores, disrupted by someone jumping on stage and someone else throwing stuff on the stage and then it was all over by 10.20pm which left me for one a little disappointed.
This was the third time I had seen Tori live and it is always a fantastic and moving experience but if I was honest this was probably my least favourite show.
The first half of the set list was good but it seemed to tail off towards the end and I thought her choice of songs for the encores was odd to say the least. It would have been nice to end on a well-known song rather than Landslide, which I for one had never heard before. I was also disappointed not to hear anything from Y Kant Tori Read - I know that she did Etienne and Cool on Your Island at her other UK shows.
The show also seemed quite short - to be fair this may have been because she wasn't feeling well, but it was something of a disappointment not to hear more from her. My companion commented that he would have liked to hear fewer covers and more originals and I think I have to agree.
So I am afraid only 9/10 for last night's show compared to a straight 10 for her 1996 Royal Albert Hall gig and her 1998 fantastic show at Portsmouth Guildhall. I hope we see her tour again shortly, perhaps with a band again next time.
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Review by Mart
t's weird, cos I didn't feel short-changed by last night's show. I was more disappointed by the London Union Chapel show in August. That one seemed much shorter and a lot of people thought she was ill in that one (mainly cos she took ages to appear on stage). Now I know what she's like when she's definitely ill, and she's still ace! One thing that's occurred to me about the end of last night's show - she was quite unanimated in the last few songs. It was more of a straight-forward piano song affair, than the usual Tori being all lively thing and bounding around on her piano stool. Oh well, still fucking brilliant.
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Review by george
This was my first Tori show and what can I say, it was amazing!
It didn't even matter that she didn't play most of the songs I really wanted to hear ( but she did play Upside down and Time!). Just to see her playing is absolutely mesmerising. I was so shocked by the version of Cruel the FTCH version is definately not one of my favourites but I Loved the version she played last night it was incredible, so mellow and kinda sad i really did love it. Some of the songs I'd never heard - Only Women Bleed (I liked this), Landslide and I'm on Fire which both were also good.
It was just a great show, (not that I have much to compare it with). The best concert I've ever been (Radiohead being a close second). And the support act was good too although I got very pissed off during this as many people around me were talking and staff were shining flash lights around and saying too loudly "Down there to the left". I felt a bit sorry for the guy he was obviously nervous but I thought he was really good!
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Review by Kathy
Ash~ "hi" Thanks for letting us know the M&G plans. I'm not sure I would have stayed for it if I hadn't known the approximate times you gave us as relayed by the security guard. As it was, waiting in the cold was totally worth it, although when we got moved I missed a brilliant spot by such a small margin. *sigh*. But just waiting with everyone was so sweet. Thanks to the Hello Kitty people... Hello Kitty was definately a vibe on friday . Hi Galaxygrl and Steve NTL
The M&G was great..... my first one! I got a smile and a wave and a "nice to see you", AND she picked my Ears With Stories book to sign from all the things being waved at her so desperately. I was over the moon and just floating. I think I still am.
We got some wonderful pics that we will post later. Ash, including your friends chatting with Tori ( I think we were all crying at the end of that, it was so beautiful).
One incident tho, someone literally threw something for her to sign. She ducked and Joel looked like he was about to kill the guy who did it. Not the best choice of things to do. People were wonderful, as soon as they got things signed they moved back to let others in... and I want to thank everyone there for doing that as so many more of us got a chance.
Later I saw Jess talking in depth to Joel while I was getting merchandise Hi Jess!!! Didn't want to interrupt, hope you had a great time.
And hi to the girl from the loos who was singing Marianne. I thought she had gone and so I carried on the song from where she left off... then we both came out and had heard each other and it was a great funny moment.
And BIG THANKS to Franko for the 2nd row ticket which was a total surprise. I have never been that close to Tori in concert and it made my wonderful day complete. *hugs*.
The concert was gorgeous. The image of Tori for B&C with the song was haunting. I kept thinking of this woman who would never be able to bake her daughter a birthday cake, and all the women who this has really happened to and I cried so much. It was amazing..... the music and the still image. Very poignant.
Upside Down was gorgeous. I don't know if it was because I was close to the stage, but everything took on different meanings for me that night, and this was one of them.
Playboy Mommy was another highlight for me that had me in tears, and the lighting was really fitting.
Only women bleed was wonderful to see and hear for the first time... and again really fitting.
It was a whole amazing experience, my best one yet, and due not just to Tori who captured my heart anew in ways I didn't think would ever happen to me, but also the wonderful people there. you all made it a safe, warm place to be..... it was like a family gathering but with all the shitty family crap missing. It was the best.
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Review by Pele the Siren
HIJust wanted to add to whats been said
The meet and greet was great,my first ever...possibly Maeves last?!?lol.I met alot of wonderful people-AshBunny,Pigtails and all(she is such a sweetie pie,she brought treats to share and was just a cute fidget waiting for everything to happen),a couple from Belgium(the gal had a sweet boyfriend who followed her through the cold to 3 tori shows...he deserves a flower!!)and a guy from Australia with Q magazine(Bjork,Pj,Tori) It was nice to chat with everyone and share our Tori goodies..
I saw a China single and Y Kant Tori Read vinyl and flipped!!I would have to agree with Ash in saying that security was super..they were definitely helpful and friendly.I even saw Paul and Kath and I thought..thats royalty of the dent right thereWe stood in the cold for quite some time(we were there at 11:30ish!?)and it was getting very cold...
after a while,Steve came and gave us the lowdown-don't pass up pens,don't move from where you are standing,be calm and Tori will stay out longer.finally Tori came,she was late,but she was thereIt was my first meet and greet and I was absolutely amazed by how quiet everyone was,no screaming or pushing...if anything,people were leaning to see her,get pix,pass things up.It was so quiet that it was surreal..I couldn't believe it was happening...
finally she came to where I was and commented "I'm just watching these things fly over your head" and I said "sorry for snapping so many pix in your face" I got my cover of Ice signed and a pic..woohoo!It was definitly fun and Mikewhy was discussed by everyone!I hope some of you who lurk the dent/forum chaat some more.Everyone was sooo great...definitely felt like a family reunion.Ice cream assasins and Gina,if you are reading,we will be in touch soon about pix
Maeve and I went to Wetherspoons and it was very nice..a little noisy but nice.
The show was great and I wasn't charged to check my camera.What is surprising is that even though the apollo states having a strict camera policy,many people were in the venue snapping away!!
Ben Christophers was really cool,he reminded me of Radiohead with a slight,very slight twist of NIN!Cd samplers were handed out after the show!
Finally,Tori came out!!The beginning of Bonnie and Clyde was soooo neato..and the curtain drop was so theatrical!Tori definitely sounded croaky and she sounded like a cross between croaky and sex siren at the m&g!
I enjoyed the fact that she talked with us so often..she is so cute.What I can't understand is why people scream when she says swear words.By screaming,you miss the rest of what shes said.I had no clue that she made a Stevie Nicks reference until I read a dent review.
Here is a complaint-if you are coming to the show,be on time and in the correct seats!I say this b/c2 gals were sitting in front of me during Ben Christophers and the first 3 songs into Tori's set,then a man walks by and he isn't able to find his seat.Apparently,these girls were sitting in his seats!!So,there was a lot of moving and they aren't made of glass,so I was pissed!Then,one of the girls had to return because she had left something in her seat that wasn't actually hers(the seat I mean).Its only common sense that when a show is sold out you sit where your ticket says...sheesh!!
I was satisfied with the set list,and he drop of higher octaves was notciale,but its alrighty because she was there toughing it out!!My faves of the night were definitely Little Amsterdam,I'm on Fire,Landslides,and Only Women Bleed.I definitely wasn't expecting those..
I would have sworn a beatles cover to come through..but ehIt was really cute when Tori danced over to the whurly in a conga type dance to play Cruel,I believe that was the song.Can anyone clarify that?
I can't believe that gal was on the stage...if you had blinked,you would never have seen it happen...Joel was a fast one!wow..its always scary when that happens!!
So,thats itIt was sooo nice to meet so many of you...one of the best moments of the day!!I hope all of your toes have thawed
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Review by Hyperboy
i really enjoyed the london show. the setlist and the atmosphere was much beter than the previous night. she seemed alot more in tune with the audience.
one of the highlights for me was hearing 'only women bleed' since i'm not really familiar with that song. i was a bit gutted when i found out that 'bachelorette' had been on the set list and wasn't played!
all in all a pretty good show!
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Review by Chris O
Maybe I'm missing the point but I came away from Hammersmith somewhat disillusioned. Why so many covers? The tracks from SLG were fine - Time was great - but 3 of the four encores! Tori has written so many fabulous songs I can't see why she would need to resort to covering songs from other artists. In all honesty, this was by far the worst Tori concert I have seen and, looking back on many of the set lists from the rest of the European leg of the Tour, I can't help thinking that we were short changed on Friday night.
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