Olivia wins her audience's hearts and minds
By Ken Paulson staff writer
For a refugee from the rock concert fringe, the Olivia Newton-John concert Sunday night at the Assembly Hall was an enlightning experience.
All of the things that go wrong at rock concerts went absolutely right at this middle-of-the-road extravaganza. The audio system was remarkable, suffering only a brief spasm of feedback in an evening of otherwise flawless sound.
The lighting was tastefully done, a far cry from the twin beams that characterize most shows. And best of all, the interim between sets was a brief 15 minutes, with a minimum of time-consuming equipment alterations. In short, it was the kind of show that appeals to the easy-listening masses spoiled by the convenience and consistency of a color television set in their living room. They expected the professional quality without the commercials and Newton-John delivered it.
Singer-songwriter Paul Williams opened the show with a set with distinct Las Vegas overtones. Williams is the pint-sized composer of numerous easy-listening hits and his act consists of his renditions spiced with some off-color patter.
Self-deprecation was Williams favorite routine as he compared himself with some of the industry’s more handsome crooners. “Vic Damone now there’s a guy who never had a pimple in his life,” he said. “He started scoring when he was seven.”
Occasionally, Williams appeared to forget he wasn’t working in a lounge, as he attempted to entertain the audience with allusions to his high school sex life and his favorite prophylactic.
The music itself was mediocre. Williams’ voice might best be described as having a mild Rod Stewart quality. As a result, he depends heavily upon his fine material and a decent backup band in between jokes. Most successful was his “love medley.” It included “Friends,” “Rainy Days and Mondays” and “We’ve Only Just Begun.” Although his versions were inoffensive enough, they still had the effect of instilling greater respect for Karen Carpenter.
Newton-John’s voice, on the other hand, could not have been more impressive. Her songs were not particularly challenging, but she presented note-perfect versions of all her hits.
She received a thunderous ovation from a packed house that encircled her in “concert in the round” style as she began with “Let Me Be There.”
The audience seated behind her burst into spontaneous applause as she turned in its direction, a sure sign that all she had to do was run through her hits to please this group.
“I Honestly Love You,” “Have You Never Been Mellow,” and “If You Love Me, Let Me Know” were all crowd favorites, spurring immediate response from the initial notes.
Her biggest asset was her fine band. The group as a whole and the member on arp synthesizer in particular expertly recreated her original album efforts.
The most annoying aspect of the concert was Newton-John’s Girl Scout approach to patter. “You sound like you’re in a lively mood tonight. Are you?” she asked in tones reminiscent of the most milk-curdling kindergarten teacher.
This lead-in to the standard audience participation was representative of her approach all evening.
Still, I’ll have to admit that that kind of stage presence probably pleases her followers the most. She knows that her audience wants an innocuous, unprovocative evening and she provides it. She will not challenge them with a Patti Smith composition or upset them with political commentary.
After all, she’s Olivia Newton-John, not Grace Slick. She is just a good businesswoman and on Sunday night, she did good business.
photo by Greg Fensterman