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Author Topic: Cellcert: Ruth Eckerd Hall Clearwater, FL Part II  (Read 122118 times)
Pamela
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« Reply #780 on: December 30, 2005, 08:45:25 PM »

When he put the ornament in Beverly's hand, he kissed her cheek.

CV Cellstream is reporting that the M&Gs did happen.


Ahhhh.  And on that note... we send 2005 out with a heart full of gratitude and a head full of great memories.

Be thinking about those memories, for we will most certainly have a bunch of "best of 2005" threads to get us through the first few days of 2006!!

Thank you to the Cellcert Trinity - Meesa, Heather, and Clandy!  You untiring devotion to bring us all the wonder of the JNT every single concert night is appreciated more than you can know.

The story, the pictures, the details.... you made it special. 

I love it when we all get together.  What Barbara said - "Let's spread around and find each other on other threads!"

Sounds good to me.  Wink

Now Meesa - get some sleep! 

 

Band intros and What are You Doing New Year's Eve up at ATCA - left click.  So nice. 

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lorraine
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« Reply #781 on: December 31, 2005, 03:55:49 AM »

PAMELA - I JUST GOT THROUGH DOWNLOADING "DSIAFCD" AND "WAYDNYE" AND I AM TOTALLY MUSH RIGHT NOW AND IT ISN'T EVEN 7:00 A.M.  WHAT A MAN.  I AM IN TOTAL AWE RIGHT NOW AND WILL BE UNTIL HE RETURNS.

HAVE A WONDERFUL NEW YEARS EVE ONE AND ALL.  THE BEST IS YET TO COME.

HUGS
RAINEY
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« Reply #782 on: December 31, 2005, 07:30:51 AM »

wave Good Morning Everyone!

I am shocked myself that I am here this early today.  shocking   We didn't get home last night until about 2:15 and so I didn't get to bed until pretty late, but as you can imagine I wasn't all that ready to sleep! 

Last night was just awesome!  Thud! I knew that it would be special for a lot of reasons; because it was the last show, because my parents were going with me, because it was Clay, all those things, but it really turned out to be a special night.

I didn't do proper reviews for any of the other concerts, but I am going to do one for this one.  It may be long, so bear with me or just scroll on by if you rather! Wink

We left here about 2pm to drive up, we knew it would take at least 2 hours and with traffic we knew it would probably be longer than that.  We got to Clearwater around 4:45 and we went to Applebee's for dinner.  I don't know that I have had faster service at a restaurant ever!  Laughing  So needless to say we took our time and even so, we still ended up getting to the venue about 6:20.  The doors opened right at about 7 p.m. and as we were waiting in line Joyce came up behind me, so I got to visit with her a for a few mintues.  Right after that we went into the venue, they didn't check bags or camera cases or anything which was a little surprising to me because there were HUGE sings on all the doors that said ABSOLUTELY NO FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY.  There were security guards with rolls of electrical tape though.  Clapping

As soon as we were inside I was on a mission to find the merchandise table.  I had to make a couple of purchases for some friends here and wanted to get that done before too many people got there.  I got to the merchandise table easily and made my purchases, including a WJ keychain for me which I had no idea they even were selling!  I was excited about that.     They also had ornaments from past shows in "Miami", "Orlando" and Eugene that were selling for $10.  After I got done at the merchandise table we decided to go check out where our seats were.  The venue is beautiful.  Very modern looking, but I could tell that it would have great acoustics.  It was a theater that had straight lines of seats with no center aisle.  We had great seats in the 14th row, just left of center.  It was perfect for photographing!  Wink  I called Clandy after we got settled and gave her the pre-concert report and then told her I would call her back at intermission.  I meant Clay's intermisson, but I ended up having to call her after WJ finished just because I couldn't NOT report what had happened.

I can know say that William has been officially welcomed to the family!  Not that he wasn't before, but I think once you are treated to Clay's hijinx, you are truly part of the family!  Laughing   WJ came out and went to sit down and the first thing he had to do was tip over his piano bench...there was water sitting right in the middle.  He apologized right then and said that he had no clue what was about to happen, so we were going to have to bear with him.  He asked for a towel or something, but a nice lady in the first row provided him with a kleenex.  I knew that there was a lot more to come because Jerome was standing to the right of the stage and Maka to the left.  WJ finally noticed Jerome and told him that he knew they were all up to no good!  Laughing  He played Carol of the Bells and Within and then things really started to happen.  He told the hockey story and then you could see someone moving around behind the curtain.  William knew it too and about that time he turned off his battery pack.  They were playing Invisible in his ear!  He wasn't wearing his right earpiece again, so it was just the left, but it was driving him nuts!  He got up to talk again and he said he had no clue what was just playing in his ear, but it was nice.  Clay spoke to him in his ear and said it was "Invisible by Clay Aiken"  WJ and everyone just laughed.  They didn't mess with him too much during Kashmir, that one he got to play without too many hijinx.  Then the movement behind the curtain started again and one of the crew guys brought out a little desk lamp and they turned off all the lights.  It was pitch black except for the little bit of light that the lamp shed.  Then they came out and closed the top of the piano.  At this point William was at a loss!  He decided to start Homeword Bound, but then he decided that since they were messing with him, he was going to take matters into his own hands!  He started to play a very rocky version of GBoF.  At least that is what it sounded like to me.    After that was done he said that he was going to do something even more different and he talked about the movie Amadeus and how in the movie there is a scene where Mozart is at a party and he plays the piano laying on his back upside down, of course after WJ saw this movie his father told him to "DO IT" (deep father voice used there) and learn to play the song.  So, WJ turned his piano stool 90 degrees, layed down and played The Upside Down Song!  It is actually Jingle Bells, but talk about amazing!  Just showed how talented he really is.  Then it was time for his last song, which is one of my favorites and the the crew came out about halfway through the song and pulled the curtains around the piano!  eek!  Maka hopped up on stage and did his best to pull them back around so we could still see William.  He didn't finish the last song, but all in all it was great fun and I knew we were in for a special night!   Super Happy!!!  William was a real trouper and he rolled with the punches.  It was fun to watch.

As soon as WJ finished my dad looked at me and said "If Clay is half as good as William Joseph, then we are good to go!"  I was confident that he was going to enjoy Clay after that comment!   Clapping

Okay, there is part one, I'm going to put the second part in another post.  Stay tuned...the Clay portion is coming up next!  Wink
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« Reply #783 on: December 31, 2005, 07:31:28 AM »

Clay in Clearwater - PART II

So after WJ was done, we waited the normal 20 - 25 minutes before Clay came out.  I was very excited and couldn't wait to see the show last night.  When Christmastime started I knew it was going to be great.  Clay looked SO happy when he came out.  He was smiling and he just seemed to have a bounce in his step.  Christmastime didn't seem that different to me in terms of any pranks or anything.  To be honest, I didn't notice that Gregory was on stage for that number.  I only read that this morning in the cellcert.  Clay's voice sounded strong when he came out.  There were hints that his voice was a little tired, but all in all it sounded great.  As soon as CT was over and they spun the house set around, I noticed the picture of Mr. Ledford wasn't Mr. Ledford at all.  It was I think probably one of the crew.  I know for a fact it wasn't Jerome, I have a picture of it! Wink  The picture that sits on the table of Beverly's son and DIL was also different.  It looked like it was upside down and it appeared to have something pink in it.  I couldn't tell exactly what it was a picture of though.  Angela thought it was funny during IMYMACT though...you could see her snicker. 

MCWL was great too.  For some reason this seems to be the song that he struggles with most IMO when he is struggling with his voice.  It had those little imperfections, but that made it special.  Clay made the comment last night during intros how much it meant to him to get to sing that to Alison every night and I think you can tell just by his delivery of it.  As Clay got into SR and JB he became one bouncy and animated angel!  He was all over the place during SR and just looked SO happy!     It was great to see.  You all know how I feel about JB, so seeing bouncy, happy Clay doing that was just icing on the cake for me!   Thud! 

SFR, HYAMLC & CW were all wonderful.  He sang them all with such passion.  Those are songs that he has certainly made his own over the last year with regard to HYAMLC and CW and then the past couple of months for SFR.  Truly a joy to hear.  I think the dancers were giving it a little extra last night too.  They were excellent as usual.    When the vingette took place after CW and Gregory got to the lines about coming in second, not only did the crowd react, and very, very loudly I might add, but Clay's reaction when he made the comment "I should have won, but whatever" seemed to be much more pronounced.  Clay seemed to play everything up last night and it was so fun to see that side of him come out.  He never broke character, but I think he was a more relaxed angel last night.

TCS was also great.  I just love how they have the flashbacks (or is it backflashes? Laughing ) in that song.  It tells such a wonderful story and watching Clay watch both scenes is very cool.  Angela did a wonderful job with IMYMACT.  She did change up the song a little bit and it sounded great.  I really enjoyed her singing this song.  Sometimes she gets a little screechy for me, but this is probably my favorite performance of anything she has done on any of the tours.

CMH, what can I say?  Such a special song.  This has become one of my favorites.  He did a great job with it als tnight and I didn't feel like he was restraining his voice much at all at this point.  He was pretty much letting loose.  There was a baby growl and it was great!   Thud!  He was very affectionate with both Quiana and Angela during this song and it was just awesome.  A great way to end the first half!

I talked to Clandy again at intermisson and then I got a report from my dad as to what he thought.  He said he was enjoying it and Clay is really good and he can understand why we enjoy him so much.  I told him I REALLY wanted to know what he thought after the second half.  The other thing he was marvelling at was the way the crowd interacted with one another.  I was talking to a lady behind me who isn't an Internet fan, but just loves Clay.  I also talked to a lady in front of me named Karen who actually lives in Raleigh, is a friend of Pamela's and I have met her before, so we were talking about all sorts of things.  He thought it was cool how much passion each person had for Clay and how strong the passion was that each person had.  I told him it's the same way at every place we go! Smile

As the second half started, I was already on the edge of my seat because I know how powerful the second half of the show is.  Clay started with OHN and he did a wonderful job.  Again, you could tell the voice was a little rough, but those imperfections make the songs sometimes.  He knew when he couldn't go up for a note, so he changed it up with a lower run or something like that.  He's so smart like that.  I love OHN and he didn't dissapoint last night either.  It was wonderful.

Now, we all know that TFN has become somewhat of a showstopper.  Last night was AMAZING!  Talk about changing things up and knowing what notes he could hit and not.  He changed it up and blew us all away.  He got a well deserved standing ovation and I think even Q & A were impressed.  They just kind of looked at him and smiled.  It was wonderful.  This is another one of those songs that has truly become his.  WOW!  HTHAS/OCAYF was spectaular as well.  This one was pretty straigh forward, but just great.  Emmanuel I think I can sum up in one word...SUPERB.  I am so glad that Clay ended up getting to sing this song.  It truly is amazing to watch him sing it with such passion.  I have been blown away by that song 4 times.  Awesome.

MDYK is another one that words really can't describe.  It's like an out of body experience when he sings that song.  It's so powerful and he just kills it every single night.  I think he could be completely hoarse and he would still figure out a way to deliever that song.  Just fabulous.  MGUCL was awesome as usual.  Quiana changed it up in  several places last night too and you could hear the passion in her voice too.  At the end of the song where Clay and Angela normally stand on the two sets off to the side at the end of the song and then walk off, last night they went and stood right behind Quiana and held hands until the song was almost over, then they both went their separate ways to get ready for intros.  It was very sweet and you could just feel the emotion between the three of them.  To me it was palpable.

I guess since I'm SO chatty this morning and I have so much to say, there is going to be Part III too!   Laughing
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DoubleBubbleHockeyfan
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« Reply #784 on: December 31, 2005, 07:32:04 AM »

Clay in Clearwater - Part III

Introductions last night were so special.  Clay was chatty, he was happy and sad all at the same time.  The word he used was bittersweet.  It truly was.  He took the time to go through each person and tells us about them, when he met them, the first thing he remembered about them, what makes them so special.  It was awesome to watch.  I loved the stories about Felix, Daniel, Andy and WJ.  You can tell how much Clay appreciates them all and how much he cares about each of them.  When Brianne came out she was already crying and Clay had just gotten done saying how she's always smiling and happy.  She was still smiling, but it was through a lot of tears.  I don't blame her for crying...I would have been to!  Yes!  The part about John and how Clay felt he was so lucky to have him be part of his "transformation" from a skinny geek from NC to a skinny geek from NC with good hair was great.  He said he doesn't wake up looking that great in the morning and John helped to make the clothes and hair come together and he's also become a great friend.   I would have never known about Adam and Patricia being in the US on Exceptional Talent Visas, but I thought that was pretty cool.  I'm sure that this experience for them has just been mind blowing.  Nolan's been around for a long time and I think that shows how he feels about Clay in return.  Very cool.

Introducing Gregory and Alison was special for Clay too.  Clay talked about how they were going to get a new boy in each city to play Tommy and then Amy Tinkham told him that the part was too important to do it that way.  So after watching a few tapes and then the one of Gregory they looked no further.  Clay couldn't say enough about Gregory's professionalism, his maturity and his work ethic.  You could tell that Gregory has a special place in Clay's heart and the feeling is mutual.  I can't tell you how many times Gregory hugged Clay last night.  It was just adorable and for an 11  year old boy, I think that's saying something!  Clay's admiration for Alison was evident too.  He talked about the things he always has, she was his teacher, she introduced him to MCWL, etc., but then he talked about her working up until THIS WEEK on the theater groups and how much work she did to coordinate that and how not only was she his teacher, but his mentor and more importantly his friend.  It was very cool to see. 

Quiana and Angela were next.  Two people he couldn't live without.  The admiration he has for the two of them is so touching.  He talked about when he met them both and how even though Angela originally was Kelly's backup singer, she can't ever have her back!  I thought that was great.  Both girls were crying and he hugged them both which was so cute. 

He then introduced all of the crew and they all had to come out on stage, including Mary, Jerome and Maka.  He wanted everyone there and he made a point to say that this show was THEIR'S.  They have all done so much to make it happen and he wanted them to know how much he appreicates what they do day in and day out.  Then he told one Joey I think, that he needed to push the button.  Joey didn't hear him, so Clay said a little louder "GO PUSH THE BUTTON!"  That's when DSIA started. 

DSIA was exceptional.  It rivaled the version he did in Raleigh.  They were different, but both full of energy and just awesome to see.  The "Oh baby, that's a fact" line was almost breathless and very Elvis like.   Thud!  The look on his face after he did it was so cute.  He knows what that does to us fans and he loves to play right into it!  DSIA was powerful last night.  I don't know how else to describe it.  He gave us everything he had on that song last night.  He left it all on the stage.  Any hint of strain in his voice eariler in the night was gone.  He hit the glory note with ease and you could tell he was having a great time.  I loved every second of it. 

I knew when DSIA was over that they were doing something different.  The white curtain closed, but they had all sorts of colored lights reflecting off of them and the lights were spinning around.  That must have been to signal us that we needed to look BEHIND us!  Clay came in from the very top of the theater and the strains of WAYDNYE started playing.  The crowd went NUTS!  No one was sitting.  It was amazing.  He sang it so well and it was a fitting end to what was a very special night.  We were sitting closer to that side of the venue so I was able to see him the whole time.  He was just a couple rows behind us when he danced with the lady he chose.  She was an older lady and he was so sweet with her.  Just wonderful and a wonderful way to end the concert.

After the concert was over, my parents and I were getting ready to leave and we walked into the foyer and who is on my right, but William and Maka!  I was very happy to see them as one of the purchases I made earlier in the night was William's CD for Clandy.  I was hoping to get it signed, but I also knew that we couldn't afford to wait around because my parents had to be at work this morning at 6:30 and we had a 2 plus hour drive home.  I had met both of them in Raleigh and then spoken to Maka again in Hollywood.  I asked William if he was signing and he said yes.  Maka looked back and said to me, follow us.  So I went around to the other side of the lobby with them and by this time poor William was getting mobbed.  I had to stop because there were ladies cutting me off right and left!   Paranoid  Maka looked up and saw I was stuck in the back and he motioned for me to come up to the front.  I was standing right next to William and he got his Sharpie from Maka and took the CD from me.  I told him who the CD was for, that he had signed mine in Raleigh and that I just thought he was super talented and such a joy to watch.  He was so humble, but also very appreciative.  I was the first one to get anything signed, so I didn't hold up our drive home.  I think the whole thing took about 5 minutes.  I went to Maka after William signed the CD and thanked him for what he had done getting me to the front of the line.  He gave me a hug and I went back to meet my parents VERY happy that I was able to get the CD signed for Angela.  Super Happy!!!

My dad loved the show.  He thought the 2nd half was better than the first and I told him that was the general consensus.  As we were driving home last night, my dad looked at me and said, "You know what, Clay is good...he's excellent and is better live than any recording including his CD's."   When I heard that, I knew he really liked it!   Purple Banana

I know you are all probably wondering if I got any pictures.  The answer is a big YES!  Yes!  I have them on the computer already and hopefully I'll be able to take a look at them later today and get some of them up.  I know I have some good ones. 

All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better way to end 2005!  I went to 4 shows and all of them were very, very special.  I got to spend time with friends, see some new places and I got to see Clay do something exceptional that was so very special to him.  This is one tour I'm not going to forget!


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DoubleBubbleHockeyfan
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« Reply #785 on: December 31, 2005, 09:17:56 AM »

Heather I just read you're recap.... Clapping Clapping Clapping Thanks for sharing your amazing night with us, can't wait for your pictures!!!!!
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« Reply #786 on: December 31, 2005, 09:20:12 AM »

Heather!!!!!!

What an awesome review!!!!!  Makes us ALL wish we had been there!!!  Sounds like it was just a very, very special night!!!!!

Debbie
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« Reply #787 on: December 31, 2005, 09:29:24 AM »

Thank you Heather...what an exceptional concert experience for you and everyone in Clearwater for the JNT finale.

Beautiful recap....and I'm sure your pictures will be as well!!

Happy New Year!
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LuvMyClay
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« Reply #788 on: December 31, 2005, 10:01:16 AM »

Wonderful recap Heather!   I'm had a feeling your Dad was going to like it.   Last night really was a special show.
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Marilyn
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« Reply #789 on: December 31, 2005, 10:35:09 AM »

HEATHER THANK YOU FOR A WONDERFUL REVIEW-  I SURE WISH I HAD BEEN THERE WITH YOU! IT MUST HAVE BEEN SO SPECIAL TO EXPERIENCE THE LAST ONE- I KNOW THATS HOW I FELT AT ATLANTIC CITY FOR THE JBT

WHAT A FANTASTIC MAN!
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« Reply #790 on: December 31, 2005, 01:31:56 PM »

Heaterfan!  Clapping  Awesome review!!!  I like Marilyn wish I had been there with you too!  Thank you so much for keeping me updated and for getting my WJ CD signed!  Huggles  Glad you got that last hug too. 
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lorraine
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« Reply #791 on: December 31, 2005, 04:14:00 PM »

HEATHER - YOU OUTDID YOURSELF MY FRIEND.  YOU  MADE US ALL FEEL LIKE WE WERE THERE AT THE CONCERTS OURSELVES.  IF ANYONE COULD HAVE ATTENDED HIS LAST CONCERT I AM SO HAPPY IT WAS YOU.  THANK YOU FOR MAKING THE LAST CONCERT THE BEST EVER.

HUGS
RAINEY
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lovinclay
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« Reply #792 on: December 31, 2005, 04:52:11 PM »

Heather, what a wonderful review!  Thank you for sharing that with us!  Happy New Year!
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