7.16.14 Q+AL CONCERT THREAD -- Philadelphia, PA USA

Note: This thread is only for the 7.16.14 Queen + Adam Lambert Philadelphia Concert. Post general Adam and Q+AL Tour news in the Daily News thread.



Tonight: Queen + Adam Lambert Tour –
live in the City of Brotherly Love!!

City: Philadelphia, PA

Venue: Wells Fargo Center
Concert capacity:

Concert begins: 7:30PM Eastern Time Zone (UTC-05:00)
Worldclock

Twitter list


Livestream:  possible stream, butterknife www.ustream.tv/channel/butterknife




twitpic.com/e8bfp6


Setlist

Updated by Q3.

Recorded instrumental Procession

1. Now I'm Here
2. Stone Cold Crazy
3. Another One Bites The Dust
4. Fat Bottomed Girls
5. In The Lap Of The Gods...Revisited
6. Seven Seas Of Rhye
7. Killer Queen
8. Somebody To Love
9. I Want It All
10. Love Of My Life (Brian lead vocals, Freddie recorded at end)
11. '39 (acoustic, Brian solo)
12. These Are The Days Of Our Lives
13. Bass Solo (Neil, incorporating "Nevermore",  "Don't Try Suicide," "Body Language")
14. Drum Duel (instrumental, Roger and Rufus)
15. Under Pressure (Adam and Roger duet)
16. Love Kills
17. Who Wants To Live Forever
18. Guitar Solo (instrumental, Brian)
19. Last Horizon (incorporating "Welcome To The Jungle") (instrumental)
20. Tie Your Mother Down
21. Radio Ga Ga
23. Crazy Little Thing Called Love
24. The Show Must Go On
25. Bohemian Rhapsody

-encore-
26. We Will Rock You
27. We Are The Champions

Recorded instrumental: God Save The Queen (Queen)


Videos

TALCvids Playlist: link
riddle601b Playlist: link
RequestAdamLambert Videos: link
pilgrimsprogress Playlist: link
RequestAdamLambert Complete Playlist: link
Jesha86 Playlist link


Now I'm Here

youtu.be/HAX9DUctpH4

Stone Cold Crazy

youtu.be/jGVKOEpm8qg

Another One Bites The Dust

youtu.be/pkxTo3hx_hE

Fat Bottomed Girls

youtu.be/mnUAuSianzA

In The Lap Of The Gods+ Seven Seas Of Rhye

youtu.be/4T0QEE3YAlI

Killer Queen

youtu.be/Kd52MORWS4M

Somebody To Love

youtu.be/byM4V-glIFw

KG+STL

youtu.be/ZNuw_ROOSQg

I Want It All

youtu.be/-WHB0AyYal8

Love Of My Life

youtu.be/XjJQXKfcZPE

'39

youtu.be/fOUVje-RKko

These Are The Days Of Our Lives

youtu.be/_ps1ClYZnEA

Bass Solo+Drum Battle+Under Pressure

youtu.be/7Csg9MbeVQc

Love Kills

youtu.be/Ldumyw3a76w

Who Wants To Live Forever

youtu.be/SRhnTr8z6aA

Guitar Solo

youtu.be/gPNBi4EQouk

Tie Your Mother Down

youtu.be/liF5rwhUGSM

Radio GaGa+Gimme Your Love

youtu.be/nCOLBgLSJ4k

Crazy Little Thing Called Love

youtu.be/3ThJKrxnYF0

We Will Rock You+We Are The Champions

youtu.be/Pk1T-EZfUsA



Photos



via Atop's own butterfly




www.nationalrockreview.com/wp-content/gallery/adamlambertandqueen-wellsfargocenter-philadelphia_pa-20140716/AdamLambertAndQueen-WellsFargoCenter-Philadelphia_Pa-20140716-CathyPoulton-001-Copy.jpg



www.nationalrockreview.com/wp-content/gallery/adamlambertandqueen-wellsfargocenter-philadelphia_pa-20140716/AdamLambertAndQueen-WellsFargoCenter-Philadelphia_Pa-20140716-CathyPoulton-003-Copy.jpg


TALC Photos Link: twitpic.com/e/2r3v

cbodina's photostream link

My Mind's Eye Photo Gallery link

tuke18 Smugmug link

adamarie915 Photos link

JP1958 photos link


Costume Notes

Brian wore pinstriped pants for first time



Notable Events

Know The Score-Crazy Little Things QAL 2014 Tour:Philadelphia
compiled by Jablea

Adam on knees during FBG

"You know what? Gimme some Radio Ga Ga."-Adam

"This side grew a pair of balls."-Adam

"we're so fuckin' old, I never thought we'd come back here'"- Roger

He sprawled on the couch so much that Brian couldn't sit down.

He wore the black/white and changed into the red in the middle of BoRhap (to go with red gloves?)

Brian, pin-striped pants

Mistiming of last “pressure” between Adam & Roger & maybe extra guitar by Brian– they hugged it out

Rog and Adam hug after UP

bra on stage (and a mango? lol)

audience "battle" (who's louder) during Gimme Your Love segment

Adam toes together/toes apart walks over to play with piano




Reviews

Adam Lambert And Queen Rock Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on 16-Jul-2014

Queen is back on the road with Adam Lambert fronting the band delivering Queen classics with the kind of voice required to do them justice.

Queen played to a packed house on July 16, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA. Fronting the band was American idol runner-up Adam Lambert, filling the spot that Freddy Mercury did almost 23 years prior. Lambert kept die-hard fans amazed with his performance with the famous British rock band.

When I arrived at the Wells Fargo Center the crowd was restless. A lot of us didn’t know what to expect with this version of Queen. They had toured from 2004 to 2009 with Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers holding the reins. But with Adam Lambert, I knew this would be a better fit because of his flat-out charisma and his dynamic vocal range.

The anticipation in the crowd reached a fevered pitch when Brian May’s majestic instrumental piece Procession played. As the famous Queen crest logo lit up, the curtain rose and so did the crowd. Adam Lambert strutted out in a full black leather studded outfit. The show kicked into high gear when Brian May played the very recognizable guitar riff to Now I’m Here.

They followed with the frenzied Stone Cold Crazy, another song from the 1974 classic album Sheer Heart Attack. Those two songs really set the tone for the night. Their two and a half hour set included their greatest radio hits and some more obscure songs but plenty of stuff to satisfy the crowd. They did a fun version of Fat Bottomed Girls but it wasn’t until In the Lap of The Gods Revisited and Seven Seas Of Rhye that Adam Lambert had really taken command of the stage.

I haven’t seen an audience respond to someone like that in a long time. Being the ‘new guy’ I thought he’d have to try to win us over, but he connected with us fairly early in the show. There were times you’d just catch May smiling at it all, almost like a proud papa or maybe thought that Freddie would have approved. One of the highlights of the show was when Lambert plopped himself down into a plush purple Victorian chaise lounge in the center of the arena to sing Killer Queen . He chugged from a bottle of Moet et Chandon which he spewed out into the crowd.

The place erupted after Love of My Life sung nicely by May at center stage with his acoustic guitar. It was absolutely beautiful. There was a gnawing sadness throughout it though, it was one of Freddie’s best. The crowd sang along and May let us finish some of it but reserved the last part for Freddie Mercury who joined us on stage via video to finish it off. It was a breathtaking moment and an emotional highlight of the show.

The entire band then joined him on stage to sing 39 and again the crowd sang along. Drummer Roger Taylor took the lead on These Are The Days as a video montage played with early images of Queen. When original bassist John Deacon appeared the crowd applauded. Taylor’s son Rufus played drums on this one and on a few other songs throughout the night. They treated us to a drummer duel later in the show. Taylor also sang duel vocals with Lambert on Under Pressure.

Who Wants to Live Forever was sung with Lambert and May center stage complete with lasers and a sparkly disco ball. But a real magical moment for the night was May’s 15-minute guitar solo, which he played all over the stage for the fans and finally ended playing in the middle of the venue.

The crowd participation was high on Radio Gaga and Lambert channeled his best Elvis in a revamped version of Crazy Little Thing Called Love. You could really see the band’s chemistry during this song. Lambert’s amazing vocal range was really apparent on The Show Must Go On . His ability to belt the notes and falsetto is incredible.

They finally played what the crowd was waiting for, Bohemian Rhapsody. Lambert traded verses with a video of Freddie Mercury, and the song ended in bombastic fashion with lots of lasers and smoke. We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions were played as the encore.

What I loved about the show was that at no point did it feel like we were watching a cover band or that Adam Lambert was trying to fill Mercury’s shoes. Lambert put his own stamp on it, and made it more of a celebration of Freddie Mercury and Queens Music. With the crowds response throughout the show, there is no question that Lambert was the right and possibly the only man for the job. Simply put, it couldn’t have been any better.

(photos)
www.nationalrockreview.com/2014/07/18/queen-philadelphia-pa-16jul2014/




Best Tweet




Other information

From Craazyforadam – PHL Wells Fargo Center – 7/16/2014

Right now, as I am writing this, it is 24 hours later, and admittedly, given the wonderful current events, I checked into the ongoing MSG feed first, to join the live events unfolding there, before sitting down and writing about my own experiences in PHL, because I cannot write anything short and sweet for the life of me. But now that the next show is over, it is time to go back, collect my thoughts, and jot down all the different pieces that have been buzzing through my head, over the past 24 hours.

There is of course always a personal experience and all the people that happen to make their way into your own life on a day that is rich and full like this, mixed with the overall unfolding events of the night, and there is way too much to describe. Where do you begin and what parts do you pick out for this report, I will try to cover what meant a lot to me?

I met Rihannsu in the hotel lobby, we had decided to be roommates at the Doubletree Hotel, and as always within this atop family, you meet somebody new, and yet you chat away like good long time friends, which in reality we have become over the years. Thank you Rihannsu for sharing this experience with me, we had wonderful fun together, engaged debates and lots of laughter over 24 hours. I was thinking of you, looking at the pictures of the audience coming in from NYC tonight, knowing you are there, and I am looking forward to seeing you in Baltimore again. I also got to meet 10 most wonderful ladies at dinner, but I think, the thoughts jotting through my mind right now are taking me to the concert right now, so I’ll go there first.

PHL was my first QAL concert, and while I had watched a good amount of individual videos over the last couple of weeks, I stayed away from watching those that showed the complete show, filmed the whole stage, or gave otherwise the impression that they would take away from my overall experience being in the arena in area 104 and seeing the show as a whole. This was my first QAL show from beginning to end and what a delightful and overwhelming experience it was.

Meanwhile, you have probably seen more videos from this show than I have, and have taken in all the special little moments that happen to be unique to this Philadelphia show, like Brian having hired an additional bass player called Spike, and then turning that into a short discussion on the values of live music performances and the lack of backing tracks, and you saw THE HUG, right after Adam fired off a note too soon and you saw them both laughing about it. This is live, and personal and real, and it is wonderful how they all interact with each other. You heard us all sing, probably from multiple angles and corners to boot and formed your impressions about this concert audience that way. Oh yes, and we grew some balls, where I was sitting, lol.

But being there is totally different, and how different it is, you will only find out, when you actually experience it live. During GNT, I happen to see the premiere, and so there were no videos to watch prior to the show, just like for those folks, who went to Chicago this time around (QAL). So, I want to talk about this for a moment, because that aspect of it hit me hard.

When you stand in those stands, wherever your seat may be, your view of the world is kind of different. First: You have your immediate neighbors. In my case, Queen fans for the most part, but not all. In front of me a cute May-September gay couple, who were snuggling up to each other through most of the concert. They breathed a sigh of relieve when they found the opening sequence pleasing to their ears, happily settled in for a ‘great concert night out’ during AOBTD, FBG, and even ITLOTG and SSOR. But they majorly woke up during KQ and STL, loved, loved, loved that, and were seen fist-pumping and cheering for the rest of the night. Out and proud, live on stage + a great concert, that made their day.

To my right, an old core Queen fan, who came to hear the tunes he loved, but with a friend at home, who refused to come along, because without Freddie and John, it was not the real Queen ….yadi, yadi, yadi. Probably a personal mirror and kind of representative of what is happening in the Queen fan base overall. But of course, those that showed up for the concert by the hundred thousands across the US and CA, are those that have opened their hearts and minds to Adam, or are at least curious, and those that just don’t even care about who sings the songs for them, they just want to hear the songs live once again. And they are grateful to Adam in this way. In my section, Adam was accepted from minute one, and that was so lovely to see. Now that friend back home will get an earful of things that he probably does not want to hear, because my neighbor loved the concert. Loved it for the sentimental value, he was there for the songs. He also has a few videos to take home. He will have as much an uphill battle convincing his friend, as some of us are having with our own friends and family, trying to get them to understand that Adam is the real deal and worth it.

On my right, younger generation, but same story. Loved to hear the Queen songs, enjoyed the show. Accepted Adam in the role, probably blissfully unaware of any of the debates going on in the Queen fandom about who should substitute and who should not. Adam made it possible for them to hear the music they wanted to hear, and so great! They accepted Adam from the onset, and stood up immediately, when he walked out. They loved the show. It was as simple as that.

The people behind us were weird. First of all, the row directly behind us only showed up half-way through the show (Brian was just talking about Einstein) and then they did not understand what was going on, because obviously Adam was nowhere to be seen, and everything seemed a bit weirdly Peter, Paul and Mary to them, and they clearly assumed, someone around them would mid-concert make time and explain it all to them, grrrrr. I ignored them mostly, because unfortunately the next row behind that, the ones that wanted everyone to sit down, was even louder and more obnoxious. But thankfully, after what seemed to me an eternity, everyone settled down again, people mostly sat during the mid section, but were up on their feet again, when Adam was out. Word of mouth has gotten around among Queen fans that Adam was fit for the role, and this was a rock concert, and they showed him that respect from the get go. Was nice to see…..

The second part you are aware of when standing in your designated place in section 104, is that you are now one part of a big whole, like one piece of driftwood, in a big wave. The audience as a whole has a unique character, and will make an impression, not only on any listeners on video streams, but first and foremost on Adam and the band and you are just a tiny little piece of that, only one drop in that big wave of energy. I think that experience is heightened, when you are higher up in the stands or a little further from the stage. I presume that for the people right upfront, the stage is so dominant that that wave only hits them every once in a while, when they turn around, or the singing and clapping happens or some other surprise that makes them turn their heads back. For those folks, I presume that the experience live is more closely resembling the videos we have all seen. But from higher up – further out, it is almost like a completely new show with the same melodies and band, but totally different in how it feels or what you notice.

The videos have the tendency to exaggerate. Adam is usually the center of those videos and his actions, his mimic, gestures, vocal acrobatics are heightened and that is a wonderful treasure to see, but it is not what you see from the stands. There Adam is first of all part of the band, they are one unit performing, a set of very small moving parts, making something larger than life happen in the whole arena, both emotionally as well as sonically. A dance of little porcelain figures executed to perfection. And yet, and that makes it so fantastic to watch, their personalities reach you and touch you in the most magical way.

In addition you get the visual spectacle of disco balls (great moment in the arena, not as OT as it seems in the videos, it really works well in the arena), lasers, smoke, strobe lights, colors, two different parallel visuals one on the big Q screen and the other on the two smaller screens on the side. There is so much to take in, that you always miss some pieces, no matter what you focus on, and of course most of us want to focus on the stage as much as possible.

There is Brian, geeky and in his own world, yet so warm and personable across hundreds of yards. He is concentrated for two hours straight on what his fingers need to do at any second of this show, and yet, there is no question that he is the mastermind of this event, as well as the heart of it. The audience knows and responds to him as such.

Roger, having the most physically demanding 2 hour duration job of the bunch, is also fatherly directing his son. One minute you see him root for Rufus proudly, but next he also worries about him. I think he wonders whether the bug will bite Rufus the way that it bit him 40 years ago, making him decide to make music and touring his life. At least that is my impression of their interaction between the two. Not sure whether that is happening or not. Rufus is not so easy to read, imo.

There is Neil and Spike, who contribute immensely, but somehow see no need to stand in row one, just solidly contributing their part, but clearly showing how much they love what they do, and how much fun these guys are having on the show and with Adam. Adam is rubbing off on all of them. Those British stiff upper lips have turned into mighty American-wide smiles over the last month, their laughter infectious.

And then there is Adam, the one creating this rejuvenation and this buoyant lift of spirit in all of these men. And 20 minutes of show-time later, he has created this joy in a whole arena of people too.

During the intro, Adam gives people the confidence to relax, he’s got this. They can just relax and enjoy the show. During’ In the Lap of the Gods’, he for the first time grabs everyone with his vocals and his personality, people are settling into the waltzing rhythm of the song and the synergy and magic begins. By the time of Killer Queen comes around, everyone understand the importance of that second outfit, and anyone that will follow thereafter.

Adam reaches hearts and minds with what he does and mouths begin to stand open. The variety of the buffet offered to the audience during this show, becomes apparent to all. It is just 20-30 minutes in and we have had a rock show, and some funk, and some sing along, and some rock god getting off his bike and joining a burlesque show, all the while listening to vocals that are out of this world. STL pulls it all together and takes us to church to sing YEAH to it all. Adam is holding this assembled church of Glam Rock in the palm of his hand and leads it wherever he wants it to go with it.

This audience in PHL was loud and engaged from the get-go, and I thought, did really great on the sing-alongs, clapping, etc…but it was overall quite different from the audience I suspect he would find in NYC the next day, where sophistication and musical or theater background would be commonplace. This was a more typical rock audience, a bit on the rough side, an audience that leaned into every strong rhythmic segment, loved the drums, and loved the guitars. They loved the classic hits, but were a bit more lost during the ballads, which, btw. Adam delivered beautifully. The solos though, contrary to what many reporters had previously said, or what I would have expected, the solos, even Brian’s long one, went over really well with them. Great response.

Imo, if you want to strengthen the impact of the ballads, you would have to do nothing more than bring the sound down a bit. The whole concert is very loud, I used my plug-ins pretty much all night, mostly in the half-way position, where you still get a strong sound impression, but not the whole load on your ear-drums. I was surprised, that even during the ballads, I had to leave it that way. They were still very, very loud. They did not stand out enough, because they were drowning a bit in the overall noise level. This is one, where less would have been more. At least for those further back, where the sounds and echos mix longer and broader and while Adam’s voice was brilliant and could be clearly heard, it also drowned in the overall sound wall. At least the precision and interpretative brilliance of it drowned a tad. I know now, why so few reporters focus on this part in their reviews. Sometimes less is more. And in our concert, that less would have had to be less wall of band sound.

Which does not mean that Adam did not sing them beautifully, especially Love Kills. He most certainly did. When I looked at the original tour schedule and sorted out, what would work for me, I realized that PHL was right before MSG. I knew then and there, that I would not get every glory note, and every highlight, that would be reserved for the next day, but I stayed with Philadelphia anyway, which worked better for me. For me, the glory notes that everybody raves about, are great, but they are not what made me an Adam fan. But all of the rest did.

This tour is one big Marathon run for all of them, but especially for Adam. One thing a pro will know to do, is to pace himself, and Adam did. But as a performer you still have a new audience each night, you still need to deliver on every stretch of the race, not only on the last mile, or on the mile that goes past the grand-stands with the camera crews. Granted, you will pull out all the stops for the most important moment, but in many ways you can see what metal someone is made of, by watching what they do, when in the shadows of those grand stands.

And in many ways, that is what the Philadelphia was. Like this city, that is wonderful, and with a great historic past, and lots of culture and great schools and many other benefits, but yet, will always be the city in the shadows of NYC, so also this show. They gave a fantastic show, even though they were probably tired. They gave a fantastic show, even though there were concentration lapses. When you are a professional, you work through it and still deliver, and that is what Philadelphia got to see. Adam paced himself for the big show, but yet gave a performance that no one, absolutely no other person on this planet would be able to deliver with this level of quality and stamina for Queen today or tomorrow for that matter. I am convinced of that. Tomorrow in NYC was the graduation day, today was that last final push up to that finale. It was a great concert to be part of.


Prior to the concert, 10 of us ladies had a wonderful get together over an early dinner, we could have chatted for hours, and we did. As always it was short, but sweet, but we still got to know each other, and most of us had not yet met. We all took the subway, which was right outside the restaurant, and when we were downstairs in the tunnels under the street level and just looking for the signs, to ensure that we were going down the stairs to the southbound train and not the northbound one, there was a swift and determined wave with the hand, telling us to follow and I thought, that the person might have recognized one of our Queen shirts and therefore knew where we were heading, but it turned out, it was actually butterknife, our resident master video streamer, and some of our group had met her and so they knew. I had not yet met her yet, and so it was a delight to take the train out together. Thank you Butterknife for all you do for us at home, as well as apparently for those en route, lol.

Otherwise, the whole train ride was as uneventful and quick as hoped for, and we arrived very close to the gates and with plenty of time to go hunting for T-shirts, programs, and whatever else folks wanted to do. We were spread out during the concert, and so all had slightly different experiences, but quite a few of us, joined up afterwards for some drinks and more laughter and chats after the concert, and even the next morning for breakfast. Thank you to all the wonderful ladies for joining, it was lots of fun to meet everyone, and I am looking forward to seeing many of you at Merriweather again.

THE END.