Review: Red Rocks Jun 6th

Do you believe in magic? If you ever beheld a show at Red Rocks, you would, from that day forever after. Red Rocks is like no other place on earth. This is a place of magic, a place of majesty and grandeur, a place where Mother Nature herself is sometimes as much a part of the show as the performers. Here the impossible becomes typical. The sights and sounds here are made of the magic from shows past, like spirits haunting a hallowed ground. This affects performer and audience alike, and helps bring out the best in both. And now the magic was happening again: I would be at Red Rocks, attending the most recent incarnation of Celtic Woman and a brand of magic that can only be considered ultimate.

It all began in the winter, when CW announced the date. Of course I couldn't miss this one; Mike bought and held a ticket for me. Later, I invited Moscapoet, who was also going to the show, to stay in Houston with me for several days so he could take care of some personal business, with us both flying together to Denver, going to the show, visiting the Dinosaur Museum in Morrison, and then journeying to Moscapoet's old neighborhood in the San Luis Valley. For a while we toyed with attending the Pueblo show following Red Rocks but we finally decided to skip it in order to save money. So in this way, Red Rocks would be my own tour finale, which is how it's been every year that I have done Red Rocks.

The evening before leaving we had dinner in suburban Houston with good friend and long-time fan Lester. We rose at 4am, and got through pre-dawn Houston traffic, security, flight, and rental car acquisition without incident. We drove out to join Mike at the venue so as to watch the crew set up the stage. I took the opportunity to "climb Mount Red Rocks", going from stage level all the way up to the last row of the venue. We then checked in at our hotel and drove over to the fan gathering dinner at Macaroni Grill. The very first Macaroni Grill fan gathering in 2010 had over fifty attendees; this one had just four of us: Mike, Scott, Daniel, and myself. As a side note, I had been sneezing since arriving in Colorado, and I thought it would never subside. But soon enough, we made our way to the venue and, in a timely way, my sinuses cleared up.

Set against the mountains at an elevation of 6,400 feet, the Red Rocks Amphitheater is a naturally-occuring, geologically formed outdoor arena. Two massive, three hundred foot sandstone rocks flank the 86 rows that rise far back from the stage. These rocks, plus the rock formation standing at the back of the stage, create the dazzling and unforgettable natural surroundsound of Red Rocks. Even getting into the venue can be a massive exertion in itself, as the parking areas are mostly several hundred feet below the entrances. You have to earn your way into this place of wonders.

There had been a threat of rain all day, but by showtime the skies were clearing out and (as Mike pointed out) we had a nearly full moon above and behind the stage. Temps were probably around 60F once the sun went below the mountain. As we made our way in, I talked with assorted friends who arrived - including Don and the two couples he was hosting, Dee, Bill and his wife, and BobH. We made our way to our seats in second row, near center - I had Mike to my right and Scott to my left, with Daniel further over from Scott. And so, while it was still very much daylight, we settled in for Voices Of Angels.

I still like the opening, and the percussion seemed to echo a bit in a very RedRocksish kind of way, but... ugh... why do people have to be seated late here of all places? One thing that was breathtaking was the steady breeze which constantly billowed the girls' gowns and made for a very pretty complement to the English-language version of "Mo Ghile Mear"; no idea why the crowd roared it's approval at the line "the Saxon foe"... "My Heart Will Go On" wasn't bad, but nothing I would write home about... unfortunately, the same was true of "Dulaman", though Mairead was fun to watch... Yeah, now this is more like it: "Isle Of Hope, Isle Of Tears"!!! Eabha's rendition was truly inspired, and I thought back for a moment to 2014, when I first met Eabha, and how Moscapoet and I had told her then about the wonders of Red Rocks; now I was here, listening as she became one of those wonders... "Amazing Grace" was excellent, but not quite as all-encompassing as the version here two years ago, when you could feel the vibrations of the song through the air; what I did like was the harmonies, which were fantastic and with no distortion... I never really got into Tara's "Across the World" until this night, and I really like the uptempo part of the song.

I had been hinting to Moscapoet all day, and others had similarly been hinting, that he would be blown away by "She Moved Through the Fair." As Susan took the stage I whispered to Mike beside me: "She's barefoot!" I had never noticed this before at previous shows. I thought for a moment how her feet must have been COLD on that rock stage, even with the rubber matting. In any case, my favorite song of this tour came alive for me again, as Susan and Carl waltzed and Susan breathed the lovely melody to it's conclusion. I gave a standing ovation to one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen.

"The Kesh Inn" was fun, and the crowd thought so too... Mairead introduced "Danny Boy" as having been covered by Dinah Washington, Johnny Cash, the Muppets; but no, dear Mairead, the Muppets have nothing on you girls... near the beginning of "Nil Sen La" I thought about the lyrics and how "silver" was about all I had left in my pocket after this tour haha.

Lighting so far had been non-applicable, as the sun was only setting by intermission. Sound had been exquisite, of course. The crowd had been animated from the beginning, although the walking to and fro by patrons getting food and drinks reminded me of dreaded casino shows of tours past.

Second Act... "Teír Abhaile Riú": alas my poor TAR... but not to worry, next up is the acoustic "Orinoco Flow"!!! I still cannot get enough of the part near the middle where Mairead sings in place of where the girls once had their own solo bits; if I could have MC sing anything in the world for me, I would ask her to do that again and again... "For The Love Of A Princess" was next; slow airs are fine, but this one still eludes me, and perhaps I've been too spoiled by certain other slow, fiddled CW pieces in the past.

Now for something I'd been waiting almost two months: "AVE MARIA"!!!! If you had asked me before then if I'd ever be waiting expectantly for a Bach/Gounod version by Celtic Woman (as opposed to the Schubert one), I would have laughed in your face. At my first show of this tour I "ate crow" when Mairead created an unforgettable version of the song. Now, finally, I got to hear it at Red Rocks, and MC did not disappoint. In a performance worthy of a Wagner opera, she overwhelmed the audience. WOW!!!

"Walk Beside Me" brought a tear to my eye, as it had at the Buffalo show and for the same reason; somehow Red Rocks finds just the right heartstrings to tug... I really like Eabha's parts in "Óró Sé Do Bheatha 'Abhaile"... The drum performance by Ray/Catriona/Anto was great, with a bit of a help from the Red Rocks surroundsound... "The Voice"!!!! I'll always love Susan's rendition of this beautiful song... "Sean Nos Songs": now we got to hear Eabha a capella, and we were rewarded handsomely; the finest alto I have ever heard resonated through me.

When "Time To Say Goodbye" was announced, someone in the audience seemed to think that this was the wrap up, and you could an audible "Awwww!!!" which many of us got a chuckle from. But there was no chuckling about THIS song, the absolute pinnacle of harmony. Maybe that patron meant "awe", which would have been appropriate. Flat-out, this was the finest harmonic performance of any song that I have ever heard, anywhere, any time. But the solo parts were none too shabby either, especially Mairead's parts. The last harmonic part, where the girls sing "You and me" just before the "thud" ending, was another of Red Rocks' displays of sonic magic, taking it's proper place beside the long-ago "When You Believe" and other CW gems of Red Rocks. The entire audience gave a standing ovation, and rightfully so.

"You Raise Me Up", fine though it was, was almost in the shadow of "Time To Say Goodbye", and perhaps "The Parting Glass" was too... but then came perhaps the most unexpected thing I had ever seen CW do: they did an extra song! A crowd-participation rendition of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" got the entire crowd going. The energy they exuded in this one song was more than they had shown in the entire balance of the tour and was a welcome change indeed, great though the rest of the show was... the bagpipe finale gave us a chance to cheer the girls (and the entire cast) one more time, and the fellas took selfies with the crowd as a background. My last show of Voices Of Angels was over.

We headed down to the buses, hoping for at least a wave in response. Tara did come down to scatter a few hugs to the winds. Kudos to her, but of course this was Big Red's first time at THE Big Red. Anyway, I didn't get a chance to actually talk to her, there were too many of us and not enough time to go around. Mairead Carlin also attended for a few minutes, and as I hugged her I thanked her for "Ave Maria" though I wanted to thank her for so much more.

The postshow dinner was again at Denny's on Wadsworth Blvd, with Mike, Scott, Daniel, Dee, and myself talking of many things. We said our goodbyes to Dee and later to Daniel, and in the morning Scott and I bid Mike a fond farewell. For Moscapoet and I this trip was just beginning, but eventually, in the evening on Thursday, he and parted company at Denver International; he would be the last of the far-away fans that I would be seeing for a long time. But all things must pass, and the time for gathering at Red Rocks is made more special by its infrequency. There will be other days. Red Rocks isn't going anywhere.

Also: just before the show, while the Meet & Greet group was away, I sat alone and thought for a moment of some of the fans who have never had the chance to experience Red Rocks. I hope in those other days to come that you can join us and become the magic, as we have.

VOICES OF ANGELS RETROSPECTIVE

I have been telling people that this was a good tour. I liked it much more than the centennial Destiny Tour, which I think suffered from a chronic lack of energy. Voices Of Angels felt much more like a Celtic Woman tour. Oh, there were things that I felt could have been improved: a couple of shopworn songs could have been tossed (ugh... I said that last year, and about the same songs), and it wouldn't have hurt to have had more humor like in the days of old. But the incredible harmonies, coupled with some outstanding choreography, made this a very good tour.

My only real regret from this tour was not having a chance to tell Susan or Carl how much I loved their performances in "She Moved Through the Fair". Perhaps next year, even if it will be a year too late, I may have that chance.

Okay, you've probably been wondering all tour: what do I think of Tara? I like her well enough, she's very talented, and her harp was put to great use on this tour. But... I didn't feel any inspiration from her until Red Rocks. It's a pity that I met her only before my first show of this tour, and not at the very end instead, for it was only when she did "Across the World" at Red Rocks that I finally got into her. I just read again my Manchester, Buffalo, and San Antonio reviews, and she almost seems an afterthought, which is harsh in hindsight but perhaps understandable as she never really moved me at those shows. She has now, and when she waved to our group as she walked back to the buses, Tara McNeill finally stepped out from the long shadow cast by the legendary fiddler from County Tipperary and became truly a part of Celtic Woman for me.

A BRIEF PERSONAL RETROSPECTIVE - 2007 TO 2017

Honestly, in 2007 I never thought that I'd still be seeing Celtic Woman shows in 2017. I absolutely wouldn't have thought that I'd still be seeing shows without any of the original cast remaining.

I also had no idea, before my first show in March 2007, how much Celtic Woman and its fans would change my life. In my desire to see shows and fans - some might call it mania - I journeyed far and wide, spending time with CW fans in tropical paradise, desert, prairie, searing winds, bitter subzero cold, snowstorms, torrential downpours, thunderstorms, and mountains at 12,000 feet. I have done multiple-day roadtrips with other fans in the Southwest, the Northeast, the Midwest, and the South. I have driven by myself 1,700 miles roundtrip to see one of the girls from Celtic Woman perform.

But in all of that, and more, I've done something more important: I've borne witness to other people's lives being changed, and I'm proud to have been a part of those people's journeys. These fans have, in a very real sense, walked right beside me and been the real friends I need.

Thank you for reading my reviews over these ten years. Mine has been one small slice in the huge Celtic Woman Fan pie; in these reviews I have tried to chronicle not only what the shows are but also why they mean so much to me.

CONCLUSION

When a phenomenon like Celtic Woman steals your heart, you become a part of that phenomenon as surely as it becomes a part of you. In this way, though it's time to say goodbye, I will forever remain a part of Celtic Woman, just as surely as I will forever remain a part of the beloved fan community. Best wishes, and blessings, to you all. "On my own with you/I will go/You and me".