5 1/2 Weeks Tour
Atlanta, GA
August 21, 1999

Updated November 10, 1999

Check Out The Reviews And Set Lists Page

Tori performed in Atlanta, GA on August 21, 1999 at the Lakewood Amphitheater during the Tori & Alanis Morissette 5 1/2 Weeks Tour.



Set List


God
Sugar
Blood Roses
Cornflake Girl
Bliss
Professional Widow

Leather (solo)
Cloud On My Tongue (solo)

Suede
Cruel
Crucify
Waitress

Encore:
Precious Things



Reviews

From Mikewhy

September 3, 1999 - Atlanta is still a bit of a blur for me. For one, I was starting to get sick that day. We drove about 8 hours from Tampa to see the show, getting to Lakewood about 2 hours before the show. We left Lakewood right after Tori's set because we needed to get to Nashville, which was about 4 hours away. So I was in a haze most of the day. (I normally prefer to stay for Alanis, but that evening we could not.)

We missed the meet & greet but still got to the venue early enough to meet and talk to a lot of people. Once again I met some great folks.

The show was great and I had a decent seat in the middle about 10 rows back. Hearind Suede for the first time was a real treat. This is a dark, moody song and Tori plays both the keyboard and piano during it. During part of the song she stood up and propped one foot on the bench while playing the keyboard and looked really really intense. I can't wait to hear this cut on the new album!

Cruel was the other surprise, and very enjoyable. I mentioned several times during my Plugged '98 reviews how theatrical and intense this song is. That has not changed this time.

Tori told a funny story before "Cloud On My Tongue." This is an approximation of what she said, "Ok so this guy says he wants to fly me somewhere, and I'm like fuck that, you could have had me 3 years ago, I'm married now. Isn't that the way all men are?"

This was the first outdoor venue we saw Tori in. I was worried that it would not be too dark when Tori started singing, but it was and the lighting looked just fine.

Do I have any complaints about the tour so far? Only one minor one. I wish Tori would close with a different encore song every night instead of performing Precious Things all the time. I do love that song and it IS a memorable way to leave the stage. I guess from the standpoint of someone who sees a lot of shows, it would be more exciting to end with a different song each time. But that is a small complaint that does not dampen the show for me at all. For someone new to Tori or who is only seeing one or two shows, they will have Precious Things ringing in their ears long after Tori leaves the stage, which is a good thing I suppose.

I did not see Alanis, but here is a set list for her that was posted on my forum. I have no idea if it is correct, but it must be close if not perfect:

Baba
All I Really Want
Would Not Come
Hand In My Pocket
Are You Still Mad?
Sympathetic Character
Mary Jane
You Learn
Forgiven
So Pure
You Oughta Know
Uninvited

Encore:
Thank U
Ironic

It was reported on my forum that Tori did the following for her soundcheck earlier that day:

"Professional Widow"
"Cruel" (w/ a capella)
"Cruel" (another longer version with alot of reverberation)
piano for "Sister Janet"
Suede - really long and drawn out and practiced to perfection
something that sounded like "Marianne"
"Cruel" again - with all a capella and piano solo



All Reviews Below Were Originally Posted On The Dent Forum

Special thanks to Laurie Daniels for her invaluable assitance in getting the reviews transferred to the Dent!



From Dor:

Hi! Has no one posted the Atlanta setlist yet? Well, heck. It was pretty much the same as the night before. Actually she changed it more. Let me try and reconstruct it. I didn't write anything down.

God
Sugar
Bliss
Crucify
Blood Roses
Professional Widow
Leather (solo)
Cloud on my Tongue (solo)
Suede
Cruel
The Waitress
Cornflake Girl

Encore: Precious Things

Suede was good. Really slow, long, silky, bluesy, mostly piano, kinda transiently smooth, and level.

The setlist started getting better right before secret time. I enjoy Widow but I adore Blood Roses. She's got lots of improv going on in it which I just crave. Hearing Cruel tonight was totally great. I'd been really wanting to. It was pretty similar to the way that she performed it in '98. Slightly different but only noticeable to someone who's heard it a lot. Now I really want to hear Cocaine!

I liked tonight's show. I wish I had been closer but I had fun. I'm looking forward to if and when she decides to pick a different encore song. See you all on the road..

Dor



From Evan:

Ok setlist!
God
Sugar
Blood Roses
Cornflake Girl
Bliss
Professional Widow
Leather
Cloud On My Tongue
"Hiding Underneath My Skin" ? (anyone know?) Cruel
Crucify
Waitress
Precious Things

Alanis:

Baba
All I Really Want
Would Not Come
Hand In My Pocket
Are You Still Mad?
Sympathetic Character
Mary Jane
You Learn
Forgiven
So Pure
You Oughta Know
Uninvited
Thank U
Ironic

It was such an awesome concert, totally didn't expect to hear Widow and Leather, 2 of my favorites. Tori seemed happy, although she didn't talk much. Said something like "ok so this guy says he wants to fly me somewhere, and I'm like fuck that, you could have had me 3 years ago, I'm married now. Isn't that the way all men are?" And then played Cloud On My Tongue. Otherwise she just pretty much said thanks, and the usual comments. Alanis was good, setlist wasn't as great as it could have been but So Pure was amazing. I highly recommend that if you can tolerate it you stay for both artists, they're both great. I didn't really notice any tention, some Tori fans left after Tori, some Alanis fans came in the middle of Tori's set, but really I didn't notice any friction. Maybe I'll post more tomorrow.

Evan



From myth:

What a great show!!! We had 7th row seats in the ctr section and they were awesome! I could see her clearly the whole show. I will try to give the info that people have been asking for.

Tshirts and programs were going hot, I stopped to buy before going in. On the way out half way thru Alanis' set I noticed the programs were indeed sold out. Prices have been posted, so I won't cover that.

Greta Gaines came on a little after 7. She wasn't that bad. We heard the Purple Jesus song someone was talking about on another thread. It was about grain alcohol and grape koolaid. She only had about a 40 minute set.

Tori came on about 8:10. She was wearing a long dress that was clingy, brown on the skirt area and dried blood colour on top, with a sheer part that went from the neckline up to her neck. Over that she had on a pale pink long sleeved shirt with one button done. I couldn't see the shoes too clearly, but they seemed to look like ankle boots. She had a black cord thingy tied around her neck, and her hair was pulled back in a ponytail which it mostly escaped from by the end of the show.

I didn't actually keep a setlist, but after it was over I wrote down this:

God...beginning from offstage as it has on the other shows.

Sugar....ass kicking heavy like on the webcast

Blood Roses....Hurray!! It rocked with the band

Cornflake Girl...like you've become accustomed to with the band

Bliss....very good

Professional Widow (I'm a little uncertain where this fell, but I think this is right)...Hurray again!! I was SO hoping to hear this. It was great!

Leather.....quiet time, very nice

Cloud on my Tongue....also quiet time

Suede!!!!!!!!!!.....oh my god, it was chilling!!! She stood up and propped one foot on the stool and played that way, keyboards only until the "little sister" part at the end where she played piano.

Crucify.....didn't recognize it at first with the band, sounded good

Precious Things....again, what you are accustomed to with the band

Waitress....same as above

EVERYthing rocked. Her vocals were a little low on some parts, but so were Alanis' I noticed. She looked really good, smiled alot, and seemed like the Tori we all love. She was very expressive with face and body. On Sugar when she did the "hammers, he used one on me" she made a pounding motion between her arm and the piano. She did the "iieee" dance on Crucify. Before she played Cloud she told a story about how she was somewhere, and this guy came and told her to come with him, he wanted to take her to Borneo, and she was like...but I can't, you know my boyfriend is here and you already had your chance awhile back and you didn't take it.....then she said and isn't that the way they always do. There was alot of interaction between her and the other band members, she and Caton were smiling at each other for awhile during either Crucify or PT and he started laughing. On one song she started out on the piano and then stopped, and started over in a different key. Jon Evans was laughing at her on that. Now I can't remember which song that was, I'm sure someone else will fill in for me.

Anyway, it was 73 minutes, but it didn't seem short to me. We stayed for a little of Alanis just to check her out, even tho it seemed to me profane to hear any other band after Tori. She wasn't that bad, but I'm just not into her.

Oh yeah, our security wasn't that bad. They didn't pat and barely looked in my bag. As soon as the opening of God was heard people rushed the stage. They left them alone, but stopped anyone else who was trying to come forward. It seemed to me to be Tori's show at the front cos the whole front section was standing for her. When Alanis came on most of them stayed, but sat down for the first 7-10 rows, while everybody back from that was standing. Guess EWF are more diehard about getting the good seats!

That's it that I can remember for now. I'm sure more will come back to me, I'll add it if no one else has.

And I got to meet Mikewhy, who seemed very uncomfortable with his celebrity, especially when a friend with him cracked that he was going to have to start holding his own M&Gs.

Please excuse any crappy typing to the late hour and my gooey contact lenses!

Oh yeah, thank you Evan. Your setlist is in the correct order, and I realized I left off Cruel.


From chavaleh:

This was the first Tori concert I've ever been to. Not that I haven't always *wanted* to go, it's just that she seems to always come around when I am broke as can be. It was thrilling. I had to choke back tears when she came on, which I know is silly but I've wanted to see her for so very very long and it was just so amazing to really be there. There is no way on earth I am going to remember the set list and since it's already been posted a couple of times I don't think that's important. Blood Roses was magnificent. I loved the little thing she did with her hips... it was just so perfect. Crucify was so dang nifty. Suede was lovely and seemed kind of dark to me. I left a bit into Alanis's set because some drunk dancers were getting a bti hostile. Anyway, it was a thrilling experince seeing Tori and I am going to have to save my pennies and dimes so that I can sit closer next time and actually get to see her face (I think I would have seen more sitting on the lawn watching the tv thingys).



From HoneyChas1:

I have the Sound check and the Set list - in order... Soundcheck~
"Professional Widow"
"Cruel" (w/ a capella)
"Cruel" (another longer version with alot of reverberation) piano for "Sister Janet"
Suede - really long and drawn out and practiced to perfection something that sounded like "Marianne"
"Cruel" again - with all a capella and piano solo Actual Show~
"God"
"Sugar"
"Blood Roses"
band intro.
"Cornflake Girl"
"Bliss"
"Professional Widow"
"Leather" (solo)
"Cloud On My Tongue" (solo)
"Suede"
"Cruel"
"Crucify"
"The Waitress"
Encore:
"Precious Things"

The show was absolutely amazing. Tori was in top form and had the total attention of the crowd. I got the tour book and the pink "Venus" necklace. I tried to go to the Meet & Greet but, my stupid friends decided to wait and get ready right as she was doing the actual Meet & Greet - so I only got a couple of glimpses of Tori. But, you guys are in for a real treat when she comes your way. Thanks.

Nathan.



From Rikitikitavi:

The show in Atlanta was spectacular! Tori did an even mix of old and new material. We couldn't stay around for the second artist because we didn't want to lose our "high" from Tori's set. Can't wait for the new album, especially based on the two songs from it that she performed tonight!


From faeriegrl:

I can't really add too much to what has already been posted... The set list, etc. Tori seemed to be in very good form. It was a great show. Other than many people making beer runs throughout some of my favorite songs (grrr! just sit down and listen, peeps!)I didn't notice any especially rude people, save for the two guys behind me who shouted "Tori Fans Go Home" shortly before the last song... and they were easily silenced with a whole row of people glaring at them. She did tell a little story before Cloud on My Tongue... something to the effect of this great boy who asked her to join him in a vacation to Borneo... she was speaking very dreamily when she told that part... and then all of sudden she was saying What the Fuck? I have a boyfriend now, you know I have a boyfriend... something to the effect of how she had the hots for him before she got a boyfriend and NOW he asks her to go to Borneo... and isn't that always the way it goes. It was short but cute. The Tori program is very cute... but I noticed they mispelled Neil's last name... ...
Tori was wearing a long burgandy dress... the neckline was made of sheer fabric of the same color, and she had a long sleeved sheer pink skirt tied on top of it... black ankle high boots... her hair was tied back at the beginning of the show, but most of it had fallen out of the tie by the end... but it was it's usualy curly self this time. Just for those that wanted to know...

A note about the "Project 5.5 Weeks Scrapbook (for those that are involved, and Kristy and Kelley). From what I understand from the chica I was supposed to get the book from, it never really got started. She never received it in Tampa. I have an extra scrapbook here... I'm going to try and pick up with it at the Nashville show... other people who have been to all the shows can fill in the Florida pages, but I don't think it's too late to make it work, seeing as it's only the 4th show tomorrow. We'll see how things go. Well, I have to get some sleep for Nashville tomorrow. Hope I see more forum folks there... not a one tonight!

Jes



From LadyLazarusUnderwater:

Okay, maybe everyone who posted had reserved seats or something, but I was on the lawn and it kinda blew. I mean, every other time I've seen Tori I had good seats - once you have front row center, it's all downhill from there. But there were people all around me who seemed equally into Alanis and Tori - and were equally rude. Thank god Tori had the band and they drowned out most of the chatter, but during the secretime songs, it was distracting. Tori was about as big as my pinky nail finger, and my butt was wet from sitting on the grass. And am I the only person who's seeing a bit more sameness in Tori's setlist than we're used to? It seems like almost every song she played I'd seen on the setlists for the first 2 shows, except we got Suede and not Glory of the 80s or Cooling. Please, please - anyone who has any way of getting anything near Tori's ears: COME BACK TO THE FOX!!! The outdoor venues (Lakewood & Chastain) only exacerbate rudeness that was already there. At least in the Fox, people are a bit less likely to make a friggin' beer run in the middle of the set. :-/


From myth:

The beer runs did get extremely annoying, and were happening even up front. Hell, there was a couple making out in front of us. I just tried to ignore everything but Tori. I had a ticket available for sale (on concert/tour forum) for the 21st row ctr, which I was ready to go half price on by today. Wish you'd seen it, we'd have both been happier on that score



From DaisyPetals:

Hello all! This is my first time posting, so bare with me The show tonight was great - Tori was amazing. This was my second concert (I saw her in Atlanta last summer, too), and I got chills and tears in my eyes all over again when she came onstage. I had 8th row center seats, which were amazing. Her expressions were so cute tonight - I agree with everyone else when they say she was in a good mood She looked beautiful as ever tonight... I really dug her outfit. The set list was great - I was surprised to hear Blood Roses and Widow because they weren't played at all last year's tour; they were great with the band. Suede and Bliss were great - I am just dying for the new album. I feel like a starving animal who is just drooling over the thought of something so delicious!!
The fans around my area were pretty decent. There were a few obvious die hard Alanis fans in front of me, but they were very considerate throughout Tori's set (they went battey during Alanis heehe). Most of the people in my area were Tori fans I believe, so that was very comfortable
I stayed for all of Alanis' set; it was good although I don't know nearly as much of her stuff. I really enjoyed Thank U - that was very cool. (I know this is really enlightening- I apologize!) A lot the the Tori fans near me left before or during her set. Alanis puts on a good show if you like her stuff.
Well, I'll stop rambling now! I'm sorry for being so monotonous and repetive- there's nothing new to read from me Its a great show - have fun everyone!!



From Raver:

I'm going to have to concur with everyone that the outdoor venue thing is not all that great. But I'm not going to complain since I did get to see two artists I love. Well...I guess maybe I will a little. My crappy seat I couldn't do anything about. I was WAY over at the far right-hand side of things. When I wasn't trying to see around the loafing security guy blocking the stage I was getting pissed at people who would stop right in front of me as they went to get beer. Though somewhat annoying, but kind of funny at the same time, it looked like Tori was censored from my seat. The top of her piano was opened just so it covered her face. I saw hair and a shirt, but there was a black line like a censorship bar right over her face nearly the whole time. :P

As for sound, I definitely agree with other people that these larger venues have meant poorer sound quality. The vocals were hard to hear oftentimes (luckily I know the words so that really didn't keep me from following anything).

I don't think it was any particular kind of fan, but the people all around me didn't clap AT ALL, for ANY of the artists. I felt like a big loner shouting and clapping. It was really strange.

On a few more positive notes, I'd never seen Cornflake Girl live and I just LOVED the little piano bit at the beginning. Also, the piano in Cloud On My Tongue was AMAZING. I got really into that one. I won't really judge any of the rest because it just isn't the same experience when you aren't front and center (like I was in Austin last year and I will be again this year!).

Alanis ROCKED! I didn't realize so many people were one way or the other when it came to those two. To quote a friend of mine, "Help! I'm an 'and' in a world of 'either/ors'!" A lot of my friends said she sucks live but now I definitely don't agree. I'll reiterate what everyone's said about her spinning on stage: watch her do that and you'll be duly impressed! Her energy level is incredible. Also, the intro to Uninvited is way cool.

Enjoy the rest of 5 and 1/2 Weeks everyone!! I had a blast and I can't wait for the new album and her date in Austin! Tschuss!!!



From aab4:

I loved tonights show. I enjoyed her with the band alot more than I did last year. Tori seemed to be in a extreemly great mood tonight.I loved her dances, she did two I think. It was nice to her a Tori story again. I had seats and then I moved to the lawn to be more confortable. I enjoyed the show alot. All and all the show was great Alanis didn't have a prayer to topping tori's show. I enjoyed Alanis more than I thought I would. My favorite Hightlighs of the show were Leather and Blood Roses(I missed the Harpsicord).
I can't wait till her next show
Peace love and Toriness
Danny



From kjlee@emory.edu:

This is my second Tori concert and I was up in the front,hanging over the railing but off to the side a bit. I was amused how security was nice (I guess) in letting the Tori fans up in the front but when Alanis performed and her fans tried to do the same thing, security shoo'd them back into place.
I went to the Columbia, SC of plugged 98 and compared to that concert, this one- Tori had a better time with the audience. I thought her list was kind of one sided: mostly being angst-y songs. (all marvelous songs however).

+God: interesting with the band. gave it a darker mood. she was in a very teasing bantor tonight, smiling to the audience and I think the two girls that were dressed like faeries and heisted up in the air, Tori definitely saw that and smiled (but wasn't that during the encore?) an acknowledgment.
+Sugar- wow, this is definitely a throbbing toothache. It was so awesome.
+Blood Roses- hits her head with her hand repetitively during the "God, I know...",
then she puts her hands to her head and does the "bunny" gesture and begins...
+Cornflake Girl- she starts off on a "wrong key" and makes a pun out of it
+Bliss: for me, Tori's little piano quirks are what makes her so unique and great. It's like a little treat when she does those tiny ... themes? +Professional Widow- wow, jazzed up and has more power +Leather- all by herself, she blows a kiss to the audience and tells a story about how she was in the pacific and she ran into this guy who mentions about the borneo which leads into. . . +Cloud on My Tongue- by herself, surprise to hear this song + Suede- something about adrift... miles... power all over me... suede...twin peaks...oh little sister...? I found this the weakest point of the concert because it seemed that she wasn't all together with the band.
+Cruel- does a little dance, no differant than last year +Crucify- almost unrecognizable, very slow and emphasizes "sellout baby" the effects are like being in les miserables' cave +Waitress- wow, new york sewer with the blood... oops, water dripping steadily.
Encore- Precious Things: a lava lamp near each member, does her usual gurl growl.


t-shirts: there were those 10$ in the parking lot after the show. the ones that they were selling in the booth: one was black with the picture of her with a boa around her neck on the front. another was white with several boxes containing pictures lined up in a horizontal row in the front and on the back was one (?) box/picture of the back of a cd cover?, another black tshirt with a white drawing of a girl and a piano outlined on the front [is that what i taste your super nova juice- printed above the picture] and on the back was the tour dates, another pink tshirt with something printed in white about "the bomb" on the back, and I think tank tops but I wasn't really interested. All the tshirts were around 27$, the program was 15$ (?), the necklace was 10$(?), and make sure you ask for the Tori program because the guy almost gave me the Alanis. The booth was very separate on the merchandise. I think that was all on the Tori side. Have fun and hope this helps. It was wonderful. I think Tori fans are so lovely & incredibly nice. I only wished that she did some softer songs. Most of her songs seemed on a theme. Usually she varied more. But overall, the concert was great and you can definitely see the tightness of the band.



From pelegrrl:

wow. that was well worth the drive from tallahassee florida. to be honest, i was a little bit worried after all of the nightmare stories from the ft. lauderdale show. but i can honestly say i had absolutely none of the problems that were mentioned with that show. i thought the sound was wonderful. you could totally hear her voice fine. and what a voice. i think that vocally that was one of the best performances i've ever heard. i was listening to my boot of new orleans last year and it totally kicked it's butt. i cried during sugar when she does that high arching vocal embellishment thing "he-a-hee he-a-hee". i loved it. this was my 8th time seeing her, my hubby's second and it totally rocked. i liked how she ran her finger across the piano when she said "come" in precious things. and she also touched the piano on the first time through "i'm gonna go where she (touches piano) goes" in waitress. i didn't get to stay for all of alanis b/c hubby was feeling icky, plus the traffic was gonna be insane, but what i saw i was very impressed with. i love her hair. i think suede is gonna blow me out of the water when i actually get to hear the lyrics. anyway, enough rambling. everybody enjoy your shows!
p.s. hi beth from chattanooga, if you read this!


p.s. I MAY make an exception if you have Belle and Sebastian shows that I do not have. If you trade B&S tapes or CD's, let me know.



From myth:

Ok, after my previous review post I was having to review it to my mom and some friends. I had calmed down and gotten my thoughts about it together a bit more, and wanted to add this bit to my review: >Our seats were so so so good (I'm sorry for those who had crappy seats, I'm not trying to rub it in - I know what it's like, my seats at chastain last year sucked and I was so hating it during the show). I could see her face, and all the expressions she makes when she sings, all the body language she uses to illustrate her lyrics. And once or twice I got to see that angelic smile she has sometimes when she's playing, the one that's so beautiful and transcendent it almost makes me cry, and I'm filled with love for a woman I don't know. She is so expressive when she plays, it seems that you really don't see other modern (cept maybe Elton) performers on the piano who can pull that off, so much movement, they usually just sort of sit there and maybe sway a little. Her voice ranges from pure crystal high notes to deep growling guttural lows, from a religious beauty to a predatory attack. Once again, somewhere in the set she is standing up, playing the piano with one hand and the keyboard with the other, and I am in awe of her talent. There is simply no equivalent to seeing Tori live, and no other performer like her. Even in the midst of a band she still expresses the essence of herself, that amazing openess that makes you feel as though she is showing you everything, and you are looking at all the beauty and ugliness and honesty and trying that is inside another person.<

THAT is what seeing Tori is about for me, and I don't care what songs she plays or how many because I would only ever be satisfied if she played ALL of them, and I have no hopes of that! I'm seeing some bitching about the lack of variation in the setlist from people who are going to multiple shows, and I can't feel too sorry for you - you're going to multiple shows and I'm only going to one. I would be happy to see the same live set over again every day for a year if I could. Stop wanting what you don't have and be happy with what you've got, which is more than alot of people here. I can't believe anyone could ever be so jaded about seeing Tori that they would complain (unless it's the crappy seat thing). That is also the reason why I don't care if she was touring with the Backstreet Boys, I got to see her.

It was only my second show tho, so I guess I'm not cynical yet.

Faeriegirl - I was 102 but on the 103 aisle side. I was looking for laminates. I met Crispy briefly when he came up as I was talking to Mikewhy.

Bev - I agree with the rushing the stage business, that was SO planned out - I was surprised when it happened and I think security was caught off guard too, so they left them alone. It helped me actually - cleared out the 2 rows in front of me so I didn't have to peer around peoples heads, I had a clear shot. I wish you had come up to me. I am shy too, and really wanted to meet some people. There were EWF across the aisle from me in sec 103 and the girl on the outside had a laminate I saw, caught her name was Jennifer, but I was too shy to intro too!

Evan - my friend heard about that LiveX, said they were giving away tickets for Freeloaders (which I'm not) but when I checked 99x.com it said nothing. I heard the taping is this Monday, which means it will air this coming Friday, and repeat on Sunday. I may have to break down and actually listen to 99x to see what's up.

That's it people, it seems like enough!


From ldymcbth:

just a few things to add:
*i noticed no tension between alanis-fans & toriphiles. the alanis fans near me who weren't enthused about seeing tori just sat down during her set, as did most of the toriphiles not interested in seeing alanis during that set. i was actually really glad to see that this was the case. kudos to my immediate section (101 rows 1-10) for good behavior. mostly.

*met a few denters, which was very nice as i did not have time to do the laminate thing at all for atlanta. purplefaerygirl(which i am probably not spelling correctly), you amuse me greatly. and mikewhy is a really nice, down-to-earth, sunburned guy.

*tori was great. great great great. enthusiastic, very adorable, wearing some fabulous boots, and enjoying herself, i think. much has been said re: setlists so i'll just say that bliss is *killer* live, and i was so very happy to hear prof. widow and blood roses.

*ok, one negative point. toward the very end of tori's set, 2 guys (both wearing white shirts, though not identical security-type ones, just white shirts, one with a ponytail) escorted a group of about 6 girls down to the very front of the orchestra area where everyone had been standing throughout tori's set. they pushed everyone out of the way, and then proceded to put a couple of the girls on their shoulders. the girls were wearing large (very pretty, but large) fairy wings and so not only were they poking the crap out of everyone as they pushed their way through the crowd, once they were airborne they totally blocked our view of tori. come on now. that was ridiculous and really, really inconsiderate. those of us lucky enough to get close seats paid good money for them, and it is really frustrating to *finally* (after like 7 years of fandom) get close seats at a show and have that experience a bit marred by people like this. i beg of you: if you're lucky enough to get to attend one of these shows, please take a few moments as you're enjoying tori to figure out if what you are doing could in any way be destroying the experience for a fellow ewf.

*i don't know that anyone has mentioned this, but right as you walked into the pavilion area at lakewood. best buy and mp3 (i think) had a big interactive tent thing set up with things you could play with. which was actually fun. AND they gave out free phone cards with the tour logo on them. amount of time on the phone cards? 5 1/2 minutes, of course.

*oh, and i have to say one more negative thing: in my personal opinion, greta gaines is insufferable. so don't say i didn't warn you. the best thing about her set was that it was blissfully short and matt came out to do percussion with her. i want so very badly to believe that tori had nothing to do with choosing greta. one more greta gripe: in the middle of tori's set she plowed through the front stage area where all of the ewf were grooving with her damn cowboy hat on. hello. cowboy hat. large. hard to see over. go away!

had a great time in atlanta, and i'm very much looking forward to charlotte. hope to see some of you there!



From purplefaerygirl:

ldymcbth, you took the words right out of my mouth!! those little faeries were just ridiculous... i mean little round wings are ok, but these really could have been dangerous. they were pointy and coulda poked somebody in the eye. not good.
the show i thought was absolutely wonderful! definitely a rock concert. i was in sec 101 row d. i danced through the whole thing (sorry ldy ) the people next to me were apparently alanisers b/c they mostly sat down but were not rude at all and didn't bother anyone as far as i could tell. i just couldn't stay for alanis b/c i knew there was nowhere to go but down i was so happy with tori's show. but i'm gonna watch her in charlotte. probably.

complaint: god the shirts just cost so much! $32 for a little baby t-shirt? what the hell? and the programs were $15-- alanis's were $12. i can't believe they cost so much. it's like just bend over why doncha.

did anybody else keep an eye on jon during cruel? he was so into it i was actually watching him instead of tori. i also loved when she just talked in the middle of sugar (what exactly did she say-- something like the whatcha think they'll do)-- very cool. and how she's adding that kind of grunty "hey" to more and more songs.

overall i must say i enjoyed the performance even more than the plugged shows i think. and unlike what most people have said, i kind of like the outside venues-- more suited to getting up and dancing and stuff. of course had i been in the back i may have felt differently.



From Sibyl--a raisin girl:

Okay, thanks for naming Suede. I was killing myself to find out what it was. That and Precious Things were the greatest moments of the night. I will say this since no one else has...was anyone a little pissed that the show started before 8:00? I wasn't really interested in hearing Greta Gaines (I think that's her name), so I showed up around 8:30 and Tori was already on stage! I went to two of the Plugged shows and she didn't get on until at LEAST nine! I'm especially disgusted since she sang God AND Blood Roses.
This was my first meet and greet, and other than the boiling heat and not knowing what to expect, I dug it. People were pretty cool about passing up your stuff to Tori to get signed if you were in the back. A couple of people asked if she'd play Professional Widow, which by now you know she did. Some of the people in the front even moved after they got their pictures in to let some of us get a little closer, and even though we were jammed together and suffocating, there wasn't any pushing or shoving or major rudeness.
Back to the show. I thought Tori looked a little tired, but her fingers didn't show it because she played and sang her butt off (as usual). The live performance of Bliss definitely sold me on it. I was excited to hear Cloud on my Tongue, and Leather was absolutely beautiful. I can't say enough about Suede. I wouldn't know where to begin. Maybe mesmerizing comes close! (BTW--is that available other than on an MP3?) Professional Widow is definitely in my top 5 favorite songs, and I was ecstatic that she played the LP version instead of the Merry Widow--it's just not the same without the Mother Mary...peace, love and a hard cock ending

My biggest gripe was that Lakewood SUCKED! From the premature beginning to the fact that the merchandisers ran out of Tori programs by the end of her set though they had an assload of Alanis programs at both stands, I would have gotten more out of the show if things offstage had run as smoothly as things onstage.

A few words about Alanis. I'm not a big Alanis fan, so I didn't stay for her entire performance, but I DID give her a fair chance. That girl has a LOT of energy, and despite what some think, she has good stage presence even if it's more wild and rambunctious than Tori's piano-bench-grinding sexuality. But for the same reason that I'm only a weekend Alanis fan, it gets to be overwhelming after like, 10 minutes. You say to yourself (or at least I said to myself), "enough already." She doesn't exactly suck, guys, but she's just not my glass of wine



From Southern Belle:

Tori kicked so much ass!! I just got back into B'ham from Atlanta. Everyone has already posted the setlist and everything but I just wanted to add my little bit. I saw her for the first time last year so seeing her again was just really, really great. I didn't see any fellow denters cause I didn't see any laminates. I didn't have one. Anyway, my best friend's mom saw her for the first time and was really, really excited. Now she wants to take us to one of the shows in Texas. We had such a wonderful time. I got chills. However, some people in front of us wouldn't sit down so we couldn't see so we had to stand up and then the people behind us yelled at us to sit down. Finally, the people in front of us sat down. And then, of course, some big tall guy had to sit in front of me. But I just moved down. There were a lot of people around me that were way older. They kept going to get beer and that was annoying so I agree with the rest of you. What's the point in going to something like that if you're going to drink yourself into a stupor so you can't remember it anyway?
But.....Tori was soooooooooooo wonderful!!! I was soooooo glad to hear Cloud On My Tongue I almost cried. So yea. I got to see Tori despite all the other crap that happened (long story). I always have bad luck in Atlanta. Oh well. Ya'll are really gonna have a GREAT time when she comes your way!! Wish I was in Nashville!!!



From SomaRiot:

This was my one and only show this tour, and I guess I'd have to say that I personally am ready to see Tori go back to being just her and the piano, because otherwise you can't HEAR Tori or the piano, except during secret time (which KICKED ASS).
A word on the m&g: Lana, whom I've never met before, was coordinating the number system by the time I got there, and was passing out name tags with your name, the date, and the number on them. We were all waiting in a spot that was NOT where the m&g was. The point of this was to try to get everyone to the m&g spot in an orderly fashion, avoid rushing, etc. It was also to prevent us having to stand at the barricades for HOURS. At a certain point (3 or so?) we all walked in groups of ten, single file in order of our numbers, to the m&g place, and lined up (about 50 of us) and when they got the barricades set up, we filed in in little rows. At that point the system broke down a little, there was some shuffling, but other than that the numbers stayed in tack and it was a much better experience than the ones I went to last year. Not everyone got to speak to her, obviously, and its a shame that we can't set up bleechers or something so that everyone can at least take pictures, but we did the best we could with what we had to work with. Relatively speaking we didn;t have to stand at the barricades too long (half hour, maybe?). Tori stayed with us longer than she'd been reported to have stayed previously, was in a chipper mood and making all sorts of cute faces and noises. At one point someone gave her a hat which she proudly wore the rest of the m&g. Lots of people got stuff signed, got hugs and pictures, etc. I was very much in the back, but I had a good time nonetheless, and caught glimpses of the stuff in front.

The setlist has been set out already.

But I have to ask...

WHAT WAS UP WITH CATON AND HIS BIKE SHORTS???

Maybe I don't want an answer to that question.

Depending on how my pics come out, I'm trading/looking for m&g pics from Atlanta, if anyone has 'em!! E-me.

Charli



From charlene:

I really loved the Atlanta concert, although maybe it was just me, but I kind of thought the band was a little to loud for her, it drowned her out. I enjoyed when they left the stage and she did a few songs without them. By the way Chavaleh, don't feel stupid, I had to hold back tears when she came out too. Didn't expect to get so emotional, but I did. Thank goodness nobody saw me. So I'm a fan of Alanis also ( not near as big as Tori) but unfortunatley, I didn't get to enjoy her very much. Two girls right behind me that made their beer runs during Tori, came back for Alanis to just totally ruin it. It's one thing to get up and have fun and sing to the songs, but these girls could have saved themselves some money by just staying home and recording themselves singing, because they were just screaming the songs, I couldn't hear Alanis for nothing. They were really disrespectful to people who paid money to see this concert, and I hope by some chance they see this. I was in section 205 row FF.



From bev:

i don't know. tori seems really into the whole band thing right now. i would like to see her alone, but i am so happy to see her so happy and alive on stage with a band.
i loved greta. she had such a powerful voice.



From pele1976:

I thought Tori's performance was the best I've seen so far (I saw her in '96 and last summer). I was extremely disappointed with the length of the show. I would have preferred a concert featuring Tori only, not Alanis - as I know most Tori fans would. Tori's set was awesome, but the entire experience was somewhat of a disappointment. p.s. If anyone wants to e-mail me about the show, I'm now registered: pele1976@hotmail.com



From BlissTori2:

Amazing is all I can say is about the concert last night. Well first of all as soon as I got into Atlanta(since I live in Tallahassee) we went straight to the M&G and it was about 3pm and we got all ready but I was way in the back then Tori came walking out looking amazing with a lovely purple tee on. And well she was there a while(from what I heard the longest this tour) and I brought my GOD single and I passed it up hoping it would get signed and it did. I have'nt tooken my eyes off it since I got it. And some guy had a bruette on and I think he had an extra one and gave it to Tori and she put it on . Well for the concert it was amazing just so great. It was my first concert and I was seeing Tori how great? Tori should've played at night, and longer. Well after Tori played we went to go pee and some guy asked if we wanted his 5TH ROW TICKETS!!!!!!! So we sat in the 5th row for Alanis(which I wished it was Tori)



From MermanAtlanta:

I just have to say that I've been to a number of Tori shows, and I was really pleased with both my seating and Tori's performance. Everyone I sat around was very nice, and I didn't experience anything like the people at previous concerts had mentioned. I tried to give Alanis a fair chance, but as much as I hate to admit it, she does not appeal to me as a performer. For me, it takes more than someone pacing back and forth on the stage staring at the floor and bobbing her body and head around like a maniac. I must say that I really enjoyed her last two CDs and I was looking forward to hearing her play, but MY GOD! she annoyed to shit out of you with her ranting and the bass completely washed her voice out (and I was on the 12th row!). What I could hear of her was less than appealing. Her stage set up was very interesting, but that was about the best thing I can say about her. When I saw other Toriphiles like Mikewhy and J'ason and Heidi, etc. leaving after Tori's set, I thought they were being somewhat rude, but I later wished I had left the scene when they did. They knew exactly what to do. As far as Tori saying people would be tacky by leaving early, well, I just have to say it would have been more tacky to have stayed and endured such hellish singing. I love Tori and I respect her decision to tour with Alanis, but if she were going to do a group tour, she should have hooked up with Lilith Fair because The Indigo Girls and Sarah are much more in league with Tori than Alanis. I've never been more disappointed at a show in my life than I was at Alanis'. She needs to have more audience interaction--namely EYE CONTACT. Everyone has to admit that Tori DOES face the crowd while playing her instruments and only seldomly takes her eyes off the audience. If Alanis is truly such a Tori fan, she should watch the Little Earthquakes video where Tori explains the "wheel" concept of performing live...the giving back to the audience what is given. She might also consider turning down her bass.

I was so pissed by Alanis, I almost forgot how much I enjoyed Tori! She's awesome, and Blood Roses was awesome and different sounding. Too bad she decided to sing it before the live album came out. Oh, well, there's always part II of 2 Venus & Back



From Tori_Live:

This is my very brief review (famous last words). First the M&G went very well, unlike Tampa, where people lined up (apparently in a mad dash for the barracades) at noon. Sheesh, I wouldn't have gone to get water at 11:00 if I'd known that...better still, I would have slept later

Big thanks to Dor, who did a great job of lining everyone up and keeping some order.

Folks, for all the complaining about the numbering system, it works, and if you line up calmly and in an orderly fashion, Steve seems to be much calmer. People in the front did get out of the way after talking to Tori.

At least some people in the back did get stuff signed by passing it up.

Me? I asked her to sign my shirt "To Dallas and Back," since I'll be going to the texas shows....so what does the dingaling do? She wrote exactly what I said, but didn't put her signature on it....I was already out of
the crowd before I asked somoene exactly what she wrote. I'd be pissed, but it seems to make a much better story this way...hopefully I'll get her to complete the task at one of the other show...I'm still laughing.

Ok so it wasn't brief--fuck me.(oops that just slipped out).

The show itself was great. I liked the set much better than Tampa, but that's mostly because I'd read the setlist for the 1st show.

But c'mon, Prof. Widow, Suede, Cloud On My Toungue, which i completely failed to recognize....as I've told most EWF's, I'm a casual diehard fan

I also was stoked when they did Cruel. Leather was nice too. I think everything else was the same.

I do wish that she wouldn't close with the same song every night. I understand why she's playing all the songs that Radio sometimes plays, but switching things up a bit would be nice.

I saw somone say that Alanis had too much bass. Where were you sitting?

I was 10th row and dead center, and I can guarantee you that from where i was, Tori had far more bass than Alanis. In fact, if I had one criticism of Tori's set (and I do), it's that the bass was WAY too loud....except on Cruel where the bass died at exactly the wrong moment....made me laugh....but I don't think that most of the audience noticed.

As for recordings, there are at least 3 from EWFs and I saw some guy in his 40s or 50s recording in front of me, but for reasons I won't go into, I don't think his will be very good.

>For both tampa and Atlanta (to a lesser extent), I had mic problems. Hopefully, someone elses came out better.

That said, Suede was fine....I lopped off a bunch of bass....hopefully it will sound good on your system.


Get it while it's there, because it won't be there forever, unless i forget.

See that was brief, wasn't it

Kevin



From Gosaidgo:

A semi-review of the 8-21-99 Tori Amos show in Atlanta, GA: .
God
the lights went out and you hear Tori singing a capella from backstage, "god sometimes you just don't come through..." then the band comes out and starts playing the intro and Tori comes out and waves and goes into the song... it was the same as on the Live and Unreheared mtv online thing.

Sugar
amazing as always.. same as plugged98.

Bliss
same as on Letterman.

Crucify
crucify has gotten a complete make-over. tori doesn't play the piano during the verses. the bridge is sung differently and has new lyrics.. you have to hear it, i can't describe from memory right now.

Blood Roses
woah.. it's a whole new song, in the vein of the "Horses" makeover. very mellow. tori often repeated lines 2 or 3 times and skipped some from the album version. she leaned far back on her piano bench and rubbed her crotch while singing "you gave him your blood and your warm little diamonds" slowly 3 times. "when chickens get a taste of your meat" seems to be the chorus, sung and with music like a ballad. during one part of the song she kept hitting herself in the head with her right hand. this was very raw, dark and emotional... many people were just Bawling, myself included.

Professional Widow
oh wow!!! same arrangement as the album version, with tori not holding her 2 fun wailing parts quite as long as on the album. the song began with a sample of a guy saying something i didn't quite catch, but it was definitely meant to be an intro to the song. i believe the guy spoke if the amazingness of the song about to be performed. i'm Not joking. Beautiful "rest your shoulders peaches and cream" bridge, the piano was loud and clear. at the end, she holds the word "cock" until she runs out of breath, (like the "girrrrrrrrrrl" in precious things) and the song ends with the tori holding "cock" a capella. lol :p it's true.

Leather (solo)
tori amos sing-a-long song. blah. but i do love the song, of course, and Her performance of it.

Cloud on my Tongue (solo)
tori told a story about how many years ago this guy asked her to fly with him to Borneo and she was like, "fuck that! i've got a boyfriend now and you had your chance a few years ago." cloud was more beautiful than ever, complete with new sweet little high notes before the verses.
i actually almost cried, it brought back all these wonderful memories of seeing Tori perform an entire show alone with her piano...

Suede
suede was amazing.. very dark and moody. i remember really loving the lyrics. she played most of the song on the keyboard, standing with one foot up on her bench. the ending ("little sister...") was on piano.

Cruel
"deep, deep, deeper than you can... right from your eyes..." Tori's voice was Perfect and powerful, the keyboard was Loud like it should always be.

The Waitress
drums were a little different, more fierce during the last few bars of the chorus. same "hang ten" and tori even returned the audience's not-surfing-related arm/hand gestures one time. amazing finale, just like the way it was at the end of the plugged '98 tour.

Cornflake Girl
new instrumental intro with the band, i had no idea it was gonna be cornflake girl. tori messed up on her bit of the intro and had to start over, saying to the audience something along the lines of, "oops, i started in the wrong key." it wasn't the best cornflake girl i've heard with the band and the improv parts during the "rabbit" parts were very brief.

Encore: Precious Things
basically the same as plugged 98.

~~~~~~~~
~ ~
j'ason
~ ~
~~~~~~~~


From straycat:

ok, here's my atlanta review for any one who gives a crap. i have to say that i was disappointed in tori's set. it was very short. too short. when i saw the mtv web cast, she had said that this show was not about compromises. that she and alanis would be playing full sets. but i've never see tori do only one encore. my friend and i had front row seats, thanks to mp3 (yep, they do come through). but where we were we could see more of the piano, than tori. we could see her feet and face.
once tori came out, all these people started coming up to the stage. we got up quick and stood up against the barricade so we could see. after tori's show, there were a few alanis fans, trying to come up to the front and stand. but security said that (from the best we could tell) it was tori's request that security was to not bother anyone who wanted to come and stand up front while she was playing. but for alanis it was different.
and i don't mean to be a bitch or anything, but i was also annoyed at people singing while tori was doing her 'secret time'. i came to hear tori, and not the audience singing along. if anyone was singing while the band was on stage, i didn't know it. but when it's just her, that's the best time to really hear her.
some one had posted this on another forum here, i also grow tired of 'the waitress'. i've seen it live enough. i was glad to hear professional widow, was hoping for raspberry swirl, hotel, and tear in your hand (among others).
i think my disappointment stems from the fact that alot of the intimacy that i felt with shows i've seen in the past, just wasn't there. my friend and i did stay for alanis, even though we are not fans. and i hate to say it, but she puts on a good show. i'm not going to rush out and buy all her stuff, but i have more respect for her now.



From Pumpkin PJs:

Ok, my computer was down when I got home so this is 3 days late. My mom screwed with it. Here is a review of the show for anyone who cares. Absolutely AMAZiNG! Tori is so beautiful. It was my first show and I was dazed when it was over.
Everyone has posted most of the information. Is it just me or did all the couples get closer during Leather? It was cute! Now I know that the prevailing attitude toward Alanis was not very good, but I regret the bad attitude I had before the show. i stayed for all of the show. I thoroughly enjoyed all of the songs especially from Jagged Little Pill. I had forgotten what the songs meant to me in early highschool and late middle school. I'm such a hypocrite. She was great. My friend is giving me his copy of Jagged Little Pill and the new one because he doesn't want them anymore. I'm going to get back into her. The only complaint I have is that
I lost the Tori feeling after Alanis. I had a great time overall.

Love to all ears with feet,
(and alanis lovers)

Diana(the girl in the purple shirt)



From notPerstefanie:

I know this is a very late reply, but my computer died on me a few days ago. This was my second Tori show, and was made possible, like the first, by Russ. (Thank you!!) We arrived in time for the meet-n-greet, but didn't get numbers. We were fairly in the back of the group, so didn't see that much of Tori. I realised again that it sucks being short at a Tori concert. But everyone was very friendly, and nice about passing items up. Russ got his UTP lyric book signed, which made him happy. After the meet-n-greet, we lounged around outside the gates. I met many lovely people, including inlovanilla, j'ason, Alan, and Honeychas1. We listened to Tori's sound check. The concert was great. It being only my second time I heard many new and unexpected (like Cloud)live songs. I wish I'd have been closer, but I cant complain. Plus, it was fun sitting near Alan. Too bad the "Happy Birthday" thing never took off. Tori really kept things moving, so there wasn't a chance.

The last time I saw Tori was at the Roxy in April '98, and I loved the smallness of the venue; it felt very intimate. And I liked standing, as at the Roxy, because I like to dance and move around. I didnt want to stand at Lakewood, because everyone in our section was seated, so that would've been rude. I did a little dance in my chair, though. And at the Roxy I didn't really get to talk to any Toriphiles.

We left after Tori's set. Russ likes Alanis, and I would have maybe stayed out of curiosity, even though I'm not a fan, but we didn't see how it would be worthwhile after Tori. Tori was so great, and we wanted to leave with that Tori-buzz feeling.

Apologies for the length and any spelling errors!

-Stefanie



From crispy:

Can't say much about the show that hasn't already been said. It was really interesting seeing her in an outdoor environment. However, she didn't seem as energized as she did when I saw her in New Orleans on the FTCGH tour. Only stuck around for part of Alanis' show. She was so-so. Didn't impress me much.
But, I got to meet a lot of Dent Forum EWF's which was really cool, hi MYTH . I didn't get to see KERRI, my Metarie homegrrl, though.

Also, Mikewhy sat in front of me at the show so I got to talk with him for a bit. He seemed pretty tired, but he'd just gotten off the road driving 8 hrs. straight!! Well, I was pumped for the show & I drove 6 hrs. from Mobile - Atlanta! Eat yo' WHEATIES, Mike . Greta Gaines was suprisingly good and I really like how she met w/ the audience between sets. If you're reading this, thanx for the pic and sticker Greta! Any body interested in her can go to http://www.gretagaines.com


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