Concert Review: Dortmund, Germany - December 15, 1996
Astrid Nolde-Gallasch:
Yesterday was one of the most wonderful days in my concert life. Let me share it with you.
Early in the afternoon, Thomas and I met our list member Rudy and Ruth, the girl who did the karaoke part at the show in Duesseldorf. We were also supposed to meet with Ruediger, the new list member from Muenster, but we missed each other somehow, and so we went downtown to Dortmund without him. We visited Dortmund's Christmas market together, a really big place - where they are having the world's biggest Christmas tree this year, made of 1350 single trees and really impressingly high. There we were enjoying our time, drinking Gluehwein and discussing list news. And on our way back to the metro-station we met a street-musician who just finished "All the love I have inside me", as we passed. Ruth and I stopped walking, turned there and asked the guy to play another Chris de Burgh song. With a smile he began to sing "Where peaceful waters flow" and we sang with him - so loud that suddenly lots of people stopped by and listened. *grin*
Back at the concert hall, Ruth still didn't have a ticket for the show, which was sold out. But as usual, some guys sold tickets in front of the hall and as Ruth bought one and complained a little that it was a seat so far away from stage, we found out that it was exactly the place next to Rudy!!!! Would you believe that in a hall of 12000 seats! Incredible, but true! A little later a guy ran to us "Hey, are you Astrid and Rudy???". Yes, it was Ruediger - he missed us earlier because he didn't find the hall quick enough. So there we were - all 5 of us - waiting for the hall to open and the concert to begin. As Ruth was in Duesseldorf supposed to meet Chris for a short interview for a newspaper, which was unfortunately cancelled, she kept asking at the box office for Chris Andrews and so did we. Well, it took us about one or two hours of talking until some guy from the security came and asked us to write our names and our request down on a piece of paper, he would go to Chris Andrews and ask for us. A little later he came back and lead us through the hall directly to the backstage area, where we met Chris Andrews who was big smiling, when he saw our t-shirts and promised us to take us back after the show. YEAH!!!!! :-)))))
The show began. It was terrific. The Westfalenhalle in Dortmund is one of the most beautiful concert areas of Europe, a really big place with 12000 seats, and it was all sold out. Chris began solo at the piano, singing "Carry on" and "Here is your paradise". Then some songs on the guitar "Sailing away" and "Transmission ends". He played "Moonlight and Vodka", "Lonely Sky", "The Head and the Heart", "Danny Boy" and many more. As a special request he played "Shine on" and "For Rosanna". He even once welcomed a group of fifty-five English people in the hall, was that the group you were supposed to come with, Douglas? The karaoke part did a girl named Heidi from Moenchen-Gladbach. She sang "Carry me", quite strange, but however brave ... Chris was in an excellent mood, and the atmosphere was incredible. Imagine 12000 people and about 2000 of them burning sparklers. Chris was absolutely impressed, believe me. He gave his best to fulfill all requests, and so he even played "The Revolution" trilogy solo on the guitar for the very first time ever! He played "Spanish Train" and "Patricia the Stripper" and when he started to play "Don't pay the Ferryman" he invited us to come to stage and dance ... and I ran there quickly to be right in front of it. :-))) I saw Ruediger taking a photo during that song, that should have turned out good, so close.
After a short break the orchestra came on stage, it was the Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra. Let me tell you, now that I have seen both versions of the concert, there really is a difference to a string quartet. Chris playing with the orchestra is absolute impressive. He sang "Missing You", "Carry Me", "Discovery", "In Love Forever", "The Lady in Red", "I'm Not Crying Over You". He also did "In Dreams", "Always on My Mind", "Desperado" by the Eagles and "Eleanor Rigby" by the Beatles. At the end of the show the choir came on stage (a local choir from Dortmund, called the Florian singers) and they performed "One more mile to go" and "Snows of New York". After that we were again allowed to dance in front of the stage, and we DID! He sang "High on Emotion" and "Riding on a Rainbow". Then he went out and came back, wearing a Santa cap! The crowd went mad! We were singing "Oh wie ist das schoen ..." (oh, how great it is) and "Jetzt geht's los ..." (now it begins), two songs they usually sing in soccer stadiums ... I saw Peter Oxendale starring at the audience, and the orchestra leader translating him what we were singing. It was so impressive! At the end, Chris sang "Where peaceful waters flow" and "Hey Jude" and that was it. I felt he should have sung "Silent Night" at the end, but then I realized that he already had played for 3 1/2 hours! Wow! What a show!
During the whole concert women went to the stage and delivered their gifts to Chris. He got lots of roses, teddy-bears, and Christmas presents. He was absolutely amazed by all those gifts, and he said that he is going to take all of them home and that he will go to a hospital in Ireland and deliver the teddy-bears to some children there. Isn't that nice of him!
Well, ok ... what did we do after the show ... ... we went to the stage and waited. Somehow Ruth had already disappeared and we weren't sure, where she was. After a few minutes, when Chris Andrews still didn't show up, we were asking one of the security guards to call for the man who brought us to Chris Andrews earlier. Two minutes later he was there, leading us backstage into the "catering room". There we were, among some other guys, waiting for the man ... First Chris Andrews came in and asked us to be a little patient, but Chris would however come. Then he came back with Kenny Thomson, they were standing at the door and Chris Andrews told Kenny "Hey, there are those t-shirt-guys ...". So Kenny came in and talked a few words with us, he is such a nice man. We were talking about the homepage and about Joe and he really seemed pleased to meet us.
Then, a little later, Chris came in. There he was, just standing in front of me, it was so wonderful! I said "Hi, I'm Astrid, from the mailing list of the Internet homepage", and he just said "Hello Astrid, nice to meet you ... is there anything I can sign for you?" :-))) Well, he signed all of our shirts, tour books (yes Stephan, you'll get one), and 2 of my Duesseldorf concert pics (one for you, Alex). It was so amazing to stand in front of the man! Btw, I had printed Chris Ward's Christmas picture out and had put the names of all list members on the back. So I gave him the envelope and said "Here you have a Christmas Card, signed by all of our list members" and he said "Oh thank you, that is very nice Astrid." YES, he remembered my name!!! :-))) Ruth also talked a little to him, she gave him the lyrics of two songs she had written and he really remembered her from the Duesseldorf concert, where she was singing the karaoke part.
All in all it was absolutely the most wonderful night for a long time and now I'll be high on emotion for the rest of the year... but you know what? Sharing this experience with all of you is nearly as good as meeting the man himself. I'm happy and proud to be a member of this wonderful group of people and without all of you I would never had made it backstage. Thank you!