Milven , Lulu, Roberta and Mary........as I believe Martha herself would say to you : "Bless Your Hearts".
My partner does not naturally 'feel' Motown or soul music, but is ever devoted, and accompanies me. [[oh yes, I know I'm lucky!)
I was tired after a busy day, but decided I could override that 'at the last minute' and wanted to be in attendance when Martha was in town [[well,who can say when it will be for the last time...?), and he instantly agreed.
I do suspect, from little comments made, that he's become rather fond of seeing Martha on stage over the years, singing her old songs [[I love that comment I heard Bettye LaVette make about herself - "I'm just an old broad, singing my songs..")
Not being an original fan, my partner just accepts Martha as a lady of certain years, who has a great deal of experience in her craft, and is now foremost a stage perfomer, addressing the oldies market.
I'm inclined to follow his example in perception, and enjoy Martha for who she is, right now. I can hear her original recordings any time I like, but I believe it's an absolute mistake to expect Martha to sound just like her records - although, largely she still can, and does.
So, I now simply do NOT expect her to sound like her records. For me, it works much better, and I can be open-minded, instead of tied to yesterday.
I believe time has brought more to Martha's singing voice than it has, of course, taken away - and even her speaking voice is still extraordinarily compelling...with vibrato in there, too! Always was. Her high "eeeeeeeeeeeeee" note is always best heard in the context of the whole show, not simply in isolation, on somewhere like YouTube.
Who would have said to Katherine Hepburn, when she developed that tremor in her head and voice, that she should give up acting, because it was 'sad'. It gave her authenticity and dignity with the years, and enabled her to add some valuable insight to her roles. It would have been absurd, and not a little mean-minded, to say she should let it all go, because she didn't look or sound just as she did when young.
People can often be negative about others because they are unhappy in their heart for some reason, and look for someone else to remedy that - instead of quietly looking to themselves, and working on their own problems. Facebook is great for social contact, but can spread negativity very quickly. My understanding is that the comments refer to a performance given prior to the one given last night.
[[additional edit: I have now checked out that Motown Facebook page, and also the details of the lady who made the initial comment. It appears that she and I were indeed at the same show. I did not find the theatre sound system to be as clear as it could have been last night. If people did complain,and 'asked for refunds', it is likely that at least some were unhappy with the overall sound, and not necessarily Martha's performance - as I certainly complained about the sound during the first half of the show presented here as part of the 'Dancing in the Streets' tour in 2002, with Edwin Starr and Freda Payne)
So yes, what we saw on stage last night was, at the very least, a perfectly good, authentic and entertaining oldies show for anyone. This response of mine is becoming long [[!), but I could give further critique on the show.
For example : I'd change the order of the songs, and open with "Quicksand" [[with an extended intro to greet the audience and encourage them to get on up and party), and then follow with "I'm Ready For Love", which I feel Martha performs with some restraint.
And I'd put in "Forget Me Not", especially for the UK shows......but still it remains that what we saw on stage last night was, at the very least, a perfectly good, authentic and entertaining oldies show. The band was great, too.
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