Diana Ross Reigns Supreme in San Diego

[jobeterob]

Singer. Actress. Diva. Superstar. Legend.

Diana Ross is all of the above and more. As she took the stage at Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay in San Diego on Tuesday evening, the crowd rose to it's feet and stayed there, some dancing in the aisles, some dancing in their seats, but everyone having a great time.

From her beginnings with the Supremes, she rocketed to the top of the charts with what could be one of the most gifted and recognizable voices in all of music. And at 67, she sounds as good as ever.

Performing many of her Supremes hits such as Stop! In The Name Of Love, Baby Love, Can't Hurry Love, and Love Child, she also delivered on her solo material.

Seeing as my review was restricted to the first three songs, I'll have to let my photos tell the rest of the story.

[jobeterob]

http://www.examiner.com/concerts-in-san-diego/diana-ross-reigns-supreme-san-diego-picture

Slideshow!

[supreme_lady]

Diana Ross review: Superb voice keeps love alive



Aidin Vaziri, Chronicle Pop Music Critic
San Francisco Chronicle September 18, 2011 04:00 AM Copyright San Francisco Chronicle. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. [[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/09/18/DD161L5UNV.DTL#license-/c/a/2011/09/18/DD161L5UNV.DTL) http://analytics.apnewsregistry.com/analytics/v2/image.svc/SFC/RWS/www.sfgate.com/MAI/ca20110918DD161L5UNV.DTL/E/Prod Sunday, September 18, 2011



"Stop!" Diana Ross raised her palm at the Golden Gate Theatre on Friday. The 67-year-old singer looked resplendent in a sparkling floor-length gown, red lipstick and an eruption of curls topping her smiling face - almost as if she had spent the past five decades preserved in amber. Less than a second passed, but it felt like an eternity.
Her 12-piece band stood at full attention. The stage lights illuminated the capacity crowd. Then Ross delivered the kicker, backed by a volunteer chorus of hundreds: "In the name of love!" She wailed. They wailed. "Before you break my heart!"
It was pop history in the flesh, with all the emotional heft that comes with it. Friday's concert marked the first time Ross had performed in San Francisco proper since she appeared with the Supremes at the Fairmont Hotel's Venetian Room in 1969, according to promoter Rick Bartalini.
That's where Ross picked up, opening the 90-minute show with the high points of the trio's Motown catalog delivered in quick succession. "Baby Love." "You Can't Hurry Love." "Where Did Our Love Go?" That's a whole lot of love.
You would think she would be sick of their ubiquity by now, but Ross and her 12-piece live band seemed genuinely thrilled to be playing each one for what had to be the 50,716th time.
Horns and synthetic strings cued a transition to the disco era, as Ross took the stage in earrings that looked like apartment chandeliers and a dazzling red dress with enough sequins to cover a small island in the South Pacific.
Her 1980 hit "I'm Coming Out" seemed to hold special resonance with the San Francisco audience, which could never quite figure out whether to sit or stand in a venue typically reserved for touring Broadway shows.
"Love Hangover," released in 1976, sounded as sublime as ever, while "Ease on Down the Road," from the Ross-helmed soundtrack to "The Wiz," would have fared better left in the used record store bins.
Her foray into jazz and blues was unexpectedly delectable, as Ross' wonderfully aged voice soared on lounge versions of "Fine and Mellow" and "Don't Explain." For the drag queens in the audience, it was like a master class in commanding the stage.
Just after "Theme From 'Mahogany' [[Do You Know Where You're Going To)," when it seemed like she had completely exhausted her cache of popular songs, Ross dropped an all-hands-on-deck version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough." Plus the fifth costume change of the night - a little gold number with holographs.
So it was a little disappointing that she closed out the set [[and encore) with a wedding band cover of Gloria Gaynor's signature anthem, "I Will Survive."
Then again, the sentiment hit the mark. Ross' enthusiasm and energy were remarkable, not just for her age, but any age. Now if we could just get her to visit more often.
Follow Aidin Vaziri at twitter.com/MusicSF. E-mail him at avaziri@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page D - 2 of the San Francisco Chronicle
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Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/09/18/DD161L5UNV.DTL#ixzz1YNxmIFa7

[Roberta75]

Great reviews and lovely photos.

Thanks everyone for sharing.

Roberta

[captainjames]

Now that's what Legends are made of !!!!!!

[Koach]

If I didn't have so much going on in my life and she came to my area, I'd see her in a heartbeat.

[blkfrost]

The San Francisco Golden Gate and Marin Center shows were fantastic. She had the folks on their feet as soon as the band started The Boss. I thought the SF crowd was wild Friday night, but when I went to the Saturday night show in Marin I was blown away by the crowd. To understand my comment you should know that Marin is much more laid back, but those folks danced the entire show, only resting when Diana sung ballads, then back on their feet for the uptempo numbers... granny, grandpa, teens and all in between partied. Diana had a few audience members on stage. One young lady was allowed to sing and dance. A beautiful drag queen danced on stage until security came to take her back to her seat....even Diana copied some of girlfriend's move. What a night!