There is something iconic about Adam Lambert. All he has to do is step on a stage and look out across his adoring audience and you feel you are in the presence of a great entertainer. But he has a lot more going on than just the right look, his vocals and performance package are loaded with personality and originality. He is the type of artist who came wired with that inexplicable "it" formula. And when his Glam Nation tour rolled into Denver, CO on July 17, the experience lived up to the measured expectations.
Yes, Adam Lambert played Saturday night in Denver and, no, I didn't see him. But one of my colleagues did at the behest of her Glambert-obsessed daughter (you can read their review here), which inspired me to send them a handful of videos from the Glam Rock's First Wave.
This is not to suggest that Lambert was inspired by these artists, although he obviously has been in a couple of cases: He's covered David Bowie's "Life on Mars," "Fame" and "Let's Dance" in concert. And he's also recorded with the surviving members of Queen, who backed him last year on American Idol's season finale.
As for Roxy Music, Marc Bolan T. Rex, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, and Mott the Hoople, who can say? (Besides Adam, that is.)
In any event, you might hear some pre-echoes of Adam Lambert, Patrick Wolf, Mika and other contemporary neo-glam artists in the videos which follow.
If nothing else, there are fashion statements ....
Glitterati: Idol thoughts about Adam Lambert's live Glamorama
Jill Thomas
Quote :
I knew we were in for a memorable evening as we emerged from the parking garage behind Denver’s Paramount Theatre on Saturday night headed for the ticket line, when my teen daughter and two of her friends spotted a tour bus partly obscuring a tall figure with spiky black hair. We rushed across the street hoping for a pre-concert chat or at least a photo with Adam Lambert, who was in town headlining his Glam Nation Tour and drawing superfans like my daughter from all over the state.
What we found was a sweet man, willing to talk to all about his music, his performances and his fashion sense…
After and hour and a half on the road, traveling from Colorado Springs, we find ourselves sitting in the red balcony chairs of Denver's Paramount Theatre. We're waiting for Allison Iraheta to come on stage as Adam’s opening act on the Glam Nation Tour. It’s not too busy yet, but the seats are starting to be filled. Everyone is starting to talk: about Adam, Allison, random things. But I’m not really paying attention to what they are saying, just what is happening on stage.