North American Tour 2007

[Eric]

Awesome report, Caite.

I'm so glad you got to meet and talk with them several times. I loved your report on the show, as well. Perfect description from what I remember of their show in Raleigh!! (Without the pictures, and the meeting of the girls, and the laughing). Thanks for the report and the pictures. Like Graeme, I think I'm going to have to start all over at the beginning and go through again!

Many thanks,
Eric

[mariannek]

Hi Caite,
What a fantastic story teller you are!!
I felt like sitting next to you and can imagine your joy at the personal recognition of Lisa and Hayley!
What a grand concert!
Lots of love, Marianne

[mariannek]

Hi Stephany,
Thank you for your article comparing Hayley with Olivia Newton-John.
I have not heard anything more silly, not to take away from Olivia.
Surely Hayley is in a league of her own !!! And always will be !!!
Where is that person's sense of hearing and discerning ??
Never mind, we know better, don't we ?!!!
Love, Marianne

[mariannek]

Hi Caite,
What do you mean, would we like to read about your days in NYC ?
I for one would LOVE to hear about your time there !!!
One of my dreams is to visit NY one day myself.
Paris, Prague and New York my 3 favorite cities !
Thank you in advance, lots of love, Marianne

[petertong]

stephany said:

Peter, I agree with you on the fact that Hayley is clearly a team player. But are you sure you noticed her a little more than the other CW girls uniquely because of her height?!

Hi Stephany,

I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about

Since my ears were otherwise engaged, I actually spent alot of the time just watching her feet seemingly float from one point to the other while she was dancing and singing. I think I could watch her feet for the entire concert. They kind of seemingly float from one spot to the other I'm not exaggerating at all - she has an interesting way for ambulating from one spot to another. Is that her normal way of walking? Or is there such a thing as stage walking?! It was kind of spellbinding that she also was so coordinated. Roger kindly enlightened me and mentioned that she has had ballet training so maybe that is it.

PS: I think Olivia Newton John's voice is nice but its so completely different from Hayleys. Olivia from what I have read has a 3.5 octave range.

[Richard]

Hello Caite!

Many thanks for your wonderful report and excellent photographs. I'm pleased you had a great time with Hayley, and now I'm really looking forward to seeing her again at Cadogan Hall on Monday! i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

Happy Easter!

Richard

[Richard]

Here are some comments about last night's show in Columbus, from Lisa Kelly's forum. Click to read the full post, but brace yourselves!

100..NO....500% PERFECTION!!!

and anyone who doubted Hayley in Boston...she Nailed every SONG...Danny Boy...Dead On, Dulaman..Dead on..

and Chloe,

And Orlagh..

and Mairead..

all PERFECTION, HEAVENLY...


and LISA....OMG...she was AWESOME!!..

More about the Columbus show from Lisa's forum. Click to read the full report, which is excellent.

Lisa with her lovely, warming smile.
Chloe with her beautiful eyes and angelic face
Mairead with her fiestiness
Hayley with her cute, yet sophisticated look
Orlagh with her dreamer looks

Danny Boy: Since I have Hayley's version, I was not surprised by it, other than it being sung live..and She was DEAD on with this song. Yes I love Meav's version too. But Hayley has her own style and I love it. Ok..so Hayley and Chloe are second under Lisa on my list lol. Again, I had to keep taking breaths as I kept choking up, and pinching myself to believe this was all real.

Orinoco Flow: this song has come to a full circle for me. This is the one that started it all for me and Celtic Woman. When Lisa, Hayley and Orlagh moved toward the front..again, fighting back tears. Then..I did the Wave with them..good thing I was on the aisle ...stop smiling so much Mel, ya gonna break something.

Scarborough Fair: Again, Hayley nailed this one, and having Orlagh accompany with her harp, made it even better, if that is possible.

Mo Ghile Mear: I love this song, yea I know, redundant, but everytime I would hear it in the car, or at work on my IPod, I would just get this big ball of joy inside me. Well the Girls and the Chorus, and Ray and Nick, and the rest of the band, did not let me down. And one of those little moments I had mentioned: Lisa and Chloe holding hands as they move up to join Orlagh and Hayley..<sniff> just so precious...and then later, both turn to each other and do this cute head waggle...They did not disappoint me with this song, Pure Joy..bubbling up..and what a way to end the first half.

Dulaman: Yes, Meav does this one wonderful, saucy and sexy, but I also love Hayley's version. Her's was cute. Pure and simple. But I still loved it, and yes I sang right along.

The Soft Goodbye: Sigh..another defining Lisa moment...she just has that darn smile that melts your heart. Then Hayley and Chloe joined in...just another wonderful song.

The Last Rose of Summer: I really liked this version with Chloe in Hayley's place, with Hayley in Meav's place. When Chloe looks away..and then Hayley sings her part, she turns her head toward Chloe, with just this look of friendship, I can't really describe it..it was again, another little moment. Then when they walked off holding hands..<sniff>

Then Mairead joins with her fiddle and her solo of The Last Rose of Summer. Just wonderful.

At the Ceili: FUN..FUN...PURE FUN!. Lisa, Hayley and Orlagh just had way too much fun with this one...in fact..I missed most of Hayley's part because I was watching Lisa and Orlagh with David's replacement (Feargal? according to the program) LOL.

Richard

[Stephany]

Many thanks, Richard. Those reviews are priceless. Whoever wrote the second one was deeply moved by the concert !! *Sigh* I wish I could attend one too!

[scott]

Hi Caite,

That was a fantastic report and review, thank you for sharing it with us.

-Scott

[scott]

Hi Richard,

I immediately recognized that review in the Lisa Forum that you quoted. Last night I was chatting online with the person who wrote that review, and she was lost for words about how great the concert was that she saw. She has become a genuine fan of Hayley's - she totally loves "Never Saw Blue".

-Scott

[Richard]

Hello Scott!

I noticed you were a member of Lisa Kelly's forum. Perhaps you could persuade Mel to join our forum too!

Best Wishes from London,

Richard

[postscript]

Hi Caite.

You have produced an absolutely superb series of reports on your CW evening, superbly peppered with excellent photographs. Thank you for an excellent contribution.

I for one would be interested in what else you did in NYC. My last trip was a brief twenty-four hour stop over changing trains and using the day to look in a couple of art galleries.

My only other time in NYC was my first trip to the States when I was only a year or two older than you are now, so I would be interested in hearing what you chose to do with your time and your first-time impressions.

Yours aye
Peter S.

[Stephany]

After their well-deserved break, the CW girls resumed their US tour yesterday in Indianapolis. Here is a review from the show and although Hayley wasn't part of it, she is mentionned anyway by the The Indy Star[/url].

April 12, 2007
Celtic Woman proves there's more than glitz
By David Lindquist
[e-mail]

If Celtic Woman's mission is to present ancient tones in a fresh context, the Irish group succeeded more often than it failed Wednesday night at the Murat Theatre.

The female vocal and fiddle ensemble is a logical next step following dance productions "Riverdance" and "Lord of the Dance." Rapid-fire footwork from the Emerald Isle wowed audiences on multiple continents, and now comely singing is doing the same.

Chloe Agnew led Celtic Woman's bid to be fresh through her youthful and precious performances.

Skyscraping soprano Hayley Westenra isn't part of the troupe during this portion of the "New Journey" tour, but Agnew's upper-register range provided sweet consolation during numbers such as "The Prayer."

Lisa Kelly, meanwhile, outlined the connection between Celtic cultures and American folk music when singing "Caledonia." Paddy Moloney of the Chieftains refers to the link as "green grass to bluegrass," and Kelly brought a storyteller's nostalgic touch to her tribute to Scotland.

When the program's momentum lagged -- a realistic risk amid the parade of airy, sedentary ballads -- fiddle player Mairead Nesbitt stirred things up by prancing to all corners of the stage while playing her instrument.

Celtic Woman makes a big target for detractors who don't believe glamorous costumes, high-concept set designs or rigidly scripted concerts have anything to do with musical traditions that reach back hundreds of years.

On Wednesday, the biggest problems were subtracting all traces of swing from Bobby Darin's "Beyond the Sea" and shoulder-shrugging choreography that repeatedly transformed eight supporting vocalists into an amateur swing choir.
In the big picture, Celtic Woman's glitz and gloss aren't a liability when the singers can nail an a cappella version of "Over the Rainbow" as they did at the Murat.

Agnew and Kelly were joined by Orla Fallon (the group's New Age answer to Enya and Meav Ni Mhaolchatha) who delivered flawless phrasing throughout the concert.

Astounding harmonies defined "Rainbow," which in turn revealed Celtic Woman to be greater than the sum of its parts.

[Stephany]

Hi everyone,
The Celtic Woman official site has been updated in the "Tour Diary" section. Hayley isn't directly mentionned although she was with them at the moment.
Best wishes,
Stephany

SUMMER ALREADY?
Date: 04/12/2007

What a surprise we have gotten traveling south. It appears that Summer has come already. Out with the winter clothes we wearing just a few short weeks ago in Boston and New York, and in with sandals and sunglasses. We had a really warm welcome in the Country Music Capital of America. The Tennessee treated us so well for our weekend there, even though there wasn’t a Cowboy hat or spur in sight on stage. It was a great experience to play in a city where so many musical legends have played before us. All the Nashville people we met were very warm and hospitable and treated us with charm and grace.

We arrived in Atlanta and set about getting rid of our winter pallor. It was fantastic so see so much sunshine, for all those hayfever sufferers, the pollen was a bit of a pest. Luckily there was indoor sanctuary to be found in the fabulous Aquarium the largest in the United States, and an afternoon was spent relaxing with the many variety of fish.

We headed then to Raleigh, North Carolina, for a day off, followed by two shows. We had the pleasure of being invited to Tir Na nOg for a lively evening of food and drinks. We left Raleigh and the South with the beginnings of a light tan.

[Caitlin]

Since there have been a couple people interested in the rest of my trip to NYC I'll post the rest of my trip. But being a good girl and staying on topic I'll post it in my thread

Stephany- Thanks for finding the review from the show in Indiana, and then the tour diary! They were both fun to read.

<3 Caite