Victory' tour a thriller to By Don Strausburger In today's world of music, separated by generation gaps, what are the odds of seeing more than one generation at tending the same concert? Or better yet, what are the odds of seeing four? That unlikely sight was com monplace Saturday evening when the Jacksons brought their much-publicized tour to Philadelphia. Over the past several months, the Jacksons have been helping to eliminate the age barriers considered normal in the world of contemporary popular music as they journey across the coun try on the "Victory - tour. Not only have the Jacksons eliminated the age barriers, they have also managed to reduce the racial barriers which have long intimidated many music (ans. The show, performed to nearly 70,000 fans at JFK Stadium covered 15 years of the Jackson family's musical history from the early days of hits like "111 Be There" to smash hits like "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" from Michael's multi-platinum album, "Thriller." Unfortunately, the "Vic tory" tour lacks something that should be very important to its billing -- a song from the album that the tour is meant to pro mote. The only time the au dience is exposed to the new album's music is when the video to the song, "Torture," is shown well before the concert even starts. However, once the concert begins, the only word to describe the performance is "sensational." From beginning to end, the electricity generated by Michael and his brothers does not stop. The concert begins with a modern version of "The Sword and the Stone," featuring the youngest brother, Randy, as the man destined to become King. After this opening, the remaining brothers come on stage breaking into "Wanna Be Startin' Something," followed by "The Things 1 Do For You," a more obscure cut from "Destiny." After several selections from the more recent albums by the Jacksons, and especially Ntichael, the stage is turned over to .lermaine, who is possibly the must versatile per former of the family. Jermaine does three songs from two of his solo albums including the controversial song, "Tell Me I'm Not Dreaming," a duet with Michael which was not released as a single because Epic Records feared that Michael's career might suffer from "overexposure." Shortly after Michael's return, the older people in the crowd get a chance to reminisce with three of the Jackson Five hits from the early 19705, in cluding "1 Want You Back" and "The Love You Save." Although these classics are performed true to the originals, Michael's gospel-influenced ad libs ends "I'll Be There" in a surprising blend of old and new styles, even if he does bleed for dramatic effect. After this brief flashback, the group returns the audience to the high-tech world of modern music for the re mainder of the concert which draws to a climactic ending with three of Michael's chart topping hits:"Beat lt,""Billie Jean" and "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough," which ends the musical portion of the con cert. This is followed by a brief yet dazzling fireworks display bringing the evening to a close. The only things more dazzl ing than the performance itself are the technical aspects of lighting and special effects. The lighting, aided by a continual flow of dry ice fog, provides an aesthetically pleasing image with its quickly changing color patterns. The special effects are highlighted by lasers which are rarely but effectively used. The lasers are especially helpful in the amazingly intimate rendi tion of "Human Nature," in which they form a revolving flower of green and red light. Special effects are also achiev ed throught the use of mechanical robots and even some elementary disappearing tricks. Musically, the concert offers fantastic individual as well as group performances. All of the solos, both vocal and in strumental, are kept within the constraints of the original studio cuts without being iden tical. The band is extremely tight; the horns and guitars work together perfectly. The most outstanding musi cal feature is the interplay of the harmonies in every song. Even in the featured songs of the early years, the harmony is excitingly fresh for those who remember the original versions. After 15 years as a group, though, the Jacksons remain a predominantly visual rather than musical group. The group does a continual series of choreographed dance steps both as a group and, especially in Michael's case, individually. Watching Michael dance con tinually for nearly two hours il lustrates both his ability and his incredible stamina. Marlon, who does backup vocals, ex hibits stage presence second on ly to Michael -- except Marlon is always on stage. As mentioned earlier, the music of the Jacksons is very important in the reduction of the traditional boundaries established by race and age. The crowd in one section in cluded a group of young black girls who danced and sang throughout the entire concert and four generations of another family who equally enjoyed the concert but on a different level. Although many people com plained about the ticket price of $29.75, everyone obviously felt that the show was worth the price. The "Victory" tour is well worth the price and should be included in everyone's list of all-time great concerts.
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