The Donna Summer Tribute Site

Bethlehem, PA 

August 5, 2005

It was another Hot Summer Night with our girl Donna! She looked beautiful than ever! The crowd loved Donna as she sang her hits and there were some real good treats I thought you all would like to know.

Opening Intro:
She Works Hard For The Money
Once Upon A Time
I Love You
MacArthur Park
Could It Be Magic
Smile
I Need a Little Help From My Friends
On The Radio
I Got Your Love ( chorus, verse 1, and chorus) Sounded good live, almost to the original
Natural Woman
Le Imagine Cafe ( Bruce Sudano)
My Man Medley
No More Tears ( Enough is Enough)
Knights In White Satin
Try Me/I Feel Love/Love To Love You Baby
Cold Love
Bad Girls
Hot Stuff
Last Dance

The Show started at 9pm and ended 10:25 pm an hour and a half. I really had a great time the second time around seeing her. It was so much fun. I took some pics, some came out real good this time and some did not. I also took pics of the the article from the express paper you've mention earlier. And of course the review form last night in this mornings paper. I did get to meet Terje at the concert. We've talked for awhile about the show, on our way out we happen to stop buy where Donna's camps at, hoping to get to meet her. We saw just a small glimpse but it was exciting! I want to meet her so bad. Maybe next time when I see her in Florida. I try to meet other fans there (Quay Foster) but somehow got his seats mixed up. I thought I had wrote down the row he was in. But did not apparently. Had the section and seat number right. So my apologies to you Quay for the mix up. Over and all it was fantastic!

- Eston

I grew up in the Lehigh Valley of PA, and can remember with great fondness how I was first in line to buy each new Donna Summer record... and had all the words memorized before my friends could even ask "Did you know Donna Summer has a new album out?" So while I've lived in New York state for 20+ years now, it was fitting that I return to Bethlehem to enjoy Donna's first concert in this area. Donna performed on the first night of Bethlehem's annual MusikFest festival, and the radio advertising for the week teased "It just isn't summer without MusikFest... and it isn't MusikFest without summer... DONNA SUMMER" -- and she didn't disappoint! 

The weather threatened to ruin the outside venue, but by 8:30 the skies were calm and starting to cool... and we were off! The curtain went up on the stage at 8:45, and after the instrumental medley Donna appeared on the rising piano to "She Works Hard for the Money", one of my personal favorites. It was electric! She immediately settled in to the song set similar to what has been reported widely here -

- "Once Upon a Time / I Love You"
- "Could It Be Magic" , which is great live!
- "MacArthur Park", with a short introduction that the song is about "love", not "cake"!
- "Smile", amazing with its beautiful string accompaniment
- "On the Radio", preceded by "With a Little Help from My Friends" and the selection of 5 very excited audience members to do background vocals

After telling the 5 volunteers they could see their picture on the new section of her donnasummer.com site, she plugged her new  single available on iTunes - and we were treated to a verse and chorus of "I Got Your Love" - it was very well received by the crowd

- "(You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman" - also evoked a very positive response
- Bruce performed "Le Imagine Cafe"
- "My Man Medley" - very true to the "Live and More" version, and great live
- "No More Tears" with her sister Mary
- "Nights in White Satin", which I found hauntingly beautiful - will we ever get a recording?!
- "Try Me" / "I Feel Love" / "Love to Love You Baby" - I wasn't expecting this, and it was great!
- "Cold Love" - awesome live, and used to introduce the band members
- "Bad Girls" and "Hot Stuff" - what can I say?!
- "Last Dance" as an encore, preceded by a violin solo

The crowd was a mix of young and old, but they were as one in celebrating the night of the diva! It was a perfect evening.

- Jeff from New York 

Well what can I say it had been 8 years since I last saw Donna live at penns landing back in 1997. My wife and I saw Donna on Friday at the Riverplace and she was unbelievable, she looked great and sounded fabulous, she did everything right. Loved the way she came onto the stage thru a piano what a sight!!!!

My wife Adela had not ever seen Donna live and let me say by the time Donna launched into I Love You my wife was in tears she could not believe how great Donna sounded. She said what a difference in shows, she recently saw the Britney show on showtime and was so disappointed at the way the current female singers lip-synch most of there songs. My wife was extremely impressed and loved every minute of the show as well as I did too!!!
Donna did all the the hits that she did in all the previous shows of late, except when she did a little bit of that’s the way I like it and boogie oggie oggie yes just little tidbits while she was introducing her band members. It was great. Well I am sending a review of the show that was in the newspaper this morning basically it says exactly what I've said but it came with a picture from the show that shows Donna coming out of the Piano. Fantastic that’s all I can say!

I do have one more little bit of news to pass on I thought it was funny. My wife and I went the next night to see Keith Urban and while we were waiting for the show to start we ran into a little old black lady who happens to live near the Riverplace and she told us how the previous night Donna Summer was there and how her house is across the bridge in Bethlehem and how they shut all there windows in her house and still could here Donna thru the walls, I told her we were fans off Donna and she said she could understand why Donna was Great!! I thought that was funny thing that happened while we were there.

- Quay Foster

The highlights for me were: Donna sang I Got your Love!!!!! Before the On The Radio spotlight she sang, I Need a Little Help From From My Friends. Then called up 5 people to sing back- up. She included Try Me, I Feel Love, and I Love to Love You Baby back into her set. The crowd was wild. She also placed back Natural Woman, Nights In White Satin, and Smile. It was one of the longest shows I have seen Donna do in a long time. She was up beat and wore outfits which were flattering to her waist size. The Muzicfest is a big deal in PA and Donna was the opening act for the entire two week extravaganza. She plugged her web site and I tunes At the end of the concert the speakers were blasting I Got Your Love!!! It was magical. There is so much more I want to write-- I will need to process the show and do a real review when I return to NY on Monday----I think PNC is going to be a very special show!!!! you lucky guys and girls.

- Angelo

 

Eston sent me these photos of the cool Express-Times wrap around. I added one of his concert pictures as well.  Click any for a larger version
eston1.jpg (31737 bytes) eston3.jpg (41805 bytes) eston2.jpg (36053 bytes)

 

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