A Hot Summer Night ...with Donna (1983)

A GOOD ONE

There was never a doubt that Donna Summers could sing. However, we get her putting on a wonderful show this Hot Summers Night. March 26, 2008

Another Shade of Summer

This concert recording is well worth the effort to find, as it contains some very rare live versons of Summer's 80's work.

During her 1983 tour she bascilly had 2 new albums out (She Works Hard For The Money, and Donna Summer), and another album recorded but not yet released (I'm A Rainbow). See my reviews of all of these recordings.

Here is the breakdown of songs included on the set list from these albums;

Donna Summer; Love Is In Control, State of Independance.

She Works Hard..; She Works Hard..., Women, Unconditional Love.

I'm A Rainbow; Romeo, Don't Cry For Me Argentina.

Cats Without Claws (from 1984); Forgive Me.

Romeo was also released that year on the soundtrack to Flashdance, and was added to the set list by requests from fans early in the tour. Don't Cry For Me Argentina, was also part of her 1981 greatest hits Tour, and became a show highlight, and to me the read here is the best. A short verson of her mega-hit opens the show (MacArthur Park), and On The Radio and a stellar Last Dance are also featured. A 4 song medly represents the landmark Bad Girls album, and contains Dim All The Lights, Sunset People, Bad Girls and Hot Stuff.

Since the late 1980's, Donna has returned to doing her Greatest Hits as the basis for her live shows, and her concerts to this day have become a giant celebration, with the venues becoming huge dance halls. This concert gives us a rare view of what Donna had hoped to achieve in a decade domintaed by Madonna, and Prince. September 2, 2005

I Was There...Look for my bright red jacket in the audience!

Those that have criticized this concert recording on this page obviously don't really know Donna's performing history.
She is without doubt one of the greatest voices of all time. If you don't think so, listen carefully to the first several bars of an original recording of "Dim All the Lights" and tell me who else comes close! For that matter, her entire "Bad Girls" 2 disc album was the absolute zenith of the Disco Era, and won unprecedented accolades from even those music critics who had always dripped nothing but disdain for everything disco.
That said, however, her live on-stage performance presence always did leave something to be desired (can you say rather wooden) UNTIL her "Live and More Encore" (1999) era.
In addition to finally leaving other personal issues behind, her work performing on the theatrical stage just before that 1999 "comeback" combined to truly make an amazingly astonishing difference and improved her concert stage work to true brilliance.
Regardless, her voice has ALWAYS been beyond phenomenal.
I was actually in the audience at the taping of this Hot Summer Night concert at the Pacific Amphitheatre back in 1983... if you watch it, look for the extremely tall guy (I'm 6'6") in the audience wearing a very bright red jacket...you can't miss me... lol
December 3, 2004

nice collectors item

LIVING IN FT LAUDERDALE with all age groups, this concert or footage makes it on the screen from time to time and the viewer's look at it in aw,..wondering where they could buy the tape. a very good performance..! May 21, 2004

DONNA IN CONCERT IN LOS ANGELES

Originally released in 1983, this is a 90-minute video of a show that was recorded live at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. The full track listing is Macarthur Park, Love Is In Control, Unconditional Love (with Musical Youth), Romeo, Don't Cry For Me Argentina, On The Radio, Woman, One Night Only, Stop In The Name Of Love, a medley of (a) Dim All The Lights (b) Sunset People (c) Bad Girls (d) Hot Stuff, followed by Last Dance, She Works Hard For The Money, State Of Independence. This is very much the post-disco Donna, the pop singer and chanteuse, as attested by the absence of her earlier disco hits like I Feel Love. Donna maintains the interest throughout and it must have been a memorable concert. June 11, 2002

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