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......It's an all-encompassing
show Ricky Martin puts on, and never a bore. He sings and his band of musicians
and dancers do just that -- play music and dance. The band features a couple of
drummers, a handful of guitarists and a few horns, all playing to a
synchronized Latin dance beat. Do they sound good? Who cares? They're audible.
........Against a wave of shrieks from thousands
of young women -- a cascade of shrills that has been compared to concerts by
Hanson and 'N Sync, among others -- that is no small accomplishment. The
ever-gyrating Martin shouted out his biggest and most familiar hit,
"Livin' La Vida Loca," at the very start. Which was good because that
instantly put to rest the question, "When is he going to do 'Livin La Vida
Loca'?"
....... What followed was a
well-choreographed adrenaline rush, starring Rick the Quick's happy feet,
sinewy spine and bobbing head. He was relentlessly energetic but hopelessly
pre-programmed. Not that the guy doesn't have soul, but come on. Make an album
about self-realization and introspection and do an all-acoustic tour. Maybe
then we'll take that stuff seriously. For now, give us the leather pants, satin
shirts and flashing lights. The one thing Martin can do is dance. There's a
point in his show when he does the tired sing-a-long bit, asking each half of
the audience to sing against one another. But instead of pointing the
microphone out and listening, Martin spins around, bends over and wiggles his
butt. The screams are deafening. If the world hadn't already been drenched in
the sweaty choruses of Ricky Martin's "La Vida Loca" for the last
couple of years.
....... Thursday's Oakland stop
might have seemed like part of the maiden tour to support that monster hit. The
reason? Martin feverishly sold each song with all the awe and verve of a
first-timer. With an enthusiasm and energy that seemed remarkable given how
many thousands of times he must have performed these hits by now, Martin
managed to make each song fresh again, urgent and fun.
........Forget the stage with
the scaffolds, risers, stairs, treadmills, searchlights, bungee jumping dancing
boys, Charo-style dancing girls, the disappearing band, the cage dropping from
the ceiling, the three video screens behind the set that shifted between fire
footage, MTV and live action, and the two screens that captured every
in-the-flesh twitch of Martin's hips.
....... What was completely
captivating, what was so winning, was Martin himself. There was nothing too
deep going on, but Martin-even dot-size at a sold-out Oakland Arena-was able to
turn that cavernous arena into his own private street party. He used one
20-minute stretch to get each side of the stadium to compete in a sing-along-in
Spanish, and not once bothering to translate or slow down for non-native
speakers. No one seemed to mind and the booming responses indicated that the
crowd, a mix of Latinos and whites, got it anyway. .......But there were no risks here, none at all, Ricky
Martin is, without a doubt, a master showman By Randy Cohen
........This is the Official Rock Publication Web Site
All photos and written material courtesy of Rock Publication
E-mail at
Rockpub@aol.com
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.....7/27/00 Oakland