Barbra drops the F-bomb

[Andreus]

when I saw the title of the thread i thought the story was going to say she passed gas during a show

but a new yorker saying fuck?

surely you jest

 

[CountryJohn]

Go Babs go!

 

[slobone]

Sounds like a very tiresome skit. I'm so over comedy routines whose only claim to humor is the endless repetition of "Bush is an idiot". After six years, I think we get the point -- can we move on to something a little fresher please?

Whoopi, Margaret Cho, Robin Williams, and Sandra Bernhard have leaned heavily on this terribly creative concept in recent years. The good news is that they'll all have to retire from show business in 2009 when Bush leaves office.

 

[Croynan]

I am just curious - with all her concerns for so many issues and people - where exactly are all the proceeds from this tour going considering the outrageous prices of the tickets for her concert appearance.?

When a performer can ask her public to pay - at the box office $750.00 and $1000.00 and more a ticket to see her perform, who and where are her concerns?

An artist she may be, but where are her values?

As for myself, having just spent $110.00 to see two of the most gifted young artists in the field of opera the other night, in a brilliant staging of Manon - both in their late twenties - I would gratefully run back and pay $200.00 a seat to see them perform again. Not for one moment during that entire performance did I have the feeling that someone was just feeding their ego by being there to perform.

I appreciate her talents as an ARTIST - I don't appreciate her bookkeeping.

an irritated local village idiot.

eM.

The New York Times

October 10, 2006

Music Review | Barbra Streisand

Music Overpowers Streisand's Many Missteps

By STEPHEN HOLDEN

Barbra Streisand took a carefully plotted step down from the imperial pedestal she has occupied for decades at Madison Square Garden last night and stumbled. The biggest miscalculation was the appearance, late in the show, of a George W. Bush impersonator (Steve Bridges) who Ms. Streisand, an ardent Democrat, interrogated in a tone that tried to be witty, and failed.

How would the president erase the national debt? Sell Canada; they don’t use half of it, he replied. “If I cared about polls,” he remarked, “I would have run for President of Poland.” And so on.

The tepid segment mercifully ended after the two joined voices for an unfunny spoof of the famous Judy Garland-Streisand duet of “Get Happy,” and “Happy Days Are Here Again.”

When Ms. Streisand stopped talking and started singing, she was her old self.

Accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra, she performed more than two dozen songs that encompassed most of her career. Missing were her hits with the Bee Gees, with whom she reunited on her last studio album, “Guilty Pleasures” (Columbia), and songs from her film “Yentl.”

Most heavily represented was “Funny Girl,” (both the show and the movie) in a thrilling end of Act 1 suite that peaked with three ballads: “The Music That Makes Me Dance,” “My Man,” and “People,” all beautifully sung.

One of the pleasures of a Streisand concert is hearing this diva of divas live, her voice unembellished by “improvements” carried out in the recording studio.

In her drive for technical perfection, Ms. Streisand has a longstanding tendency to apply too many coats of aural varnish to her records.

She should realize that sounding like an imperfect human being is more expressive than trying to sound like God, and her singing last night was frequently magnificent. Her voice is fuller than it used to be and still drips with the juice most singers begin to lose at 50. (Ms. Streisand is 64).

Another misstep was the choice of Il Divo, the operatic boy band, as her musical guests. While this multilingual, multinational quartet of singing mannequins, assembled by the diabolically market-savvy impresario Simon Cowell, belts in tune, they have the emotional spontaneity of robots in tuxedos.

An early low point of the show was their arrival on stage to bombard Ms. Streisand with smarmy flattery. Let’s hope she never records with these pretenders to the kitsch pop throne of Andrea Bocelli.

Befitting an event that suggested a one-woman Super Bowl in which the star competed with her legend, the concert was packed with distracting bells and whistles. A useless question-and-answer session in which she responded to randomly selected audience questions wasted precious time. During the Bush impersonation, a solitary heckler so annoyed Ms. Streisand that she lost her temper and hurled an obscenity.

A Barbra Streisand concert should be about singing. That’s what people really want. The rest they tolerate out of respect for her gigantic talent. And when she stuck to music, there were many magnificent moments. “Starting Here, Starting Now,” the “Funny Girl” suite, “When the Sun Comes Out,” “Children Will Listen,” “What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life,” and “My Shining Hour” were the musical high points of a concert that was further dampened by the lack of a pre-performance sound check because Ms. Streisand was stuck in traffic. As a result, the acoustics of the first half of the concert were muddy.

True to her show business instincts, she saved the best for last. In her final sprint, she might have a scored a winning touchdown had she not interrupted it with the Bush impersonator. And near the end sabotaged her own glorious performance of “Somewhere” by bringing Il Divo as a robotic harmony chorus.

A poignant moment for those who have followed Ms. Streisand’s career from the beginning was her rendition of (“Have I Stayed) Too Long at the Fair?” a Billy Barnes ballad that she recorded in 1964. Way back then, it was the reflection of an insecure ingénue feeling her first intimations of ennui after too much partying.

Sung four decades later, with just as much passion but an entirely different outlook, Ms. Streisand made it a rhetorical question about her own future. Has she stayed too long at the fair? Despite all the evening’s missteps, the answer is a resounding no.

 

[Mstrbkr54]

Come on guys, You just gotta love that Babs-she really has balls. Unless you have lived in a cave for the last 25 years, you have to expect to hear at least one slam on those "good ole boys"..l

That is just her. I am no fan of her on-stage politics (although I tend to agree with them) but if I had the time, money and ability, I sure as hell would have been there. She is one talented lady.

 

[Joshua_me]

Can it be that it was all so fucking simple then,
Or has fucking time rewritten every fucking line ?
If we had the fucking chance to do it all again,
Tell me, would we ? Fuck me......

 

[slobone]

Fine, if it's funny. I guarantee you there weren't a whole hell of a lot of Bush supporters in that audience. If even her fans found it tiresome, it must have been pretty bad.

Part of the problem is I'm not really interested in her as a performer anyway. Years ago, she was a talented and original singer. Then her voice went to hell, her monstrous ego became a little too obvious, and she became very uninteresting.

And didn't she already give her "farewell tour", ten years ago? I do give her credit for having the balls to charge $750 a ticket. But that only goes to show that we really need to raise the tax rate on the rich in this country, pronto.

 

[Croynan]

I bolded the part that mentions what she is giving to charity

Thank you for posting that information about where some of the money is going from her tour.

I guess I am still a little skeptical as these kinds of tours often raise considerable amounts of money, and one hears little as to what really happens to all that has been raised.

Thank you for your posting Mattie.

eM.

 

[poppy6785]

I really dont like barbara streisand. It was supposed to be a concert not a political show. I understand some people feel really strongly about politics, but what she has to realize is just because those people are at her show doesnt mean everyone shares her political views and she proved that shes an obnoxious bitch that needs to shut the fuck up herself and just sing her cheesy ass songs. Shes not the shit, like she thinks she is.

 

[herenthere]

I really dont like barbara streisand. It was supposed to be a concert not a political show. I understand some people feel really strongly about politics, but what she has to realize is just because those people are at her show doesnt mean everyone shares her political views and she proved that shes an obnoxious bitch that needs to shut the fuck up herself and just sing her cheesy ass songs. Shes not the shit, like she thinks she is.

I TOTALLY AGREE....

 

[sixthson]

She's nothing but a trailer trash whore with money and a has-been one, at that.

 

[NedNickerson]

I used to love her singing, but as she has grown increasingly more political, I find myself liking her less and less... I even begun changing radio stations now when one of her songs comes on.

She should understand that her fans pay big bucks to come hear her do what she does best - SING. I'm sure no one in the audience came to hear her political views or even cares what they are...

She chose the wrong way to express herself on what was essentially a captive audience...

 

[josher]

I've been an avid Barbra fan since her first TV appearances in the early 60's and have spent thousands on her albums, movies and concerts. Every penny of that was (to me) money well spent. I also happen to agree with her political views. If you don't like her voice and/or her views don't listen. She's the second richest woman in show business, so I doubt she'll be too bothered whether or not someone approves of her. To me any entertainer has the right to charge whatever the market will bear for their services. If they aren't worth it, people won't pay to see them. Since she earned the money, it isn't anyone's business what she does with it. Why don't we let the critics here post their income tax returns and we'll all decide if they made enough charitable contributions. In fact Barbra has given away many, many millions in property and cash to innumerable charities (including gay and AIDS charities.) And by the way I've heard her sing live 5 times in the last 40 years and her voice has only improved over time.

 

[gsdx]

"Shut the FUCK up!"

This is not meant to be a 'dig'. I've very serious when I ask: Is that known as 'a Bronx cheer'?

 

[Austin40acres]

There has to be a distinction made between the talent that made (and continues to make) someone famous and his/her political views.

I enjoy Barbra Streisand's voice when she's singing. She's got talent out the schnoz (sorry) just like Celine Dion, Whitney Houston (maybe not anymore), Frank Sinatra, and Elvis Presley. I've found her movies fairly entertaining--from Funny Girl to On a Clear Day and even Yentl.

So, she can sing and she can act. God bless her.

That doesn't mean she should spend her time during concerts giving her political views. More importantly, if she chooses to do so, it doesn't give her the right to be taken seriously. I would have been in the audience shouting "Shut the fuck up and sing, Barbra!"

Think about it this way: Do those of you who have defended Babs' right to freedom of expression also agree that you would still go see a Mel Gibson movie? He is, afterall, also just an actor--just like Babs.

Barbra can speak her mind in a concert for which people paid a great deal of money. Gibson either makes movies with no political agenda or puts out movies that are very up front about his political agenda with no deception involved. To that extent, isn't Mel Gibson being at least a little more honest about what he's going to do with your money?

A4A

 

[fajack]

If Mel Gibson made a good movie that appealed to me, yes I would go see it. Most people realize if they are going to a Streisand concert, you are going to hear something political from her. If that bothers you, then don't spend the money on the ticket. If she spent more time on talking politics than singing, then you would have a complaint. Once you pay for the ticket, it's no longer your money. Just as it's not your boss's business what you do with your paycheck, I don't consider it my business what any celebrity does with their money, no matter how outrageous I consider the ticket price.

 

[josher]

There has to be a distinction made between the talent that made (and continues to make) someone famous and his/her political views.

I enjoy Barbra Streisand's voice when she's singing. She's got talent out the schnoz (sorry) just like Celine Dion, Whitney Houston (maybe not anymore), Frank Sinatra, and Elvis Presley. I've found her movies fairly entertaining--from Funny Girl to On a Clear Day and even Yentl.

So, she can sing and she can act. God bless her.

That doesn't mean she should spend her time during concerts giving her political views. More importantly, if she chooses to do so, it doesn't give her the right to be taken seriously. I would have been in the audience shouting "Shut the fuck up and sing, Barbra!"

Think about it this way: Do those of you who have defended Babs' right to freedom of expression also agree that you would still go see a Mel Gibson movie? He is, afterall, also just an actor--just like Babs.

Barbra can speak her mind in a concert for which people paid a great deal of money. Gibson either makes movies with no political agenda or puts out movies that are very up front about his political agenda with no deception involved. To that extent, isn't Mel Gibson being at least a little more honest about what he's going to do with your money?

A4A

Since any idiot in America with a phone can pontificate about politics on talk radio, why can't an intelligent, articulate woman who has researched her subject speak her mind in public? Some years back she was invited to speak at the JFK institute at Harvard. She was brilliant. (And, yes, she wrote the speech herself.) Anyone who attends one of Barbra's concerts should certainly be aware of the fact that she's going to speak her mind. She always does. With regard to Mel Gibson or other conservatives, if I enjoyed a performer, their political views wouldn't stop me from watching/listening to them.

 

[DryIce]

Virtually every artist has some political agenda that they will convey through live performances. Look at Madonna, U2, the Dixie Chicks, etc. Babs has been very vocal from day one that she hates the Bush administration, so it should have come as no surprise to anyone seeing her show that there would be a little Bush-bashing going on.

If anything, I think she was too kind by simply saying, "Shut the fuck up." Had I been in her shoes and the audience began booing me after all the time, money and effort I'd put into creating a top-of-the-line show for them, I would have ended the show right then and there and told everyone to go fuck themselves.

At this stage of the game, anyone who agrees with Bush's policies seriously needs their head examined, so what's most baffling to me is that Babs was booed instead of being given a standing ovation.

 

[irish1]

I think that Barbra Streisand is a very gifted singer. I have seen her act, and like her in that role, too. I have several albums (yes, l.p.'s!!), and several dvd's.
I did not buy a ticket for her concert in Phili. I just thought that the price was too high for the entertainment value. When I was thinking of buying one, however, I thought about buying a ticket for a musical concert, not a political symposium, or comedy show.

With all respect to Ms. Streisand, I know of no audience member who goes to a musical concert to hear political skits.

Please voice your concerns, be a political supporter with your time and money, but not with the audience's time and money.

 

[irish1]

Sorry, last thought: Saying "shut the fuck up" at a concert is really vulgar.