11. Restless (Elton John - Live In Manchester: 12/1/1985)

All right you wunderbar subscribers! After being on the shelf for nearly two months, it’s time to get back on the horse and continue my uploading schedule. From the comments that I have read on the last video that was uploaded (“The Next Phase Of Uploads: What To Do Next?”), it seems that the 1985/1986 tour is about as equally liked as the 1997 shows. From this point onward, both eras will be featured in a rotating schedule so that fans of each era can get a fair representation. This upload is dedicated to “TheEltonBootlegs” and “Ethan Thompson - Murray” since they have been begging me to upload this show for quite a while! This recording from Elton’s first of three Manchester shows from 1985 has very reasonable quality (although it deteriorates towards the end), but is missing about 1/3 of the show (the recording cuts in towards the end of “One Horse Town,” misses the band introduction, and fades out during “Wrap Her Up”). Despite the incompleteness of the recording, having 82 minutes of audio is better than nothing! While generally in good voice, Elton’s performances on the two circulating Manchester shows are noticeably rougher compared to Sheffield and most of the later shows on the 1985-1986 UK tour. While he is able to sing the material at this gig well overall, his vocal deliveries (especially early on in the set) don’t have the punch that the other shows have, and he doesn’t sing with as much ease in general. The overdriven and punchy vocal style that is used throughout this tour leg is backed off during this show and replaced with a more relaxed style (which is especially noticeable on the uptempo songs). Since this issue is only present at the Manchester shows, it could be chalked up to a minor issue such as a cold, or a slight case of laryngitis. The rest of the band are in great form with David Paton’s bass playing being a main highlight of the evening! Now, time to discuss these performances! “One Horse Town” is heavily cut, but what we have sounds strong enough with Elton singing well with a good falsetto tone. “Better Off Dead” has Elton having some characteristics of his 1982 voice as he delivers the song with less overdrive when compared to other versions on the tour leg. “Rocket Man” isn’t the strongest performance from the era as Elton’s upper register lacks precision and many of the Bb4s sound off. “Honky Cat” is the earliest “conservative” version on the tour as Elton doesn’t go for any of the falsetto ad-libs during the outroduction. He also sings the song with a cautious approach and some sections contain unclean phrasing. “Burn Down The Mission” isn’t sung with as much ease as other versions, but Elton still gives the vocals a good effort and Charlie Morgan’s drumming sounds fantastic on the performance. “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” is one of the weaker 1985 versions as Elton’s vocals aren’t firing on all cylinders, but all of the key notes are still sung and Davey Johnstone’s guitar work sounds brilliant (especially the solo). “The Bitch Is Back” is an energetic performance from everybody on stage and Elton’s vocal gets stronger as the performance progresses. “Song For You” features a great soulful delivery from Elton with great vocal and dynamic control. “Blue Eyes” contains great vocal phrasing and features some interesting dynamic choices throughout the performance. Concluding this section, “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues” sounds fantastic at this show with Elton delivering the song passionately and displaying great vocal control throughout his middle range. “Restless” has Elton flubbing the lyrics, but counterbalances with a great vocal performance and the band sound excellent on the Breaking Hearts opener. “Passengers” has Elton making up lyrics, but otherwise delivers a spirited vocal performance and Rick Taylor’s trombone solo is superb. “Bennie And The Jets” has Elton doing silly phrasing during the second chorus. “Sad Songs (Say So Much)” is a mixed bag performance as there is some off intonation from Elton, but the phrasing is reminiscent of some of the more laid back 1984 versions. “Shoot Down The Moon” has Elton cutting off some sustains, but he generally sings the song well and David Paton’s bass playing is a highlight of the performance. “This Town” is one of the best performances of the night as Elton and the band deliver a fantastic rendition of the Ice On Fire opening track. “Nikita” is a strong performance with David Paton once again shining on the bass and Elton singing the song mostly clean. Finally, “Wrap Her Up” has great energy and musicianship, but Alan Carvell misses lyrics in the second verse and Elton sings his outroduction vocals with conservative phrasing! ENJOY!!!