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Review: Lisa Stansfield
21/ 7/2005
LISA Stansfield didn't put a foot wrong at The Lowry on
Sunday.
Opening the show with the title track of her new album, The Moment,
the Rochdale diva went on to mix in tracks from previous albums,
Affection, Real Love, Face Up and So Natural.
It was back in 1989 when Stansfield burst onto the club scene with
the rousing Coldcut collaboration, People Hold On: although her
first break was winning the Manchester Evening News Search For A
Star competition.
Her unmistakable voice has since established her as one of the UK's
best-loved female singers.
Two tracks in and the crowd were already on their feet for The Real
Thing.
Notching up the nostalgia, Stansfield and her eight-piece backing
group followed that with the soulful All Woman and a particularly
erotic performance of Time To Make You Mine.
Tracks such as these, and So Natural, are Stansfield gold and show
off the full range of her raspy voice.
Dressed in black trousers and a tiny, strapless chiffon top, the
singer relaxed more with each song.
Say It To Me Now, from The Moment- another angst-ridden ballad
about broken relationships - was perhaps the most moving
performance of the night.
"I love that song," chirps Stansfield, "but it's a bit
depressing."
And, with that, we were straight into swing with Sinatra favourite,
You Can't Take That Away From Me.
Then while keeping night varied, watched by much of the Stansfield
clan, it was back to the sensitive, heart-felt tunes.
Another from The Moment, Treat Me Like A Woman, really epitomises
Stansfield's ability to write love songs with a kick.
While much of her material is arguably a little too middle of the
road to give the gig any real potency - attracting as it does a
pleasant 18-80 crowd - Stansfield's gutsy performance is impressive
and few can pull off the variety package of pop, blues and r `n' b
with such ease.
No wonder the crowd was on its feet for about the fifth time as the
night was rounded up rightly with some of Stansfield's better known
hits: I Could Change, Live Together, Been Around The World and
People Hold On.
The local lass, there's no doubt, is still a definitive soul artist
with an army of easy-listening fans.
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