When I heard on the radio early this year that Anita Baker would be doing a farewell tour, I immediately went home and asked my wife to find out when “The Queen” would be stopping through “The Queen City.” I thought nothing of it again until a week ago, when my wife told me she’d booked a short weekend trip to Myrtle Beach to celebrate our 24th anniversary, and advised me not to make plans for Thursday, because we had tickets to see Anita Baker. “You got tickets?” I asked, to which she replied, “You asked me to, didn’t you?” (I had only asked her to find out when she’d be coming to Charlotte, but man, was I glad she bought the tickets in advance!)
Still tired from the beach trip and spending a considerable portion of Wednesday re-mastering my audiobook files to meet distributor specifications (that’ll be out later in June, but that’s another topic for another day), I briefly contemplated not going to the concert. But then again, I could tell you a story about where I was in my life at the time I heard each of my favorite tracks from the album “Rapture” when it first released in 1986, so there was no amount of body fatigue that was going to prevent me from seeing the queen in her farewell tour.
Now, in spite of my being writer who spent four years (1998–2002) covering various artists and events that came through the Charlotte area while moonlighting at the Arts & Entertainment publication that my wife owned at the time, for this piece, I have decided to take creative license and abandon typical journalistic style. Everything about Ms. Baker’s concert on the evening of Thursday, June 7th, 2018 at Ovens Auditorium in Charlotte, NC, left me—someone for whom verbosity has never been an issue—virtually speechless. All I could do is rock my head and body with the rhythm of the music, and just immerse myself in the magical oneness of the instruments, vocals and visuals. There was even a bit of comedy (well, as I saw it anyway… read on).
The Audience
There are few things I enjoy more than attending an event like this with my cool brothers and beautiful sisters—adorned in attire and accessories that accent our strength and beauty. Being a part of that audience was another proud community moment for me.
Comedy
The comedy I referred to above actually had everything to do with… the audience. There was both signage on the doors, and a pre-start announcement regarding not photographing or video recording the performance; yet as soon as Ms. Baker took the stage, in every direction, you could see the lights from the countless number of cell phones: all held high and pointed at the stage 😄. It looked like something that could easily be used as a scene for any adult cartoon you might enjoy watching (“The Boondocks,” “Legends of Chamberlain Heights,” etc.—an announcement that says, “Don’t photograph or record the show,” then everyone nods in agreement and whips out their cameras!). 😄 I just thought the whole scene was hilarious. (Now, you might be wondering about the featured photo for this article, but how else was I supposed to get a feature photo? $575 for a media image of Ms. Baker at a certain website was a bit too steep an expense for a blog post.)
Anyway, here is where I abandon the normal entertainment journalism style and take creative license as a writer…
The Musicians
- Elite skill and mastery of craft
- So good they could easily record a Grammy-winning jazz album
- Refreshing oneness with Ms. Baker (some bands “support” the vocalist; this one was an extension of the vocalist, as if they were the single instrument that Ms. Baker used to play her own accompaniment)
Queen Anita Baker
- Appearance: Beautiful, Graceful, Elegant
- Relaxed aura – (She spoke to the audience as I imagine she might if you were at a cookout at her house – laid back; down home)
- High energy movement
- Effortless vocals
- Playfully traversed the scale, and in multiple keys
- Vocal clarity of a finely-tuned wind instrument
- Jaw-dropping range with no noticeable loss of tone quality at the bottom or top
- Jedi-like mastery of her craft (pardon the allusion to Star Wars, but I had to put it into proper perspective; my apologies if you’ve never seen any of the movies and can’t relate)
Background Vocalists
- Skillful
- Angelic sound
- Expertly attentive to the lead vocalist
- Uniform part of the Anita Baker sound
Staging/Lighting/Visuals
- Calming
- Fitting scenery for whatever song Ms. Baker performed
All in all, seeing Anita Baker in concert was the highlight of what was a weeklong celebration of my 24th wedding anniversary. As I mentioned earlier, I have vivid memories of where I was, what I was doing and what I felt when I first heard songs like, “Same Ole Love,” “Sweet Love,” “Rapture,” and “Mystery.” Although she did not perform one of my more recent favorites (“Body & Soul”), you should know that it didn’t take anything away from a magical evening: one that even included a surprise appearance by another of my favorite artists (Anita, if you’re reading this, is it okay for me to tell? 🤔 😄).
In my closing opinion, I believe the world would be a much calmer place if everyone simply listened to a daily dose of Anita Baker’s music. Her sound has stood the test of time, and still has the ability to set an air of calmness, removing any negative emotion one might be feeling at the time (well, perhaps I don’t speak for everyone, but it certainly has that effect on me). If you have not seen her this year, remember, this is reportedly her farewell concert, so I highly recommend that you make purchasing tickets, and planning to drive or book a flight to the nearest city where she’ll be performing; and enjoy what I consider to be the musical performance of a lifetime!
All the Best!
–MT
(Matt D. Talford is a freelance journalist and the author of “From Fear to Faith: A Survivor’s Story” – a memoir about overcoming a rare form of what he calls “the C-word.” The book is currently available in paperback on this website [click the “Products” link at the top of the page] and at Amazon.com. It is also available in eBook format on Amazon Kindle and Apple iBooks. Audiobook version—narrated by Talford with his signature warm, baritone vocals—will go on sale Friday, June 29th, 2018.)
