The concert is divided into four sections. The first is the JOAN OF ARC/SAMURAI section...
INTRO / ICONIC - This has to be one of the most powerful openings in recent Madonna tours...the opening video features a samurai army and a Joan of Arc Madonna saving a beaten up Glamour Madonna...it also features boxer Mike Tyson reprising his part from the same song...this launches into Madonna's appearance from the rafters in a steel cage...what follows is simply FLAWLESS...here is video of how the concert begins:
Bitch I'm Madonna - Next came the latest single from REBEL HEART...this song has grown on me since the 1st time I heard it...its fun and in your face, just like Madonna is now...
Burning Up - Madonna has gotten way better with her guitar skills and this song totally proves it...this song literally BURNS in concert...
Holy Water - a new religious tinged song from REBEL HEART, Madonna plays with the LAST SUPPER imagery...complete with pole-dancing nuns...
Devil Pray - another religious themed song from Rebel Heart, this song has a stronger message that I can relate...I'm glad she performed this song in concert...
The second section of the concert was themed ROCKABILLY MEETS TOKYO...
Messiah - yet another religious based song from REBEL HEART...are you sensing a theme here? But this song is so beautiful...I wished Madonna had performed this song instead of using it as an interlude for her to do a costume change...maybe on the next tour...
Next came BODY SHOP...probably not one of my fave songs from the Rebel Heart era, but I understand why this song was performed in concert...
Now Body Shop leads into a Madonna classic: TRUE BLUE...I was so happy to hear this song again...LIVE in concert...this song sounds so amazing...I'm glad Madonna is re-visiting her classic songs...I LOVE how Madonna says "Chicago" at the beginning of this performance...She really loves Chicago...
After a laid-back, acoustic version of True Blue, we get into party mood...next comes a pumped-up version of DEEPER & DEEPER...a blast from the past...this version sounds INTENSE...I LOVE IT!!!
Next comes an amazing performance...HeartBreak City is combined with Love Don't Live Here Anymore....Madonna sure knows how to create an emotional set list...these two songs go together BEAUTIFULLY...this was one of the many highlights of the Rebel Heart Tour...
And now comes a crowd-pleaser: LIKE A VIRGIN...this is a fun performance...just Madonna, alone on stage, singing her heart out and having fun...now if you listen carefully, Madonna yells out "ASSHOLE" to someone in the audience,...I wonder what caused her to say this...luckily this happens at the very beginning of the song...
Now comes my favorite portion of the Rebel Heart Tour: the LATIN / GYPSY section...
This section begins with another musical interlude, this time featuring S.E.X and Justify My Love...this is a very sensual performance...the dancers do an amazing routine...I love the backing visuals created for this interlude...this is only a tease of what is to come....
Next comes one of Madonna's latest hits, LIVIN' FOR LOVE...this is the remix version of the song that is performed...as much as I love this song, it seems to be cursed when performed...Madonna has tripped over her cape, tripped on stage and had stage malfunctions...in Chicago, the moving stage and stairs almost pushed Madonna back down the runway stairs...but this is still an amazing performance...
Next comes one of my all-time favorite Madonna songs: LA ISLA BONITA...one of the things I love about Madonna is how she has Latin themed, sounding songs...this song was the 1st time Madonna went "Latin"...I hope she will always sing this song in concert...
After La Isla Bonita come an AWESOME medley: DRESS YOU UP-INTO THE GROOVE-LUCKY STAR...when this tour started, this medley also included Everybody...why this medley was cut down, I have no reason...I'm sure it was for timing reasons...I hope the DVD version does include Everybody, but if not that's okay...I also loved the visuals and costumes used during this song...but more importantly, these songs sounded GREAT together...
Next came ANOTHER favorite song of mine: WHO'S THAT GIRL...OMG...I can't believe that Madonna sang this song in Chicago...IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE...this was the surprise performance of the night...Thank You Madonna for singing this song...
Then came ANOTHER surprise performance: GHOSTTOWN...Madonna had been singing this song on and off in other cities and I was really hoping Madonna would sing this in Chicago...AND SHE DID!!!!....this is without question one of Madonna's BEST SONGS...EVER...I have always been a fan of Madonna's ballads...and this song is the best she has ever recorded...this song is simply gorgeous...this acoustic version just brought tears to my eyes...you can tell the crowd was happy to hear this song...I could listen to this performance non-stop for hours....
And now to bring this section to a close, we come to the title track of the tour: REBEL HEART...this song is a love song to Madonna's fans...I loved how Madonna incorporated fan-created artwork in the backing visuals for this performance...I have to say that Rebel Heart is a great collection of songs...and this tour proves it...plus Madonna sounded her best on this tour...she just keeps getting better and better vocally...
And now comes the final section of this tour: PARTY / FLAPPER...
This section starts out with another interlude: ILLUMINATI...this performance featured all the male dancers in a CRAZY routine...this took "pole dancing" to an extreme lever...you can tell this was inspired by those crazy French-Canadians over at Cirque du Soleil...but this performance took my breath away at one point...see if you can see what I mean (HINT: it happens at the 2:40 mark in the video below...
And now the party begins with MUSIC...this starts out very Jazzy...but then it kicks into high gear...I love the excitement from this performance...
Music then mixes directly into CANDY SHOP...now I have admitted before that when I first heard this song I was not a big fan of it...but over the course of three tours, this song has gotten better with time...and without question, the version performed on this tour us THE BEST...OMG YES...this is the one song I am really looking forward to on the official DVD & CD...
Next we get another Madonna classic: MATERIAL GIRL...this tour sure has a great mix of classic, chart hits and new songs...this new arrangement is really fun...another crowd pleaser...
Next Madonna brings the show down to a slow burn...what happens next is simply DIVINE...Madonna sings the French classic LA VIE EN ROSE...this performance just has three elements to it: Madonna, a ukulele and the audience...and its BRILLIANT...
And now we're almost close to the end of the show...so lets go crazy...Madonna now sings a fun song from the Rebel Heart album: UNAPOLOGETIC BITCH...this is another song that needed to grow on me...but after seeing Madonna perform this on Jimmy Fallon I finally "got the song"...its at this point of the show where Madonna would bring a "celebrity" on stage...in Chicago, that honor went to drag superstar Britney Bitch (as performed by Derrick Barry of Las Vegas)...
And now comes the worst part of the show: The Finale...in this case its a great one featuring HOLIDAY....without question, one of Madonna's best songs...its always a crowd favorite when perform in concert...and this was no exception...
I can't wait for this concert to be released later this year...I hope Madonna releases the full audio of the concert along with the video....this was truly one of my favorite Madonna tours...this might be in my top three Madonna tours...I look forward to Madonna's next album...and tour!!!
I'd like to Thank Nicklas Dahlgren for the use of his video links...you can see his other Madonna videos HERE...ENJOY!!!
John
