Subject: Seal in Washington, D.C. Date: 1999/06/17 Author: jmballard I went to Seal's concert last night at Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA, just outside Wasington, D.C. All through the show, one word kept coming to mind:
SCORCHING! Seal rocked out! Now, if you don't know Wolf Trap, you won't understand just how monumental this is. Wolf Trap is an outdoor arena, with seating "in-house" and out on the lawn. But, it's also very "adult-contempo" and "granola"-y. They serve wine at the concession stands, if that tells you anything. My wife and I were looking around before the show at just how diverse the crowd was, wondering what the vibe for the show would be. And I have to tell you, at first, I don't think that the crowd knew exactly how to react to the guitar and drum cutting through their favorite Seal songs. He guided them into it, leading them out of their seats. Once he had them, it was over! The crowd went crazy. Middle-aged, middle-management types were dancing in the aisles. You could tell that Seal was having fun with the crowd, and that they loved him for it.
He did get serious for a few moments. Just before he sang "Kiss From A Rose", he addressed the audience, as I've read he has done a number of times. However, he was humble and thankful, saying "You know, when you have a record that comes out, and doesn't do very well...because people expect you to do one thing, and you have to be true to your heart. Well, this record hasn't done very well, and because of that, we haven't had nearly the turn out or packed houses that we've been used to. But to see this place packed, and people sitting out in the rain (ed. It was raining...as it was the last time I saw him at Wolf Trap) makes me feel so great, and I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart." You could feel that he was troubled about the mixed reception to the new album. THE CROWD WENT CRAZY!
Then, as the first notes of "Kiss From A Rose" floated through the hazy air, they absolutely lost it. I'm convinced that "Kiss From A Rose" will become his "Purple Rain"; the song he is identified with forever, no matter what he does.
All in all, it was a great concert in a great venue, with a true artist leading an unsure crowd through a night of HOT music. I saw him there the last time he toured, and this concert was as good, if not better than the last one, if only because I think the new material is so good.

Seal, if you ever stumble across this, thank you for a night of great music, and a lot of fun.

If you can see this show...GO!! Don't wait...GO!! JMB