Mandela gig 35 years ago today

[JF]

35 years ago, on June 11 1988, at Wembley stadium, the cream of eighties rock artists gathered to celebrate the 70th birthday of Nelson Mandela, who was still in prison at the time. Dire Straits (with Eric Clapton) closed the ball for one of the most important concerts of their career.
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https://textes-blog-rock-n-roll.fr/il-y-a-35-ans-le-monde-du-rock-fetait-les-70-ans-de-mandela/

[qjamesfloyd]

Another great article JF, thanks. The biggest issue I have with this concert is the visuals on Brothers In Arms, you can hear it is a great performance but the camera is always on Mark, and not his hand either, it would have been better to have seen the whole band, and the whole of Mark, was there a real reason for this?

[JF]

Another great article JF, thanks. The biggest issue I have with this concert is the visuals on Brothers In Arms, you can hear it is a great performance but the camera is always on Mark, and not his hand either, it would have been better to have seen the whole band, and the whole of Mark, was there a real reason for this?

Yes indeed I must admit always focused on the audio for this song  I never paid much attention to the visual...


maybe issues with other cameras ?  strange though, and only for this song 

https://youtu.be/hZW4Wk_h-5M?t=2241


but in the video restored by AI, there are some other close-ups with the whole band, the audience, and even Mark's fingers.. not sure where this pics come from though...

https://youtu.be/tUA4rhznH04?t=2553

strange indeed

[qjamesfloyd]

Yes, I have always thought it strange that it is only this song too!!

[peterromer]

BIA on that particular day is the best BIA ever. Amazing. 

[Rolo]

BIA on that particular day is the best BIA ever. Amazing.

The best BIA version was, in my opinion, for Concert For Monserrat 97.

[ds1984]

The best BIA version was, in my opinion, any one from the first leg of the live in 85 tour.

[JF]

I think I am the only one here, but to me the best BIA version is the studio one

I think personnaly that Mark never reached exactly the same feeling as on the studio version
and the Les Paul tone is perfect to my ears

that said, I like many live versions, and the Mandela one is one of my favorites

others than come to mind : Toronto 2001 (on the TRD special edition), Basel 2007 (KTGC promo tour), A night in london with strings (I prefer this one than the Montserrat one)

the ones on the first leg of the BIA tour sounds too "rock" to me, thats' not what I want to hear when listen to this song. it's not a "rock song" in my mind. And that final ending.... it don't suits the song flavour imho

[Skinny Kid]

The rock tone is exactly what I like best for BIA so the Wembley 85 version is my absolute favorite.
Very thundery, very powerful.
 
There's also the one with the mistake which is worth anyone's while, in my opinion; and I have a
soft spot, to say the least, for the one on On the night.

The Mandela concert version is great but, to me, not as great as Sultans or Romeo which are both
out of this world !

 

[2manyguitars]

The rock tone is exactly what I like best for BIA so the Wembley 85 version is my absolute favorite.
Very thundery, very powerful.
 
There's also the one with the mistake which is worth anyone's while, in my opinion; and I have a
soft spot, to say the least, for the one on On the night.

The Mandela concert version is great but, to me, not as great as Sultans or Romeo which are both
out of this world !

 

Wembley has something dark and apocalyptic about it. Always loved that version....

[quizzaciously]

The rock tone is exactly what I like best for BIA so the Wembley 85 version is my absolute favorite.
Very thundery, very powerful.
 
There's also the one with the mistake which is worth anyone's while, in my opinion; and I have a
soft spot, to say the least, for the one on On the night.

The Mandela concert version is great but, to me, not as great as Sultans or Romeo which are both
out of this world !

 

Wembley has something dark and apocalyptic about it. Always loved that version....

Mark is a true artist in the sense that he performs on another level under pressure. Studio will never give you pressure like playing in a stadium and millions of people watching on TV, so that's why the Wembley version is so great. The studio version is great in its own right, as with any other studio recording it's an intimate experience, perfectly recorded for the best sonic experience, and it plays for the audience of one.

[Rolo]

Mark is a true artist in the sense that he performs on another level under pressure. Studio will never give you pressure like playing in a stadium and millions of people watching on TV, so that's why the Wembley version is so great. The studio version is great in its own right, as with any other studio recording it's an intimate experience, perfectly recorded for the best sonic experience, and it plays for the audience of one.

There are musicians that can be totally relaxed on a studio.

I never felt myself fully relaxed during any recording session.
I prefer to play live for hundred of people than on a studio.

MK do both perfectly.

[superval99]

Two of my favourite versions of BIA are:

2001 from Massey Hall Toronto.

23rd May 1996 from the RAH which was on the bonus disc which came with "Sultans of Swing - the Very Best of Dire Straits"

Also 2007 Basel is excellent.

[dmg]

Much is made of BIA from this show but the first warm-up is right up there too.  The same show also contains a great solo on TOL.

Never liked Sultans from this show.  It's too laid back, has a very safe solo and he messed up the twiddly bits.

[herlock]

The rock tone is exactly what I like best for BIA so the Wembley 85 version is my absolute favorite.
Very thundery, very powerful.
 
There's also the one with the mistake which is worth anyone's while, in my opinion; and I have a
soft spot, to say the least, for the one on On the night.

The Mandela concert version is great but, to me, not as great as Sultans or Romeo which are both
out of this world !

 

Same taste for me. I like Wembley 85 better than Mandela. I prefer this unique Les Paul crying tone to the Pensa one, and I like it rockier. Some think that Wembley has cheesy keyboards, and it's true, but... I like cheese
Mandela is great though, and yes, On the Night is breathtaking. I don't like much 96 and 2001 versions, too slow for my taste. I liked the 2019 version, simple, short, but touching.

As for Sultans I agree with dmg on this one. Not the greatest. I love Alchemy one (powerful), Wembley 85 (great sax break) and Basel 92 (great arrangements)