Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds played at the Paradise Theater in the boogie down Bx!
May 11th, 2011 by Mr. C
Legendary singer/songwriter/producer – Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds played at the Paradise Theater on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx on Sunday, Mother’s Day! It was a very special day for all the ladies that night as a double header explosion of R&B started out with TANK who proceeded to rile up all the females into ecstasy with his supple sounds of sexual healing which clearly populated into the emotional minds of some swooning ladies in the house! The bass was thumpin’ & asses were jumpin’ around! We walked into the last few songs of Tank’s set including May I deserve & Please don’t go! Tank made a few more ladies cry in the front row by offering them $50 for getting their nails & hair done for mothers night out! Dag, if I would of known earlier I would of gotten dressed up as a martian version of Sheneneh from the Martin Lawrence show to try to get some Andrew Jackson’s thrown at me!
Batting in the cleanup spot was Babyface as he would slowly electric slide onto the stage with a full band as he caressed the mic while whispering sweet somethings in the audience’s ear! ‘Face opened up with “For the cool in you” as he danced & pranced about while spinning around like an elder statesmen from FAME! Father time reared its head as ‘Face even said that he was gasping for air after attempting the Bobby Brown twinkle toe dance moves! Despite the need for an oxygen tank, Babyface sounded real nice that night and the band complimented him really well by adding a full sound coupled with his gentle vocals. Face also had a few funny stories that he unleashed to the crowd including the “if the circumstances or the generation gap” would of been different with his 5th grade crush & charm on his school teacher, he might have been a writer/performer similiar to R. Kelly! “There ain’t nothing wrong….with a little bump n grind!” . The other story that he reminisced about that sparked his inspiration to write & perform with the best of them included a concert that he attended of Luther Vandross & Debarge! He stated that Luther was always the great Luther, but when he saw this little pale skin colored dude (El Debarge) with that puffed out curly hairdo jammin’ on that keyboard while singing in that falsetto voice with the song, “Love me in a special way”, Face knew what his calling was!
Babyface really warmed up the crowd when he performed a medley of some of his favorite digs which included Soon as I get home, Somebody to love me, & Where will you go! My favorite performances of the night from ‘Face includes “Everytime I close my eyes” & “Two Occassions” by The Deele! He really brought that Deele song home! The Deele originally consisted of Babyface, L.A. Reid, Satin Greene, & Kevin Roberson! Another heavy hitter & fun composition of the evening also performed in a medley format were songs that Babyface either wrote and/or produced including a few of Bobby Brown’s top hits like Don’t be Cruel, Tenderoni, & Every little step! Tevin Cambell’s (Can we talk for a minute), After 7’s (Ready or not), Johnny Gill (my my my), & Boyz 2 Men (I’ll make love to you + End of the Road) rounded off the flashback songs that made you say GODDAMN, Babyface…you had a hand in creating those monster tunes?! And many more to go with that list including writing lyrics for Whitney, Aretha, Chaka Khan, Janet, Prince, Pebbles, Brandy….and the list continues on & on! It’s mind blowing as you get a feel of how much Babyface really influenced the music industry! Edmonds performed “Whip Appeal” to close out the night at the beautiful & historic Paradise Theater! The Planet Chocko Storm Troopers (Chocko, Buggy, & Mr. C) all agreed that it was a fun concert but, we also concluded that there seemed to be a few elements missing that would of turned this mutha into an unforgettable night! We’re not sure if there was a 10pm curfew or something posed at the theatre, but the show seemed to really end abruptly. Babyface did not introduce the band members, nor even mentioned Tank. There was no hasta la bye byes to the audience as ‘Face just drifted out into the boogie down bronx night while the band finished off the last of the notes. The band shouted “Baby…Face”…”Baby…Face”, but there was no encore to be had as the theatre lights came right on! Even before the last song of the night “Whip Appeal”, we noticed that the crowds were starting to file out like there was some fire sale going on at the Grand Concourse! Did they know something that us Planet Chocko freaks didn’t? Maybe the zombies & the From Dusk Till Dawn characters would soon file into the theatre after 10pm for an afterparty?! What was also odd was that Babyface didn’t even touch an instrument the whole night! We were expecting him to come out acoustically with his guitar to bust out a personal tune or two to connect with the audience! Maybe this wouldn’t appeal to the local Bronx crowd? Who knows! Strange! We wanted to hear more, though! Some of the following would of been nice! : “When can I see you again”, “Change the world”, “How come, How long”, & “and our feelings”. I guess you can’t keep all the fans happy! Despite the disappointing finish in our point of view, Babyface layed it down real smooth & soothing. I love how he doesn’t over dramatize his performances, but instead chooses to use his weapon of voice to flow steady & slay his listeners with control, gracefulness, & clarity! I’m thinking a Babyface show at Manhatty might be more to our set list liking! REE-VENGE!
SET LIST
For the cool in you
Everytime I close my eyes
Never keeping secrets
soon as I get home
somebody to love me
where will you go
two occassions
Don’t be cruel
every little step
Tenderoni
Can we talk for a minute
Ready or not
my my my
I’ll make love to you
End of the road
Whip appeal
Tags: babyface, bronx, paradise theater, r&b, tank
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