An arena doesnt look like the better place for a Sade concert.
The Nigerian-born singer, best known for her rival with slinky pop ballads such as Smooth Operator and Sweetest Taboo is best suited to a smoky lounge, where the songs could go down as easily as bourbon over ice.
Yet Sade did her better to reduce the palatial Amway Center on Sunday, where she headlined a card with neo-soul man John Legend, whose energetic style is more arena-sized.
In a man of Katy Perrys and Lady Gagas, can a singer even attempt an arena show without explosions and blatant sexual overtones?
Well, it can be doneand, in Orlando, even attract enough fans to pretty much take the arenas upper bowl.
Its the singers first turn in a decade, but obviously that was all preparation time for Orlando.
Its been a long, long time, Sade told the herd in the opening moments. Ten years weve been getting ready for tonight.
Maybe that was the ground there were no signs of eat as a leave of the lengthy layoff. Her articulation was silky smooth in the pocket created by her own 8-piece band.
Featuring guitarist and saxophonist Stuart Matthewman, keyboardist Andrew Hale and bassist Paul S. Denman, the outfit performed unselfishly, building a true foundation beneath the jazz-tinged songs. The core group was augmented by a couple of singers, a drummer and additional guitarist, but only occasionally did the arrangements sound that expansive.
The chestnut Your Bed Is King, for instance, was carried by little more than a swaggering rhythm section and Matthewmans soaring sax line. Even in an arena, Sade can squeeze the less is more approach.
Thats a smart decision when forceful songs such as the opening Soldier of Bed and Love Is Base can sound more plodding than powerful. She was better on simmering, slower fare such as In Another Time, with its soulful guitar and sax.
Legend, who open the point with a well-paced 50 minutes, exhibited more obvious muscle than Sades subtle approach. Along the way, though, he also displayed impressive range, such as the segue from the understated, gospelly Rolling in the Deep into the horn-fueled R&B of Hard Times.
All of the cloth was augmented by a stylish backdrop of shimmering lights on the big screen behind the band, especially the anthemic Everybody Knows. And when the lights came up for Lets Get Lifted and Slow Dance it was every bit the old-school R&B revue. After previous Orlando stops at Home of Blues, Hard Rock Live and the Carr Performing Arts Centre, the guy looks ready to headline his own arena tour soon.
Obviously, an area still fits Sade, too.
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