6. Can You Feel The Love Tonight (Elton John - Live In Amherst: 11/5/1997)

For the next upload that is related to the 1997 Big Picture Tour legs, I’d like to dedicate it to “ncf1” who is taking time out of his busy schedule to not only listen to all of my uploads, but to add witty comments that often reduce me to laughter which leads me to pin them on the videos! Thanks for being a great subscriber! This recording from Amherst is nearly complete (with “Simple Life” being cut) from two different sources. The bulk of the upload comes from an excellent-sounding DAT tape while an inferior source is used to provide audio for “Simple Life” and parts of “The One” and “Bennie And The Jets.” Compared to earlier shows on the tour, this one falls more in line with the previous night (University Park) as while the show is consistently good throughout (with some stand-out moments), it is “safer” without being absolutely amazing as a whole. The musicianship is at its usual high quality and the solo/improv sections contain some great playing, but there is definitely a feeling of holding back and saving resources for later in the tour. Elton sounds pretty strong throughout the gig, but the effects of his cold somewhat hamper his singing prowess as he sounds rougher than normal and holds back on his vocal power. The weary edge of his tone fits some of the songs (like the ballads) nicely, but other songs (like the rockers) suffer slightly due to the reduce vocal strength. Now… time to go through the performances… “Simple Life” is cut, but what is featured is an...