Olivia Newton-John and the Sydney Symphony: Live at the Sydney Opera House (2008)

From "If Not for You" to "Physical," from Grease to Xanadu, from her successful battle against breast cancer to her support of numerous environmental causes, Olivia Newton-John has had a long, fruitful, and impressive career, as Live at the Sydney Opera House, a good-looking, great-sounding, beautifully performed concert recorded in 2006, will testify. Born in 1948, Newton-John is one of those singers who these days would be known as a diva, were it not for the fact that her musical style and overall manner are too self-effacing for so presumptuous a term. And while her voice is a bit less pristine these days than when she came on the scene with a series of country-flavored singles in the '70s, what little she's lost in purity is balanced by an increase in soul; she'll never be Etta James, but once she warms up, she hits the high notes with ease and sings with considerable power and confidence. What's more, though she's usually categorized as an adult contemporary artist, in the course of this career-spanning, 27-song set (backed by a first-rate band and the full Sydney Symphony Orchestra), she reveals herself to be at ease with a variety of styles, ranging from the aforementioned country ("Let Me Be There," "Please Mr. Please," and a rousing version of Dolly Parton's "Jolene") through soft pop ("I Honestly Love You," "Have You Never Been Mellow"), the movie hits (two from Xanadu and three from Grease), an electronically re-created duet with the late Peter Allen ("Tenterfield Saddler"), and even a creditable go at the torch standard "Cry Me a River." There are no DVD bonus features, but between-songs bits find Newton-John, daughter Chloe Lattanzi, and members of the band providing a tourist's eye view of Sydney. --Sam Graham Amazon.com

OLivia Newton John & The Sydney Sympphony Orchestra

The Best of her Concert with her hits song form the past years....Good Melody and greatest concert for all family members.. It is 5***** from Olivia Newton John. November 11, 2008

Love her....Hate her outfit!

Being a die-hard Olivia fan, when I saw this DVD on Amazon I purchased it immediately. One can hardly carp about the amount of material on this DVD; Olivia sings most everything you could ever want to hear. Olivia is still strong vocally although we all get older and her voice perhaps is not as clear and shining as it once was. Her band and the Sydney orchestra were terrific as were her talented back-up singers. I realize that the Sydney Opera house is a extremely large venue, but for close-up video/film production; Olivia had on too much makeup and looked garish in the beginning of the concert. Once she was on stage awhile and sweated a bit, the makeup softened somewhat. I love Olivia, have been a hopelessly devoted fan since 1974 and will be until the day I leave this planet. That being said, I am going to say the thing that no one seems to dare to say.....WHY did Olivia get so much plastic surgery??? Look at her, she does not look like the same girl! Although still pretty, she has had her eyes and chin done and also too much botox/collagen in her lips....Look closely, you'll see and be sorry. She is a beautiful woman and would be an incredibly beatiful older woman also. Why is the entertainment industry so all fired up about having to look YOUNG? I love the DVD very much. I dislike the pukey green/gold pants suit she wears and really hate her "new" face, but I love her and always will. October 16, 2008

Olivia fans will love it

there's some behind the scenes, a whole symphony and Olivia in perfect vocal form doing LOTS of her hit songs and plenty of new ones as well. i was VERY dissappointed though to find out that the bastards put the wrong song title on the outside back cover, how stupid was that????
the back cover lists the songs performed including "Dancin' Round and Round" which is a BEAUTIFUL song from one of her best albums ever "Totally Hot" but it turns out that the song is actually "Dancin" from the Xanadu soundtrack. the "Dancin" song is indeed very lively and entertaining and great to hear but still dissappointing when i was expecting the song that was credited on the packaging.
Other than that one thing she packs about as much as she could into this dvd for her fans.
OH WAIT!! i forgot, Olivia PLEASE drop the SAMBA version of "Physical", it's very lovely but people really want to hear the energetic fun REAL version of the song. August 29, 2008

Unbelieveable!

Olivia Newton-John is still HOT! HOT! HOT! This concert was filmed in 2006 when she was 56 years old! My goodness, what a 56 year old!!! Her voice is still terrific and she puts on a remarkable show. She is still extraordinary sexy! I first saw her on the BBC in England in the mid 70s. I knew she was SPECIAL then, and she hasn't disappointed me! August 22, 2008

Stronger Than Before

For any Olivia fan who has followed her career since the early 70s, this is a "must have." Other reviewers of this item seem to be surprised that Olivia is older than she was in the early 80s. If I can age as well as she has, then I want what she's taking!

Of course Olivia must cover the old hits in a DVD of this type, and she does. "Physical" receives a much needed age appropriate twist with a samba version. However, I found the highlights of the concert to be the songs she has recorded since the pinnacle of her popularity, including "Tenterfield Saddler", "Serenity, " "Stronger Than Before," and "Cry Me a River." (Her performance of the latter makes me long for a jazz-influenced Olivia CD.). I was amazed that her performance of "I Honestly Love You," a song I'm sure she has performed thousands of times, was as fresh as if she were singing it for the very first time.

I highly recommend the DVD and its "bookmarking" of a long and full career. Those seeking an early 80s Olivia may be disappointed, but in the real world, people, and performers, in my humble opinion, are much more interesting when the change and grow. June 16, 2008

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