Luther at Wembley April 1989; see review below for link/full credits
I saw Luther Vandross with the same crowd as The Shaughraun (National Theatre) and Paul McCartney (also at Wembley Arena) a few weeks earlier in 1990.
I think this Luther one might have been Rosemarie Whiteley’s idea, although it might have been Stephen Lee. I think it was Stephen who acted as ringleader for gathering names and booking tickets for this sort of thing.
The diary merely says “Luther” which suggests that we met at Wembley and didn’t arrange any pre-concert gathering.
I do recall lots of chat, especially among the females in our group, as to whether we were going to get Fat Luther, Thin Luther or “Some Weight In-between” Luther. They were convinced that his weight was “a thing”. The Guardian review below from Luther’s previous visit in 1989 does suggest that his weight was very much “a thing”.
If I recall correctly we got “In-between” Luther.
I was not a huge fan of Wembley Arena for gigs – insufficiently intimate for my taste – but I remember that this concert worked really well there. Quite a big sound, Luther’s live act.
It was actually a very good concert. I remember thoroughly enjoying it. I had Luther’s Greatest Hits by that time so was familiar with most of the numbers we saw that night; it was pretty much the standard Luther fare I think. I believe his 1989 concerts had been vastly over-subscribed, hence the return in 1990 to do several more.
The video below shows you what he looked like at Wembley, but the live footage was shot the previous year, 1989, with Big Luther:
Indeed, if you like this stuff, you can watch lots of videos from his 1989 Wembley concerts on the Luther Vandross official fan site – here.
I can’t find reviews from 1990 but the 1989 appearances landed the following Guardian review:
Sweeting On Vandross 1989 Sat, Apr 1, 1989 – 21 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com
