Review Of Evening With Dionne Warwick

We made a nearly impromptu trip this last weekend to Las Vegas to watch Dionne Warwick perform in Cleopatra's Barge at Caesar's Palace. Warwick whose musical career was launched in the turbulent 1960's, can easily be called one of the greatest entertainers of our generation.  She has a voice as smooth as silk and an electric presence.  Her teaming partnership with musical writers Burt Bacharach and Hal David has given us a complete catalogue of timeless easy listening numbers like "Walk On By" and "Do You Know The Way To San Jose"
In the small venue, Warwick played with a 4 piece back up band.  Looking grandmotherly, her voice has also matured like wine.  She displayed a little bit of her famously prickly personality but in a loving way when she said "Good Evening", when the crowd just clapped she said, "When I say good evening, you say good  evening, back" and the crowd was happy to oblige.   She began her set with "Walk On By", a song that had been playing in my head all day.
I won't spoil the finale, or the surprises in the show, but I highly recommend this performance.
Although, I have always been a fan of rock and roll, I have  also enjoyed the middle of the road music of Warwick and the songs of Burt Bacharach.  While much social change has been forged with rock and folk music, it can be said that Warwick worked the middle ground with songs like "What The World Needs Now" and "That's What Friends Are For".