When Seal’s self-titled debut album came out in 1991, it took the world by storm! With his incredible vocals that dare you not to listen and hit singles “Crazy”, “Killer”, and “Future Love Paradise”, he was on his way. That album garnished Seal awards left and right. When he released his sophomore album and also called it “Seal”, I laughed but the record was nothing to laugh at. Once again, he had several hit singles including “Kiss From a Rose”, which was featured on “Batman Forever”. Unfortunately, in the 2000s, while he has continued to release music (a total of ten studio albums) and touring (almost every year) on a regular basis , none of his records have made the same impact as his first two and he was in the news more for his relationship with Heidi Klum than anything else. That being said, those first two records still get a ton of airplay in my household and, I’m sure, many others.
On Monday, May 15th, Seal brought the first of two nights on his world tour to Massey Hall (newly renovated in 2021) in Toronto. His appeal was still evident as the venue was sold out. Opening for Seal was Trevor Horn, one of the original founding members of the Buggles, best known for “Video Killed the Radio Star”, which was the first video ever aired on the once music video driven MTV. At first, it seemed to me an odd choice for an old new wave band to open for an R&B vocalist but the explanation would come later on in the evening. They opened with a cover of “Two Tribes” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood before performing one of their own “Living in a Plastic Age”. It was a fairly short set that included another cover, Yes’s “Owner of a Lonely Heart”. Another odd choice for a new wave band? They closed out with the song everyone was waiting for: “Video Killed the Radio Star”! Towards the end of the song, Horn seemed to have a little difficulty with his breathing and dropped an octave. At 73, I can’t imagine having to hit those high notes during the chorus. One funny thing happened when Horn was introducing his band. As he started introducing the backup singers, he first introduced La Tanya Hall, then paused and skipped over to the drummer. Did he forget the name of his other backup singer? He did come back at the end to introduce backup singer/percussionist Everett Bradley but it was a funny moment.
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While awaiting Seal to take the stage, I scanned the crowd. As expected, most of the patrons were older, probably forties to sixties, with the younger members of the audience here with their parents. Even so, there was a palpable excitement in the air since Seal hadn’t performed in Toronto in five years. The show kicked off with a video montage about Seal, his history and awards. The crowd screamed as he took the stage and began his performance in fine fashion with “Crazy” from his debut album. In fact, five of the first six songs were from that 1991 record that won Best British Album at the Brit Awards. It turned out that Trevor Horn and his band were also Seal’s band. Definitely makes the travel and accommodations a bit easier. Seal brought out an electric guitar for “Deep Water”, one of just two instances where he played an instrument. But he looked and sounded amazing! He doesn’t look like he’s aged and when he took off his red leather jacket, he had the ladies screaming! Plus his vocals were spot on, sometimes soft and breathy and sometimes powerful, his voice reaching all corners of the venue. Seal is so good with audience engagement, reaching out and singing to and clasping hands with fans in the front row. He had the whole crowd singing “Bring it On” by extending the chorus!
Seal did talk about some of the things that drive his music. His primary theme is about love and closeness, about coming together. The time when we need to come close the most is the time where we distance ourselves. He speaks from personal experience. We need to be able to reach out and ask for comfort. Not quite ask for help but reassurance. We feel when we lost someone or lost something. Everything is a circle. That’s the re-occurring theme. Circles everywhere. What makes us feel that we’re different? We go round and round because there is no ending and no beginning. Life just carries on….leading into “Prayer for the Dying”. What a great song! And he changes the last line to “just a prayer for the living” to emphasize his theme.
When Seal finally introduced his band, some questions were answered. Hall, Bradley, and guitarist Mat Dauzat has only been with Seal for six months. But drummer Earl Harvin and keyboardist have been with Seal for over thirty years!! Now we get to bassist Trevor Horn. It turns out Horn has been with Seal since the beginning as his mentor, producing his music, and being his musical director. Plus he has produced a number of other artists such as Yes and Frankie Goes to Hollywood. Ah, everything is clicking into place. As Frankie was mentioned, Seal starting singing a bit of “Relax!” and had the crowd singing along!
The best moment of the night was when Seal came down into the audience for “Killer”! The audience went absolutely bonkers, especially at the point when Seal hits the high note on the line “live our lives the way we wanna be, yeah!” and the whole crowd was jumping up and down! Just incredible!
Seal closed out his set with a singalong of “Kiss From a Rose”, his biggest hit in North America. As he left the stage, a review of the setlist so far indicated that all the songs performed were from his first two albums. What did I say about his first two albums still being played regularly? However, when he came back for the encore, he performed “Get It Together” and “Love’s Divine” from 2003’s “Seal IV”. What an absolutely amazing performance he put on this evening! As a follow-up on his second night at Massey Hall, I understand he came into the crowd to perform “Kiss From a Rose”. A treat for his fans no matter which night they attended, if not both! Seal is obviously still in peak performance shape and, if he stops in a city near you, you absolutely need to get tickets and see this amazing artist!
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