Product: Hot Summer Night [VHS] (1983)
Rating: 4.0
Part-Vegas, part-rock show, all entertainment!
Donna Summer has never really been able to define herself in the video era. In the pre-video 70s, she was easily the top pop female artist with powerful vocals and a full repertoire of disco-pop styling. But in the video era, where fashion and dancing are more important than vocals (Madonna anyone?) Summer clumsily moved from rag-tag Wanderer (1980), to funk queen (1982), to weary waitress (1983). Her vocal versatility was difficult to carry over to the video world where image is everything. This disparity is apparent in her live concerts as well. In the 1983 concert tape, "A Hot Summer Night", shot at an SRO concert in Costa Mesa, CA, Summer tries a bit of Vegas showgirl with sequine-covered gowns, rock diva, and Evita(!). Sometimes Summer tries a Bette Midler camp, telling naughty anecdotes in breathy Mae West tones, and sometimes she's Cher, eager with that audience participation. While the concert tape is never dull, it's a shame that Summer didn't stop playing the chameleon and recognized that she could have a very strong image of her own. END