Diana gets named "Best Show" at the F.M. Kirby Center in PA.

[Roberta75]

http://www.timesleader.com/entertain...2-29-2011.html

[jobeterob]

All in all, 2011 was another good year for concerts in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

But unlike in 2010, when I thought the double-bill of James Taylor and Carole King at the arena was by far the best of the year, there wasn’t that one spectacular show that was heads and tails above all others this year.

There were a lot of good contenders: Michael Buble at the arena; a couple of shows at Montage Mountain featuring Def Leppard, Heart, Motley Crue, Poison and the New York Dolls; Elton John at the arena; George Jones at the Kirby Center; and Jason Aldean on the mountain, to name a few.

We came close with the INXS show at Pocono Downs, which was off to a great start before it was canceled due to a rainstorm after three songs.

While none of the shows completely knocked my socks off, two stand out as the best of what was around.

Best Show: Diana Ross at the Kirby Center, Sept. 30. The now-67-year-old diva ushered in the Kirby Center’s silver season with a sold-out show full of her hits. Even at this stage of her career, Ms. Ross can still sing songs such as “Touch Me in the Morning” and “Theme from ‘Mahogany’ [[Do You Know Where You’re Going To)” well. The Supremes hits “Baby Love,” “Stop! In the Name of Love” and “Where Did Our Love Go” still sounded sublime. “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” was still powerful, and the disco hits “Inside Out” and “I’m Coming Out” have held up.

Runner Up: Bob Dylan and Leon Russell at the Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain, Aug. 10. Yeah, I know Dylan’s voice ain’t what it used to be, but so what? Some people think he never could sing. But he still puts on one heck of a show, and his performance at Montage Mountain – his first area appearance in about 10 years – was no different. If you were there, you got to see the man do some of his finest songs such as “It Ain’t Me Babe,” “Simple Twist of Fate,” “Tangled Up In Blue” and “All Along the Watchtower.” And you got Russell opening the show with his versions of Beatles, Stones and Chuck Berry songs [[plus some of his finest, such as “Delta Lady”) at no additional charge.

Biggest Disappointment: I understand that NEPA is not a major market, but we got none of the shows from any of the artists in the Top 10 of Billboard magazine’s ranking of the year’s top tours. In fact, we only got four shows from the Top 25.

The biggest tour to hit here, according to Billboard, was Buble, who brought his show to the arena on June 8. The Canadian crooner placed 11th for the year with a gross of $49.8 million and an attendance of just more than 520,000.

The Toyota Pavilion hosted the other three acts in the Top 25: Lil Wayne [[14th, $46.3 M, 712,000) on July 19; Jason Aldean [[24th, $27.7 M, 790,530) on Aug. 25 and Toby Keith [[25th, $27.3 M, 673,668), who closed out the summer season Sept. 15 with his ninth consecutive trek up the mountain.

Hey concert promoters, let’s see if we can do a little better in 2012.

Biggest Annoyance: On Nov. 20, Axl Rose kept us all waiting what seemed like an eternity for his performance at the arena.

Granted, most of us knew what to expect. All you had to do was check the Internet to see that the latest edition of Guns N’ Roses rarely if ever started before 11 p.m. for any previous shows on the tour. But if that’s the case, Mr. Rose, why can’t you just let people know that ahead of time?

Believe it or not, there were some there who didn’t know you wouldn’t take the stage until 11:15 and then play until 2 the following morning. Some had to leave early because they had work the next day. They might not have bought tickets if they knew they weren’t actually going to get to see much of your performance, but you probably knew that.

Coming Up in 2012: Looking forward to the new year, two of the biggest tours will involve bands celebrating a half-century in the music business: The Rolling Stones and The Beach Boys. There are no definite plans for the former yet, and early speculation has them playing just a few cities and perhaps a pay-per-view special. Even if Mick, Keith and the boys decide to take one last lap around the country, don’t expect them any closer than Philly.

The Beach Boys have been split into three different factions in recent years, but all of the surviving members are getting back together for a new album and tour to celebrate the group’s 50th anniversary. The tour kicks off in April at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and the band is signing up to do at least 50 shows. Let’s hope NEPA is one of the stops on the itinerary.

Three bands with a history of stopping in NEPA will be back on the road: Dave Matthews Band, Aerosmith and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Another show by any of these – or better yet, all three – would be most welcome.

Other artists hitting the road in 2012 include: Eagles [[celebrating 40 years), Red Hot Chili Peppers, Taylor Swift, Watch The Throne [[Kanye West and Jay-Z), Brad Paisley [[who played the Toyota Pavilion at in 2011), The Black Keys and Coldplay [[which canceled its Montage appearance a few years back).

I would think we have a pretty good chance at seeing Paisley again, though the others might be longer shots. But, you know, sometimes long shots do come in, and that would make winners of us all.


Read more: http://www.timesleader.com/entertain...#ixzz1i8TTw4y8