Sunday, December 29, 2002
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

CONCERTS: McCartney rules as real king of pop

Paul McCartney executed a concert of favorites, perfectly.

I saw a lot, but certainly not all, of the big-room concerts this year. My favorites were the ones that made me sing along, or dance, or made my heart race with excitement.

1. Paul McCartney (classic pop), MGM Grand Garden arena, April 5 -- The real king of pop showed he still had a mountain of skills left in him at age 59. His solo, acoustic performance of "Blackbird" stunned. "Live and Let Die" exploded. And his cover of the late George Harrison's "Something," on a happy ukulele, was the sweetest, most heartbreaking moment of the concert season.

2. Nikka Costa (funk/rock), House of Blues at Mandalay Bay, Jan. 24 -- After seeing the amazing Costa, I summed her up as a sort of "red-headed love child of Sly Stone and Janis Joplin." She kicked and danced onstage like a tornado in heat. And her songs were funky and rock-hard, from her incredible album, "Everybody Got Their Something."

3. Kid Rock (Southern funk-rock), Hard Rock Hotel, April 11 -- I tried not liking Kid Rock for years. But I finally admitted to myself that he is the Mick Jagger-est star alive. With strippers and fireballs dancing behind him, Rock rocked his hip-hop Southern-rock hit, "Cowboy," as well as the "Dukes of Hazzard" TV theme, the Supremes' "Where Did Our Love Go," "Devil Without a Cause" and "America the Beautiful.'

4. Cake (confessional indie-twang-rock), House of Blues, April 25 -- One of my favorite alternative bands of all time played, as usual, a dead-on recollection of Cake's great songs, including the romantic racer, "The Distance," and the Ricky Ricardo-meets-Willie Nelson melody, "Italian Leather Sofa." Singer-guitarist John McCrea could do no wrong.

5. Garbage (pop), Hard Rock, May 28 -- Charming little singer Shirley Manson talked trash about Cher, Celine Dion and other supposed "divas," in between fronting a great, big show of pure, Euro-American pop music. At the age of 35, she showed more voice and energy than most 25-year-olds while performing "Only Happy When It Rains," "I Think I'm Paranoid" and "When I Grow Up."

6. Ben Kweller (indie-pop, singer-songwriter), opened for the Strokes, Hard Rock, Nov. 9 -- The man who may be the finest, 21-year-old singer-songwriter in America sang each word like he really, really meant it, while doing rocking, singer-songwriter songs from his incredible album "Sha Sha."

7. Tracy Bonham (indie singer-songwriter), AcousticPalooza at Sunset Station, Aug. 31 -- Long gone from modern-rock radio, Bonham, who once had a screaming violin hit called "Mother Mother," was a melodic powerhouse, a huge standout, at AcousticPalooza, an event staged by local singer Shawn Eiferman.

8. The Strokes (modern rock), House of Blues, Jan. 30 -- The Strokes were in the midst of their newfound status as critics' darlings. The band that was changing rock in America. Singer Julian Casablancas appeared to be a stumbling, bottle-swilling, rude mess who sang the band's stirring retro-retro rock songs like it was his last night on earth.

9. Asleep at the Wheel (Western/traditional country), Fremont Street Experience, Dec. 5 -- Country's long-admired, lesser-known, great act put on a two-hour performance with master frontman Ray Benson leading his ever-changing collection of musicians. The super-tight band powered through traditional country, but seared on Western swing, such as "Roly Poly." Benson's deep baritone/bass gave Asleep its built-in resonance, along with his incredible finger work on guitar.

10. The Flaming Lips (avant-rock), Hard Rock, Nov. 22 -- Wayne Coyne sang in a high, cracking voice on fun, funny and touching songs, while his band and fans danced onstage in animal costumes. And Coyne sang the incredibly touching "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. One" while adding the silliness of making his hand-puppet of a nun lip-sync it. It looked like an acid trip at Disney. I'm presuming.