A new Billboard list of top "Money Makers" puts Celine Dion slightly ahead of Barbra Streisand, proving it pays to stay in one place -- as long as you're willing to do an extra 140 shows each year.

The Las Vegas-based chanteuse was No. 9 on the list with an estimated "bottom line," as the magazine phrases it, of $69.9 million for 2006. Streisand was No. 11 with $67.2 million. But her tour visited 20 cities, including a November stop at the MGM Grand, where tickets topped out at $1,000. Dion does about 160 performances of "A New Day" each year at Caesars Palace.

The Rolling Stones led the list with a pretty good year: $234,064,920. Concert industry publications previously had reported the Stones' "A Bigger Bang" tour grossed about $427 million.

The new Billboard list factors both concert revenue and CD sales. In fact, CD sales probably inflate the numbers, since the magazine calculates the entire average CD price ($9.70) instead of estimating the artist's royalty, which often amounts to only a dollar of each sale.

Madonna was in second place with $175.1 million; her Confessions Tour visited the MGM for two dates last May. Bon Jovi was perhaps a surprise third, with $103.2 million. Tim McGraw came in fourth ($102.6 million) and spouse Faith Hill seventh ($83 million). Their joint tour stopped for three Las Vegas shows over Labor Day weekend. Coming between them was No. 5 U2 ($94.5 million) and No. 6 Rascal Flatts ($87.1 million).

Cirque du Soleil's "Delirium" tour didn't look full at the MGM's Grand Garden just after Labor Day. But elsewhere, the tour was strong enough to separate Dion and Streisand on the list, coming in 10th at $69.9 million.

Elton John, who shares the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, was 15th with $49.3 million. The most surprising name on the list was Johnny Cash, whose post-mortem year rang up to nearly $48 million.

Aerosmith, which claimed the No. 14 spot with nearly $54 million, headlines the Lili Claire Foundation benefit on April 28. Jason Alexander hosts the show at the Mandalay Bay Event Center. The date for individual ticket sales has not been announced. ...

Those wanting to catch Prince at the Rio might want to do it before the end of March; whether he will stay longer seems to be up in the air. Make what you want of this, but two members of his extended musical family are playing upcoming dates at Station Casino venues instead of the Rio: saxophonist Candy Duffler at Santa Fe Station on March 30 and Morris Day & The Time at Boulder Station on April 13-14. ...

Delisco is the single name of "The Entertainer," the winner of the Wayne Newton-hosted E! talent show that aired in 2005, and recipient of any publicity that came in the wake of the low-rated affair. A stint at the Las Vegas Hilton proved him perfectly capable of staging an old-school nightclub act, but the singer comes off more in the vein of Seal on his long-delayed, self-titled debut album.

The Las Vegas resident will perform a March 28 album-release party at Barcode, 5150 Spring Mountain Road. ...

Those who miss their evenings at the Bellagio with Jimmy Hopper, another multitalented local, can circle their calendars for Suncoast showroom dates on May 12-13. The Suncoast also booked Dean Martin's son, Ricci, June 30-July 1. It's probably safe to assume that few Sun City residents made it down to the Riviera to see Martin there back in 2002. ...

Waiting to go inside the Shimmer Cabaret at the Las Vegas Hilton recently, I was happy to see Lori Legacy was part of "Menopause The Musical," playing the Iowa housewife. For years, Legacy was one of the Gold Coast's "Honky Tonk Angels," going beyond kitsch with a Dolly Parton tribute that acknowledged the singer's credible country side. ...

Don't be surprised to see Hootie & The Blowfish end their affiliation with the Silverton, including the band name above the Shady Grove Lounge. David Krause, the former Silverton staffer who put the deal together, is now at Primm Valley Casino Resorts. We suspect the door would be open to Hootie there just as soon as MGM Mirage completes the sale of the casinos to Herbst Gaming in early April. ...

Finally, news of Richard Jeni's suspected suicide last weekend was tough for fans of the career stand-up who just never quite made it to that top tier of comedy. But it hit a little closer for having talked to him a few times over the years.

I put Jeni at No. 8 on my list of Top 10 shows in 2002, and still remember a post-9/11 routine about him wanting to infiltrate the "Kandahar Comedy Cave" to assassinate bin Laden that captured our helpless rage and revenge fantasies.

After that, Jeni called occasionally for tips on any showroom vacancies that might lead to a residency like Rita Rudner and George Wallace have on the Strip. I guess it doesn't hurt now to say Jeni was the unnamed entertainer quoted in a Nov. 9, 2003, column. He had turned down an offer to work with no guarantee other than ticket revenue and said a casino executive told him it was the best he could expect: "There aren't any good deals anymore."

Who knows if things would have worked out for him here. We can at least remember he had a good stock of casino jokes because, he explained, "the funniest stuff to people who are on vacation in Las Vegas is stuff about their vacation in Las Vegas."

Hence, his observation about playing nickel slots:

"What's the dream?" he asked the crowd. "What are you hoping for? 'Now I can afford that new pack of Tic Tacs, baby!' "

Mike Weatherford's entertainment column appears Thursdays and Sundays. Contact him at 383-0288 or e-mail him at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com.