BANDS IN STADIUMS!

Recently, I was reading an interesting review of Ireland's U2. They have collected 22 Grammy's. Still, Bono, guitarist the Edge, bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. have their critics. I see these guys as a solid band with longevity who have been dealt a strong critical hand much in the same way The Rolling Stones were in 1994 when they released Don Was and The Glimmer Twins' "Voodoo Lounge". Back then critics were saying, "Come on. After 31 years these guys still think they can rock?" I found that amusing. It was a great CD. So, what are the main critiques of U2? Silvio Pietroluongo is Director of Charts for Billboard. "They're really not the type of band that is going to get pop airplay anymore", he said. Interestingly, Ray Manzarek, co-founder and keyboardist of The Doors sees it differently. "They are plugged into the universal energy of the cosmos. It translates to all ages, races and sexes". My Take: For my money, they are inventing new music all the time and not resting on past laurels. A fine band.

What can I say about this 47 year-old rock and roll band? They play loud and open with a blend of blues and are icons in America and worldwide. What critics harp on is their age--into their 60's--but what is ignored is that The Stones are constantly writing and performing new music. It is radio that ignores them. The new music is fitted into concert sets consisting of hits that hold up today every bit as well as they did when they were released decades ago. My Take: This is one band I haven't seen in concert. The interplay between Keith Richards and Ron Wood alternating instinctively with crunchy lead and rhythm guitar solos is quite a feat. They work extremely well together as a cohesive unit with original members Mick Jagger on lead vocals and drummer Charlie Watts with musical support from bassist Daryl Jones and keyboardist Chuck Leavell. "A Bigger Bang", their 2007 tour grossed $558 million--the highest grossing concert tour ever. They remain a force to be reckoned with!

Sir Paul McCartney can pack them in at stadiums around the world. The former Beatle has succeeded in reinventing himself while continuing to feature The Beatles song catalogue in concerts that leave everyone pleased. My Take: His bass guitar work remains outstanding as his strong vocals. Having lost a wife, endured a messy divorce and the death of Beatles band mates John Lennon and George Harrison, it is quite sad to think only Paul and drummer Ringo Starr survive. But that is the key word. They are, indeed, survivors. As an individual artist, Sir Paul's work stands on its own merit. His backup band plays close-in and delivers a punch. The concerts are long and generous. Here's a guy who could have retired a long time ago. He plays because he is a musician and he loves it! A solid concert ticket.

Don't call Bruce Springsteen "The Boss"--he doesn't like that, from all accounts. But this artist has been playing three and a half hour concerts (with an Intermission) since the late 1970's and he is simply indefatigable. One of the best decisions he made was reuniting with his "E Street Band" a decade ago. His breakthrough album "Born To Run" still manages to steam with a simmering energy replete with guitar driven melody's, keyboard dirges and hot Saxophone fills by Clarence Clemons that add an often balletic, if not operatic sense of urgency and intensity to rough hewn themes. These include: loneliness (Backstreets), desperation associated with survival and finding hope (Born To Run, Meeting Across The River, Badlands, Darkness On The Edge of Town), relationships (Prove It All Night) and women who have passed through his life (Rosalita, Candy's Room). Songs of hope are staged against the background of shuttered steel mines of the Northeast, hot rods, rock and roll and gang violence (Jungleland and Racing In The Streets). My Take: From Born to Run to Nebraska and The Rising, this artist has been on fire for many years. Like so many, he has overcome legal troubles and has bounced back with riveting tours and a fan base to forever secure his status as a true original songwriter who has paid his dues. His lyrics have grown more political in recent years, which isn't my thing. But credit must be given to his risk-taking with such projects as "The Ghost of Tom Joad" and solo acoustic tours. This is the working-class rebel who delivers in concert!

Green Day: This California pop/punk trio knows how to tour. Their five-month world tour is quite a refreshing change from bands of similar stature who will tour relentlessly for 12 to 18 months. Their 2004 rock opera "American Idiot" can't help but bring a smile and permit one to wonder to what extent the British rock band, "The Who" may have provided inspiration. However in truth, the band's sound is often mentioned along with The Ramone's, Sex Pistols and The Clash. My Take: They have survived more than 20 years and it's interesting that they performed "Blitzkrieg Bop" during The Ramone's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.

Coldplay: Formed in London, England in 1998, this alternative rock band's breakthrough came with their 2000 debut album Parachutes and the hit "Yellow". My Take: They have sold 50 million records and it's nice to see that the late Beatle George Harrison is among their artists of influence. Even more admirable, among their charity concerts, "Teenage Cancer Trust" was a recipient of their philanthropy!