Red Hot Chili Peppers to play Tampa

After a five year absence, the Red Hot Chili Peppers are headed back to the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa on Jan. 23. Santigold opens.

Anthony Kiedis, Flea, Chad Smith and Josh Klinghoffer are currently in Europe, touring in support of their album "I'm With You," which was released in August and produced the hit single "Monarchy of Roses."

The Red Hot Chili Peppers are a nominee for the 2012 class of inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Tickets for the Tampa show go on sale 10 a.m. Dec. 10. Ticket prices are $42.25 and $62.25 (facility fee and service charges not included) at www.Ticketmaster.com. To order tickets by phone call 800.745.3000.

—Photo by Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times

Neil Diamond has Tampa date at St. Pete Times Forum

Neil Diamond, who finally received some much-deserved cool points this year when he became a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee, has a June 3 date at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa.

Tickets for the greatest-hits show go on sale 10 a.m. Dec. 5th. Ticket prices for this event are $52.25, $82.25, and $117.25 (Facility fees and service charges are not included. Charge by phone at 800.745.3000. VIP Packages are also be available.

My first and, so far only, Diamond experience came at the Forum in 2008:

The 67-year-old crooner threw himself into every self-penned lyric, turning decades-old chestnuts into in-the-moment jolts of emotion that rocked a crowd of 13,000-plus — myself included.

Yeah, good times.

In addition, Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings recently announced it would release "The Very Best of Neil Diamond – The Original Studio Recordings" Dec. 6. The album  features 23 songs and is being billed as the first Diamond collection to draw from the artist's complete studio discography.

It includes tracks such as “Forever In Blue Jeans,” “Cherry, Cherry,” “Sweet Caroline,” “I’m A Believer,” “Girl, You’ll Be A Woman Soon, ” “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers,” “Red, Red Wine,” “America” and all the others that have been making people smile for the past half century.

Diamond becomex a Kennedy Center Honoree on Dec. 27. He will also perform at the 85th Anniversary Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the "Today Show," NBC’s Tree Lighting at Rockefeller and the "Tonight Show with Jay Leno" in upcoming weeks.

Photo: Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times

Radiohead to play Tampa

Radiohead performs to a cheering crowd during Lollapalooza 's first day at Grand Park in 2008, in Chicago, Illinois. (Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune/MCT)

Radiohead will play Tampa during its upcoming 2012 U.S. tour.

The initial 10 date dates of the art rock band's first extensive string of U.S. shows since 2008 will begin Feb.  27 at the American Airlines Arena in Miami with dates currently running through March 15 at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Ariz.

Other Lives will support on these dates.

Radiohead performs at the St. Pete Times Forum Feb. 29.

General on-sales for these shows will begin November 12, with the exception of the February 29 Tampa, FL date, which will go on sale November 19.

There will be a four ticket per person limit.

For further information on ticketing, go to http://radiohead.com/tourdates/

Britney Spears to play Tampa?

On Tuesday, Britney Spears' North American tour dates were announced.

After kicking things off in California on June 17, Brit Brit plays Florida in July. Check out the open date between Orlando and Miami:

http://www.britneyspears.com/tour/

I have no confirmation, but think it's a pretty safe bet Spears might be returning to Tampa's St. Pete Times Forum where she played in 2009 or hitting the nearby Gary Amphitheatre on July 21.

Stay tuned...

Click for review of Spears' new album "Femme Fatale."

Image: Britney Spears performs for ABC's "Good Morning America" (Reuters) via Los Angeles Times.

UPDATED: Katy Perry's world tour headed to Tampa

UPDATED Jan. 21: Tickets are $45 and go on sale 10 a.m. Sat., Jan. 29 at the St. Pete Times Forum box office and all Ticketmaster outlets. To order tickets by phone, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. For more information call (813) 301.2500 or visit www.sptimesforum.com.

Katy Perry, pop's most consistently interesting star of the past couple years, will kick off the North American leg of her "California Dreams World Tour 2011" June 7 in Atlanta, according to e-mail issued today by her record company EMI music.

She plays the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa on June 10.

I had the privilege of seeing Perry the last time she played Tampa Bay in April of 2009.

Here's what I wrote:

Pop tease Katy Perry delighted a sold-out crowd Tuesday in St. Petersburg with her snarky lyrics, catchy melodies, and undeniable charisma. Alternating between naughty sexpot and cute nerd next-door, the singer/songwriter best known for the kinda-sorta controversial single "I Kissed a Girl" pleased about 1,000 concertgoers at Jannus Landing with a winning mix of well-executed songs and spot-on, funny stage banter that appealed to the highly eclectic, all-ages audience - even if some four-letter words probably upset the parents of tweens in attendance.

Continue reading my review. 

Photo: Katy Perry. Credit: Michael Robinson Chavez / LA Times.
 

Katy Perry performing "I Kissed a Girl" at Jannus Landing in St. Petersburg, April 28, 2009

Ringling Bros. 'Fully Charged' in Tampa Jan. 5-9

Ringling Bros. arrive 'fully charged' in Tampa

Here's my feature on the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey's new show "Fully Charged" that will be at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa Jan. 5-9. The story ran today on front page of the Herald's Accent section.

Floridians have enjoyed a first look at The Greatest Show on Earth ever since Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey moved to Sarasota in 1927.
On Wednesday, Ringling Bros. premieres “Fully Charged” at the St. Pete Times Forum. Following its Jan. 5-9 run, the 141st edition of the circus tours the country via a mile-long train. Rehearsals began the day after Thanksgiving at winter quarters, which relocated to Tampa’s Florida State Fairgrounds in 1993 after spending 75 years in Sarasota County. Ringling Bros. offered local media a sneak peek of the production last month inside the fairgrounds’ Expo Hall.

Continue reading. It's based on the reporting done during visit to the circus' winter quarters last month, which I blogged about here.

Iron Maiden to close world tour in Tampa

Bruce Dickinson 2008 from Wikipedia.

Heavy metal fans rejoice.

Iron Maiden has a date in Tampa Bay for the first time in two decades.

The band's 26-city "Final Frontier World Tour" starts in Moscow on Feb. 11 and closes in Tampa at the St. Pete Times Forum on April 17, 2011.

“Last year when we took the plane ‘round the planet, we decided to play a show in Fort Lauderdale, Florida at the end, coming out of Brazil and sort of on our way home," said Iron Maiden singer (and airplane pilot) Bruce Dickinson in a statement. "This had the dual purpose of dropping our Florida-based drummer, Nicko, off at home and also to see if anyone still wanted to see us in Florida, as it had been so many years since we had played a show there.

"When the show sold out in advance at the Bank Atlantic Centre, l guess we found we still had many fans down that way," Dickinson continued. "We decided this time around not only to visit Fort Lauderdale again, but also to play Tampa, where we last played in August 1991. The fans last year in Fort Lauderdale gave us a tremendous welcome and we hope it will be the same in Tampa, which will be the last stop on this leg of 'The Final Frontier Tour.'”

Tickets cost $32-$55 and go on sale Dec. 4. Click for more info.

Devon Allman to play Tampa Bay Lightning post-game show Nov. 27

Devon Allman's Honeytribe, which just brought its winning brand of neoclassical rock to Ace's in Bradenton earlier this month, will perform Nov. 27 at the St. Pete Times Forum following the Florida Panthers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning hockey game.

Click for information.

Click to read my interview with Devon Allman, published Nov. 13.

Roger Waters show sparks memories

Roger Waters in Chicago in Sept. (Scott Strazzante/Chicago Tribune/MCT)

My expectations are at a near all-time high.

Perhaps too high.

Don’t set yourself up for disappointment.

Those were my thoughts as I joined about 15,000 other Pink Floyd fans at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa last week.

The band’s former leader Roger Waters had arrived to present his 1979 opus “The Wall.”

The landmark album seduced me -- like nothing I had heard before and rarely since -- nearly two decades ago.

CONTINUE READING MY SUNDAY COLUMN "BRICKS IN THE WALL" 

 

Roger Waters wows with 'The Wall' in Tampa

Waters performing "The Wall" in Chicago, Sept. 20

Every rock act that ever attempts an arena show in the foreseeable future could learn a thing or two from Roger Waters.

So could Broadway.

The Pink Floyd mastermind's mind-blowing staging of his classic double album (and movie) "The Wall" at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa tonight easily ranks as one of the most impressive stage spectacles ever produced.

Waters and his small army of ace musicians delivered an amazing  musical rendering of the iconic Pink Floyd 1979 album complemented with visuals and pyrotechnics on a grander —and more poignant— scale than anything previously attempted by a rock act.

In its current incarnation, "The Wall" has come to symbolize the buffer we all must build against the onslaught of unchecked capitalism, corrupt politicians and savage warmongering.

It's doubtful I will experience a concert of this magnitude anytime soon.

Roger Waters, Tampa, 'The Wall,' tonight! (Nov. 16)

Waters performs "The Wall" in Chicago on Sept. 20

The day has finally arrived.

In less than 12 hours I will be seated at a packed St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa watching Pink Floyd mastermind Roger Waters recreate his epic rock opera "The Wall."

I haven't been this excited about an arena concert in a long time. 

My history with "The Wall" dates back about 20 years. It was my first double-CD purchase and marked the most I had ever spent on an album. Nearly $30 if memory serves. That means I had to cut two lawns in the Florida heat for that listening privilege.

But it was well worth it.

From ages 13 to about 17, I probably played "The Wall" in it entirety at least once a week. I made a cassette version for my Walkman and it accompanied me, at full blast, as I mowed, edged and weed-whacked the lawns of my parents, uncle and neighbors.

As a child raised in a church with which I could not relate, "The Wall" and its tale of alienation hit home and provided some much needed sanctuary.

In adulthood, my love for Pink Floyd faded. I became enamored with hip-hop my junior year in high school and then classic roots, vintage R&B and alt-country in college. I spent the past decade as a professional music critic trying to listen to as much new music as possible — none of which came from the Pink Floyd camp.

In May of 2007, though, I saw Roger Waters present his Pink Floyd classic "The Dark Side of the Moon" in front of a sold-out crowd of 20,000 at the formerly named Ford Amphitheatrr in Tampa. Waters and his ace band delivered an amazing show complete with mind-blowing visual effects and a inflatable pig. Looking back at my review of the show, I now recall that other major highlights included selections from "The Wall."

Waters will perform the iconic 1979 album tonight in its entirety. Judging by this recent article that ran in the Herald, watching the spectacle of the actual wall's creation will be as thrilling as the music. Yes, I have high expectations for this evening. Truth be told, I'm practically giddy.

LOOK FOR MY ROGER WATERS CONCERT REVIEW TO BE POSTED HERE LATER TONIGHT.

Ozzy Osbourne headed to Tampa with Slash

Heavy metal elder statesman Ozzy Osbourne will bring his impressive stash of Black Sabbath and solo classics to the St. Pete Times Forum on February 18.

The Prince of Darkness recently made headlines with a crowd-pleasing performance of "Crazy Train" at the highly attended and watched "Rally to Restore Sanity."

Former Guns N' Roses and Velvet Revolver guitar hero Slash and his new namesake band open.

Tickets went on sale Saturday. They range from $25-$45. Click to purchase.

Ozzy Osbourne performing "Crazy Train."

George Strait headed to Tampa with Reba McEntire and Lee Ann Womack

Photo by Vanessa Gavalya

Country's classiest and most consistent hit-maker, George Strait (pictured), will return to the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa on Jan. 29, according to a publicity release issued late Friday.

Reba McEntire and Lee Ann Womack will be joining him.

At the 44th Annual CMA Awards, aired live Nov. 10 on ABC, Strait is up for Male Vocalist of the Year award for the 24th time.  

 He is also nominated for Album of the Year for "Twang," an award he won in 2008 for "Troubadour." 

Strait performing the "Twang" track "Living for the Night."

Carrie Underwood brings her pop-country to Tampa

A big, strong voice, smart song selections (and, well, beautiful blonde looks) have propelled Carrie Underwood from 2005 “American Idol” winner to Nashville superstar. 

Her country-pop hits range from the faith-affirming breakthrough ballad “Jesus, Take the Wheel” to recent tear-jerker “Mama’s Song.” Although both those titles are a bit weepy, Underwood has been known to rock out in concert. 

When I saw her perform at Raymond James Stadium in 2006 — on a monster roster headlined by Kenny Chesney — she crushed with a thunderous cover of Gun N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine.” 

Opener Billy Currington’s string of recent hits include “People Are Crazy,” the feel-good ode to God, beer and the luckiest encounter a bar patron could ever fathom.

With Billy Currington and Sons of Sylvia. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 25, St. Pete Times Forum, 401 Channelside Drive, Tampa. $32.75—$52.75. (813) 223-1000.

 

CLICK TO READ "BUZZ WORTHY LIVE MUSIC PICKS OF THE WEEK.