Mary McCray Reviews Steve Martin's New DVD: The Television Stuff

They all say Generation Xers love irony in our literature and popular entertainments; we love “wink-wink” kitche; we love high camp; we love meta-texts (texts that are self-aware and self-referential). Everyone points to our love of The Brady Bunch (and other now-campy shows of its era) as evidence of this phenomenon, a particular indicator which never felt especially accurate to me. After all, the first time we poured over Brady Bunch re-runs after school during our pre-teen years, we loved it. We loved it straight on without a smidgeon of irony. Bad 1960s TV for adults evolved into swell recycled kids television in the 1970s. We thought The Brady Bunch was a well-executed, highly engaging, plot-driven dramedy. And we didn’t appreciate the show on any other level until the various TV reunion specials appeared in the 1980s. Then we realized it was bad; but we still loved it because we didn’t want to let it go; and irony allowed you to keep loving things that were really bad. So...(and this is important), we loved it both ironically and with a chaser-kick of sincere nostalgic love. Let’s not kid ourselves, Xers. When we ironically like The Brady Bunch, we are also aiming that disparaging irony back on ourselves for loving it the first time.

Those among us who became writers and lit readers took this love of loving things ironically and made heroes out of writers like Douglas Copeland (especially for his recognition of us in his novel Generation X), David Foster Wallace, Dave Eggers and Jonathan Franzen. Dave Eggers seemed the boldest in his performance of meta-writing. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius was packed to the rafters with self-awareness.

Before he died, David Foster Wallace gave a reading at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles where he made an unexpected plea for a return to sincerity. We had gone so far with irony, he said. Maybe he thought we had lost emotion, had lost heart. The story he read, "Incarnations of Burned Children" from the short story collection Oblivion: Stories (2004). epitomized tragic sincerity and his point made a deep impression on me. I wondered how my generation of writers set off on this track of "high-plains-irony" we sometimes call post modernism, following on the works of novelists like John Barth. 

For Xers, was it really all because of The Brady Bunch? 

Ape Culture’s co-editor, Julie Wiskirchen, came to visit me in Santa Fe a few weekends ago and she brought me the new Steve Martin box set of his early TV appearances and specials, Steve Martin: The Television Stuff. The bulk of the material ranges from 1976 to 1982. After watching it, I now propose that Steve Martin introduced Generation Xers to a new type of humor that included large doses of meta-performance and irony. At least I’d like to propose that’s where irony started for me.

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Concert Review: Sound City Players

38 song set. 3.5 hours. Dave Grohl on stage the entire time. Now that's a concert!

After the LA premiere of his documentary Sound City Players, Dave Grohl ventured a few blocks to the Hollywood Palladium to jam with his all-star band.  We were about 20 feet from the stage and our brains almost exploded from all the entertainment.

First up was Alain Johannes from Queens of the Stone Age who did a few songs including "Hanging Tree".  Then came Chris Goss from Masters of Reality and Brad Wilk from Rage Against the Machine.  Then Black Rebel Motorcycle Club played a couple of tunes including "Whatever Happened to My Rock N' Roll". Dave drummed during their set.  Throughout the night, Dave appeared on guitar, drums and even bass. These sets were heavy and solid, but I was looking forward to some of the more melodic music to come.

Next up was Lee Ving of Fear, who got everyone hopping with punk rock classics like "I Love Living in the City" and "Beef Bologna."

Dave brought out old bandmate Krist Novaselic, Corey Taylor from Slipknot, and Rick Neilsen from Cheap Trick.  Dave's fellow Foos Pat Smear and Taylor Hawkins rounded out this supergroup lineup.  Previously, I only associated Slipknot with a migraine they induced in me at Ozzfest 2001, but Corey can actually sing.  I liked their original tune from the Sound City soundtrack: "From Can to Can't." Other highlights of the set were "Ain't That a Shame" and one of my all time favorite songs: Cheap Trick's "Surrender."  Rick Nielsen threw an old record into the crowd during this set and played his famous Hamer checkerboard guitar.




Rick Springfield is still pretty hot, and he blazed through a set of his hits including "Love Somebody" and "I've Done Everything For You".  Dave Grohl seemed to have the best rapport of the night with Rick, and marveled at the amazing opening 3 notes of "Jessie's Girl" that spurred instant recognition in the audience.  "That's songwriting!" Dave's enthusiasm is infectious, and I love how he admires so many different genres and eras of music.

Now I have never been a fan of John Fogerty or Creedence Clearwater Revival because I find his voice too shrill, but he won me over with his energy and by playing the one song of his that I, as a baseball fan, really enjoy: "Centerfield."  He also played all the CCR classics: "Born on the Bayou," "Proud Mary," a blistering duet with Dave on "Fortunate Son" and "Bad Moon Rising."




After being on my feet for almost 5 hours, I really wanted a break but I refused to leave my post without getting an up close glimpse of Stevie Nicks.  She was the grand finale, and it didn't disappoint.  Stevie and Dave began with a duet: "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around."  She then played "You Can't Fix This," a new contemplative song she had written for the Sound City soundtrack about her 18-year-old godson who died recently of an overdose at a fraternity party. She did "Dreams," "Landslide," and an incredible nearly 10-minute-long version of "Gold Dust Woman." "Gold Dust Woman" is the song that made me listen to Fleetwood Mac - only after I heard Hole's version of it.  Since then, "Rumours" is a CD that never leaves my car.

I go to a lot of concerts, but this was one of the best shows of my life - a night that celebrated so many different styles of awesome music and amazing performers. Once again, I felt truly happy to be living in LA and having an opportunity to see this. I hope Dave makes good on his plans to tour a bit with this all star band so others can experience it. As we left and navigated our way through the street meat vendors, someone in a car yelled out their window, "Who played tonight?" A few of us responded in unison: "Everyone!"

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Judy Blume Forever!

Today I saw Judy Blume speak at the LA Times Festival of Books, and it was a chance to meet a truly inspirational figure in my life.  


Growing up in the early 80s, I devoured her books. Going to Catholic school and being in a very religious household, I can say these books opened my eyes to the larger world and also made me feel normal because it seemed like any anxiety I might have such as worrying about my freckles (cf, Freckle Juice) or being overweight (cf, Blubber) was addressed in her books.  


While many of my peers were reading the Nancy Drew books and the Little House on the Prairie books, I really only cared about Judy's books because she was keeping it real. After getting through her books for pre-teens, I moved on to the teen books while still a pre-teen myself. This was how we did things. We read 16 magazine when we were 12.  We read Seventeen magazine when we were 14.  We read VC Andrews WAY before we should have.  


The teen books - Deenie, Tiger Eyes, and of course, Forever - were often banned from school libraries due to their frank sexuality. Many girls recall the dog-eared copy of Forever that got passed around on the bus with all the good parts highlighted.  


Sometime in my 20s, I read Wifey and was totally blown away by it. It's both a trashy beach read and also a true feminist text.  I imagine Judy based that character on herself to some degree, as she has said she was trapped in a "suffocating" marriage when she began to escape through her writing.  And then she got divorced. And she wrote about kids in divorced families - stuff we just didn't talk about back then.


In conversation today with Mary McNamara, 74-year-old Judy Blume went through her career with us, and she was extremely down to earth and humble.  


Judy said the character Fudge was based on her son Larry, who was a rather challenging toddler. Larry is a director now, and he directed a film version of Tiger Eyes that just won best film at the Palm Beach film festival. Judy and Larry co-wrote the screenplay. When talking about how proud of Larry and the film she was, Judy teared up a bit.  It's hard to believe no films have been made from her books before this one!


She said she couldn't find books that mirrored her life as a kid, so perhaps she was unconsciously trying to write the kind of book she wanted back then.  She said she felt that parents and teachers shouldn't be judgmental about what kids want to read, and she spoke out against the Accelerated Reader program. 


She spoke about hating to write first drafts, but enjoying the subsequent drafts. She said it took her 3 months to find Sandy's voice for Wifey, and she wrote 23 drafts of Summer Sisters! 


As for Forever, she said she wrote it for her teen daughter who had noticed that when teens had sex in books, it always ended badly with a pregnancy or a botched abortion or a breakup.  So she wanted to show that sex could be non-fatal and maybe even pleasurable.  She said her publisher didn't know how to cope with the book and released it with "her first novel for adults" on the cover, which really pissed her off. 


An audience member tried to bait her into saying negative things about The Hunger Games and other YA gothic series', but Judy wouldn't go for it. Again, she was just happy that kids were reading. She did point out some authors who were writing about real life for the YA audience such as John Green and Carolyn Mackler. Some very young kids asked questions, and Judy was patient in answering them. She had to disappoint one boy who asked if there would be any more Fudge books. She said she didn't think so, but never say never. She's currently working on a book set in her hometown of Elizabeth, New Jersey, based on real events. 


Another audience member asked her if she'd heard Amanda Palmer's song "Judy Blume" and what she thought about it. Judy said she had watched the video on YouTube and tweeted with Amanda about how much she liked it. Thoroughly modern Judy!  It's a powerful song and one I can relate to.

Judy got a standing ovation at the end - something I've never seen at the Festival of Books - usually people just grab their book satchels and leave the panels early to scurry off to their next panel, but I didn't see much of that happening with Judy.  After the talk, I waited in line almost 2 hours to get a copy of Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing signed. Judy was tireless in signing for the huge crowd.  I was bummed I wasn't able to locate my vintage copy of Wifey and get it signed, but glad nonetheless to have her autograph and to have a moment to thank her for getting me through puberty, junior high, and so many tribulations in my young life. Thanks, Judy!

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Leap Day at Disneyland: The Magic and The Madness

When Disney announced its "One More Disney Day" promotion - both Disneyland and Magic Kingdom would stay open for 24 hours for Leap Day - I knew I had to be a part of the history. Several days have passed, and I'm still recovering, but I'm really glad I did it!

My boyfriend Dave and I decided to approach the event realistically and acknowledge that we weren't likely to make it through 24 hours in the park. We booked a hotel room at Paradise Pier for Tuesday - Thursday. That way, we could check in the night before the event, get up early and go right into the park, and then already have a room available for an afternoon nap. We could also crash on Thursday morning after the park closed at 6am for a few hours and avoid driving while exhausted.

As the event approached, there wasn't a lot of communication from Disney about the schedule or special aspects of it. Finally, about a week before the event, they started to do some blogging. They announced they'd be giving out 2000 commemorative ears to the first 2000 people to enter the park. Fans could line up at 10pm the night before to have a chance to get the ears - and they did! For those of you who think Southern California is always warm, let me tell you, February evenings can be pretty chilly. I think the temperature was in the mid 40s that night. These people are the true die hards! Disney also announced there would be a 1am Fantasmic, an extra nighttime parade, costumed characters in their pajamas (we were hoping to see Darth Vader in his pajamas - no such luck), and special food items at many of the eateries. Blue Bayou would be open til 4am. We started to get pretty giddy about all the possibilities.

Tuesday night, we drove down and checked in at the Paradise Pier. We were excited to find out that our standard room on the concierge level had been upgraded - we would now have a top-floor suite! Our check-in clerk asked if we were celebrating anything, so I said "Cohabitation. We just moved in together." She came back with special buttons that had "Cohabitat!" written on them. Disney will celebrate any occasion, even "Living in Sin"! We also received 2 instant fast passes each. The hotel suite was nice and roomy. This was my second time staying in a Disney hotel, and the first was the Grand Californian. Paradise Pier is certainly not up to that level, but it was still a nice hotel. You can get a nice view of DCA from some rooms, but we had the Anaheim view.

We walked over to Trader Sam's in the Disneyland Hotel for a late dinner and drinks. The Tiki Room is my favorite Disneyland attraction, so this bar is perfect for me. The wings and ahi poke were tasty, and so were the cocktails. After two tropical drinks, I was pretty buzzed and had no problem falling asleep.

We didn't want to exhaust ourselves, so we slept til 6:30am (the park opened at 6am). We enjoyed the free continental breakfast provided at the hotel for the concierge level guests, and then walked over to the park. There was no line to get in, and we were excited to receive a free "One More Disney Day" pin. Of course, the 2000 commemorative ears were long gone by time we arrived at 8am. Luckily, there was plenty of schwag you could buy in the stores including t-shirts, hoodies, and ears with the "One More Disney Day" logo. We got hoodies and had the store ship them to our room - that's another cool advantage of staying at a Disney hotel. I quickly found myself overwhelmed by all the costumed characters roaming around the entrance to Main Street. We got pics with Pluto and Donald.

The park wasn't busy during the morning and afternoon. We were able to walk up to most rides and wait times were 10-15 minutes at most. Even the big rides like Space Mountain and Indiana Jones had wait times around 45 minutes. We took advantage of the small crowds to explore the whole park. I rode things I'd never ridden before like Storybook Land Canal Boats and Pinocchio's Daring Journey. We even ventured into Toon Town, although Dave warned me it was dumb. Indeed, it was pretty dumb, but we got our pic with Mickey in his house. Mickey pointed to our "Cohabitat!" button, and I was a little embarrassed to explain it to him.

We stopped for lunch at Village Haus, where they had added a Chili Cheeseburger to the menu for the day. This item had been on the menu as "The Woodcarver" for many years. We thought the food was just OK. We ventured onward to Frontierland and Critter Country, meeting Woody in Frontierland and Tigger, Pooh, and Eeyore at Critter Country. Dave discovered the bakery in Critter Country also had the special Leap Day cupcakes. Yum!

After visiting the Haunted Mansion with no wait around 4pm, we decided to go back to the hotel to rest for a couple hours. As we were leaving the park, crowds were streaming in. We asked the cast member at the exit if he expected it would reach capacity and he said "Not at all. You don't have to worry about it." Famous last words...


We had some friends meet us at the hotel and checked out the free happy hour on the concierge level of the hotel. Around 6:30pm, my friend Heather and I went over to DCA to ride Tower of Terror. At this point, we could tell the crowds were swelling. Even though we had a fast pass for Tower of Terror, they said the wait time would be almost an hour. It was 2 hours for people without a fast pass. And DCA was closing at 8pm. After Tower of Terror, we exited DCA into a huge crowd. Lines to get into Disneyland were snaking back and forth across the entire plaza between Disneyland and DCA. Everyone how had been in DCA was now trying to get into Disneyland, plus the after-work crowd had arrived. Dave and our other friends were already in Disneyland, and we were about to give up and go have dinner in Downtown Disney when we noticed they were getting ready to open the exit gates to let more people in. We quickly got to the exit gate before folks in the giant line noticed and got in. There was definitely some Disney magic at work for us!

From other reports, it seems Disney didn't bank on the large number of season pass holders who would show up after work for the night in the park. They had not fully staffed the park. Huge traffic jams arose on the 5 and on the roads around Disneyland and the parking garages. There were long waits for trams from the garages to the gates. Cell phone reception was lousy, and it took a while for us to find Dave and our friends inside the park. We met up with them where they were enjoying the special mac and cheese hot dog at the Refreshment Center at the end of Main Street - another special food item that Dave thought was just so-so. We went to the Tiki Room and over to Space Mountain and Star Tours. Luckily, we had fast passes for those rides, as wait times were approaching 2 hours.

I started to get super-tired around 10pm, but I pressed on and went on a few other rides. We stopped for food at the Mexican place. The crowd crush was really draining for me, especially toward 1am when people began flooding the New Orleans Square area for the 1am Fantasmic. We saw a bit of Fantasmic while in line for Pirates. We also saw Olympian Shaun White walk by us after exiting Pirates, with Disney security and a big group. Dave and I decided to give up around 2am and head back to the hotel. I am bummed that I crapped out and didn't stay to find the Disney characters in their pajamas, eat at Blue Bayou at 3am, etc. On the way out, we saw lots of sleeping people in the grassy areas and various alcoves. It looked like the homeless had invaded Disneyland. I felt bad for security - it must be tough to tell who is just napping vs who is passed out drunk.

As we were leaving, we saw there were still huge lines to get into the park and at the ticket windows. We didn't realize it, but the park had reached capacity and closed for a few hours that night. They did open the gates again around 2am and many people stayed until 6am. We went back to the hotel and enjoyed a good night's sleep with our late check out at noon.

Leap Day was an amazing event, and I hope that Disney will do it again, but with better preparation for the evening rush. The daytime hours were some of the best I've ever experienced with no lines, great weather, an abundance of costumed characters, and a crowd that was really in a great mood. The evening crowd had more drunk people, rowdy teens, etc. By that point, I was just too tired to put up with it. All in all, I feel this was a great way to spend my bonus day this year - leapin' forward with Tigger!

See all my pics from One More Disney Day

Read about the pandemonium on Micechat

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Concert Review: A Decade of Difference

The Clinton Foundation celebrated "A Decade of Difference" with a huge fundraising concert at the Hollywood Bowl (Oct 15, 2011). Celebrities still love Bill Clinton, and they were abundant on the stage to pay tribute to him on his 65th Birthday. Hilary and Chelsea were seated with him.

The show kicked off with a surprise set from Stevie Wonder! Good thing we were on time. Stevie and his band played "Overjoyed", "Superstitious", and "Signed, Sealed and Delivered." It was pretty amazing.

Celebrity presenters who introduced bands or clips about the foundation included Laura Ling (the journalist who was once jailed in North Korea), Jason Segal, Maria Bello, Ellen DeGeneres, Colin Farrell, and Ashton Kutcher.

Kenny Chesney played a few acoustic country tunes. Clinton later thanked him for making him not be the only person on stage that night with a Southern accent.

K'Nann was next up. I hadn't heard of him, but I found him really likable. He got the crowd going with a singalong for "Wavin' Flag" and Bono joined him on stage for a song. He grew up in Somalia and spoke about surviving the war there.

Then came Juanes, who I also didn't know anything about, but I dug his virtuoso guitar playing and rockin' tunes. Hailing from Colombia, he added to the global atmosphere.

The crowd got fired up for Usher. He opened with the Beatles' classic "With a Little Help from my Friends." He had his full band and back-up dancers. Everyone was on their feet for "Yeah" and "Caught Up." Even Hilary was gettin' down.

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Many girls in strange outfits in the audience got on their feet to greet Lady Gaga. She and her piano were perched atop a strange treehouse-like structure. The atmosphere was electric as she played a slow version of "Born This Way" and then segued into the upbeat usual version, calling on a fleet of dancers and musicians.

She expressed sadness about Clarence Clemmons' death as she started to sing the song he played on - "The Edge of Glory" - and she suggested Bill come up on stage and play sax. I think we were all secretly hoping he would do that during some point in the evening, but no such luck.

Gaga was warm and entertaining and, of course, provocative. Fully blond, she said she was going to have a Marilyn moment, and I fully expected her to sing "Happy Birthday, Mr. President." Thankfully, she refrained. She did mention that we should all have "A Bill Romance" and then substituted that phrase into "Bad Romance." She flirted with both Bill and Hilary.

All out of breath from dancing, she panted through her own American Dream story, talking about being in a tiny apartment four years ago and dreaming that just one person would believe in her. I'm sure it sounds hokey, but after watching Gaga in the interview she gave at Google, I do think she's being genuine. I was impressed with her piano playing and singing, too. She whipped the crowd into a frenzy and President Clinton later quipped he thought Gaga might give him a heart attack.

After an intermission, they showed an amusing celeb-studded film about celebrities brainstorming for ideas for the foundation. Ben Stiller, Matt Damon, Sean Penn, Kristin Wiig, Ted Danson, Mary Steenbergen and Kevin Spacey were in the film.

Chelsea came out and gave a short tribute stating that her parents were her heroes, and she introduced President Clinton who talked a little about the foundation and thanked everyone who appeared that evening. I did cringe a bit when he jokingly referred to Laura Ling as "a girl I once picked up in North Korea." Some folks in the crowd began a chant of "Four More Years" while Clinton was speaking.

The show concluded with an acoustic set from Bono and The Edge. They kicked things off with "Desire" and then "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." Bono described them as one half of the band U2, and there was some amusing fumbling as The Edge had trouble finding the drum track for "A Man and A Woman" on his Mac. Before launching into "Sunday Bloody Sunday," they talked about how President Clinton had united Ireland and his other contributions toward greater world peace. They brought out a string section. Bono said rock n' roll was such a male-oriented universe, it was nice to occasionally hire a string section because string sections often include girls. They played "Staring at the Sun", "One" (with a snippet of "Happy Birthday") and closed with "Miss Sarajevo" in which Bono did an admirable job with Pavarotti's opera solo.

It was a magical evening at the Bowl!

Watch the concert on Yahoo!

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House of Davids Estate Sale

The King of Hancock Park is selling his castle and all its contents. After driving by this house for years, I couldn't resist the chance to go inside and maybe get a souvenir.

For those not familiar with this story, Norwood Young, a former Star Search winner and R&B recording artist has a home called Youngwood Court, aka "The House of Davids" due to the fact he has placed 17 statues of David on columns in front of the house. The house has caused much consternation among the quiet, wealthy neighbors over the years. They disliked the accoutrements, the drive-by tourists, and the parties. Now Young is looking for a fresh start after publishing his autobiography last year that describes a lot of the pain that led to all the partying, plastic surgery, and excess.

The estate sale is running 2 weekends. I was there for opening day on Oct 15. I had read it would start at 9am and imagined people would be there even earlier, but I slept in and got there around 11:30am. There was a small line, and I realized that the sale hadn't begun. Some girls in hot pink outfits were setting up a champagne bar in the driveway. The gal in line behind me had an email that said the estate sale would be kicking off with a champagne and massage reception. 'Cuz that's how Norwood rolls.

I didn't realize it at the time, not being aware of what he looked like, but Norwood himself came out to tell the line they would be opening a few minutes late. And then Sharon Yost who was running the estate sale came out and explained we would be entering through a side gate to the backyard and would be expected to leave that way too. We were told to not partake of the champagne or free massages as those were for a separate event going on. Hmmph.

I was in the first group of 25 people to be let inside. Once in the backyard, I noticed the faded painting of Norwood on the bottom of the pool. Lots of statues were for sale, as well as a large variety of Christmas decorations. They were even selling picnic plastic cutlery and containers of margaritas salt. Yes, everything must go at estate sales, but it's a little strange when the person isn't dead.

Inside the house, I checked out the home theater, adorned with Norwood-centric artwork, including a strange 3D portrait of him as a lion that kind of resembled Ron Perlman in Beauty and the Beast. Lots of glassware was for sale on the bar. I noticed what would become my only purchase - Norwood glasses - adorned with a logo and images of David. A good souvenir for $10 each, and a fine addition to my wet bar!

Next up, there was the dining room. The lucite cocktail rounds are suspended from the ceiling, with track lighting on the floor shining up, and lucite dining chairs. There's an 8' tall sequined Michael Jackson glove that can be yours for $5000. The entrance hall had a white grand piano with a Norwood puppet on top of it, and 2 huge "Alice in Wonderland" chairs. They were $500 each. There were 2 bedrooms on the first floor with furnishing for sale. I don't know how to really describe the house's design aesthetic - "Nagel meets Elvis" maybe?

At first, we weren't allowed access to the upstairs Master Suite because Norwood was in there. Then he came down and greeted some of the guests and the reality TV crew. We could then take off our shoes and ascend the dirty white carpeted stairs to the master suite. It had a large sleigh bed and a nice balcony overlooking the pool.

Back downstairs, I watched Norwood's manager show off Norwood's bejeweled pimp cup to the reality TV crew, stating that Norwood would drink his tea from it. I took my glasses to the cash register and overheard someone asking the cost of the David statues. The clerk said she thought they were $1000 each, but the price was probably negotiable.

The price of the house is probably negotiable, too. Originally, it was listed at $2.4 million but now it's listed at $1.795 million. It's hard for me to imagine who will buy it. I'm not sure it's a tear down, but it would need a gut overhaul if purchased by anyone who didn't like marble floors and soiled white carpet. It's allegedly 7 bedrooms and 4800 sq ft on a third of an acre. Some rooms were closed off, but it didn't seem that big.

Next weekend, expect to see Norwood's clothes and kitchen stuff for sale. We were told they didn't have time to get everything sorted before this weekend. It's definitely worth the trip, and I bet there will still be a few Davids left for purchase.

While Norwood seemed upbeat, there was a strange, dark vibe in the house. I felt my previous celeb garage sale experience at Pam Anderson's sale was more fun. Maybe Pam's shabby chic furntiure is just easier on the eyes than a giant Michael Jackson glove?

You can see all my pics here.

See the estate sale info, with lots more pics.

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Concert Review: Tony Hadley / Men Without Hats

Tony Hadley /Men Without Hats

Fremont Street Experience, Las Vegas, Nevada

August 20, 2011

Ahh, Fremont Street. It's not just a street; it's an experience. Deep fried twinkies! Daiquiris in footballs! A zipline! It's kind of like Orange County Fair meets Atlantic City meets the Star Wars cantina. But for one special night in August - Tony Hadley really classed up the joint!

Nina Blackwood is hosting a series of 80s concerts on Fremont Street this Summer. While the list had many awesome bands like ABC and Howard Jones, I picked Tony Hadley because I'd never seen him before. Of course, if I lived in Vegas I'd be there every weekend. Nina pulled up to host the show in a DeLorean. Over our heads, we noticed a large moon being circled by an MTV-esque moon man and Elliott and E.T. on a bike. T-shirts with slogans like "Fremont Say Relax" were being sold. This all put me in a great nostalgic mood.

Men Without Hats opened the show. Singer Ivan Doroschuk is the only remaining piece of the original band, but his voice was really all that mattered. He looked a bit like Bret Michaels in a black cowboy hat and leather pants. I got a bit bored during their set, since I only knew their two big hits, which they did dutifully play: "Pop Goes the World" and "Safety Dance."

During songs I didn't know, I got distracted by a strange love triangle - semi-drunk guy and girlfriend and really drunk and/or high man who could barely stand but wanted to dance with the girlfriend. The boyfriend seemed to alternate between yelling at the drunk guy and helping him stand up. I eventually decided they must all be roommates at the same crackhouse. I got more intrigued watching a group of high school kids near us who were screaming the whole hour for "Safety Dance" and when they finally got it, they actually formed a conga line and did the safety dance. You can see the kids dancing in this video - and you can see Elliot and E.T. riding around the moon above the stage - but you'll have to forgive the horrible audio courtesy of my iPhone. I promise it sounded a lot better in person.

Many people wandered off after Men Without Hats and a smaller but enthusiastic crowd greeted Tony Hadley of Spandau Ballet. I got reintroduced to Tony recently watching one of the recent Glastonbury concerts on Palladia and was really impressed with his voice and song choices. He reminds me a bit of Tom Jones, in that he picks interesting and timely cover songs, puts his own spin on them and is a bit loungey. And he still belts his own classics with gusto.

Tony surprised the crowd with a cover of "Somebody Told Me" by the hometown boys The Killers. He went back in time with "It's a New Day" and back to the future with "Learn to Fly" by Foo Fighters. He got in the Vegas spirit with covers of "That's Life" and "Suspicious Minds." He also covered Duran Duran's "Rio" and U2's "With or Without You" which really brought me back to Live Aid, since all those bands were there. Spandau Ballet really had awesome outfits at Live Aid. The sax player looks like he's a Laker fan. (Check out my reflections on watching Live Aid as a kid vs watching it 20 years later.)

Tony played the big Spandau Ballet hits like "Only When You Leave," "Gold," and "True." The crowd sang along. He also delivered an emotional version of "Through the Barricades", explaining to the US crowd that the song was about the troubles in Ireland. He chatted a bit during the set and was utterly charming.

Poor Tony was sweating up a storm, wearing a suit in the 98 degree Vegas heat. But he never even took his jacket off. That's just how debonair he is! The Rat Pack would approve. He was sipping some whiskey on stage, so maybe that took the edge off. He seemed happy to be in Vegas and said he'd never played there. In fact, this is his first US tour since 1986! He played for about 90 minutes, which was more than I expected from a free concert. His band sounded great and also features drummer John Keeble who was also in Spandau Ballet. I had a totally awesome time. That much is indeed true.

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