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| St. Paul, MN 08/22/2006; Xcel Energy Center | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Sep 7 2008, 05:59 PM (443 Views) | |
| mouser | Sep 7 2008, 05:59 PM Post #1 |
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August 22, 2006 Xcel Energy Center 199 Kellogg Blvd W St Paul, MN 55102 (651) 265-4800 SEATING CAPACITY: 18,064 ![]() XCEL ENERGY CENTER: ![]() The Xcel Energy Center is a first-class multi-purpose sports/entertainment venue. It is home of the National Hockey League's (NHL) Minnesota Wild and will host over 140 spectacular entertainment events annually. Such events include: concerts by top artists from around the world, ice shows, circuses, family shows, conventions, high school tournaments, trade shows and high-profile sporting events featuring hockey, basketball, wrestling, tennis and more. Xcel Energy Center is located on a 6-acre site in downtown Saint Paul on the former site of the Saint Paul Civic Center Arena. SETLIST: "Jailhouse Rock" (Entrance) ( Elvis Presley ) "Hollywood Nights" ( Bob Seger ) "Livin' For The City" ( Stevie Wonder ) "Do I Make You Proud" "Takin' It To The Streets" (Encore) ( The Doobie Brothers MEDIA AND REVIEWS: Hicks outshines fellow Idols with enthusiasm By Karl Leslie -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I confess. On Aug. 22 I went to the American Idol concert at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul with my wife and son. It was corny and predictable, but we all had a good time. A couple of things stood out. First, I never cease to be amazed at the power of television. Each Idol literally had his or her personal fan club. Every time someone's picture flashed on the arena's screen, there were fans screaming like little girls at a 1950s Elvis concert. Second, I was impressed at how well all the Idols seemed to get along. Several made comments about how much fun they had the night before, celebrating Paris Bennett's birthday. In addition, the interaction on the duets and group songs was very natural. The best song was Katharine McPhee singing "Somewhere over the Rainbow." That song was made for her. However, none of the other artists could match Taylor Hick's passion and enthusiasm. He delivered a memorable rendition of "Taking it to the Streets," complete with harmonica, tambourine and fancy footwork. Kellie Pickler, Lisa Tucker and Ace Young all were pleasant surprises. Pickler made points for her sincerity and passionate vocals. Young scored for clearly having a good time and for wearing a Minnesota Twins T-shirt. And Tucker stood out as she played piano and sang a couple of Elton John covers, winning over the crowd with her genuineness. Alt-rocker Chris Daughtry clearly was the fan favorite – easily generating the loudest screams, and his performances were solid. It will be interesting to see what kind of album Daughtry delivers next year. SOUL PATROL MEMORIES: ![]() 1. Yeah Chris got tons of screams. There were so many people not standing. It was making me mad cause I wanted to stand and dance around but nobody around me was. But once Taylor came out, it looked like every single person in the Xcel was standing. 2. After the American Idol Concert Taylor went to O'Caras Bar and Grill to meet up with LMBO for an after party. ![]() At 10:30pm, the LMBO finally took the stage. The band is very talented, but the music blasting out of the speakers was very very loud. I think that they are too good of a band to have their music muddied by volume. I’d like to hear them again in a better setting. After a few songs, Brian Less asked the crowd if there were any Soul Patrolers out there. There was a big roar. Then he said, “We have what you want tonight.” and the roar turned to screams. From then on, it was harder to focus on the band. Every little movement toward the backdoor or glance to the side stage drew reactions from the crowd. As I predicted, last night’s little Little Memphis Blues Orchestra concert turned into a major impromptu jam session with Taylor Hicks. He brought along Bucky Covington. The other half of the new Rat Pack must have been at Paris’ 18th birthday party. To watch the entire concert, an Taylor Hicks, from 15 feet away was an awesome experience. I can’t believe I was really there and I’ll never forget it as long as I live. To help me focus, I got out a pen and paper and took notes. The band began their first set with Don’t Lie to Me and Get Back, Honky Cat. They moved on to some New Orleans jazz songs. I couldn’t help but think that, to them, New Orleans is not far away, but to us it is a world away. Early in the show they played Pocky Way, a song I remembered as being distinctly from the south but I don’t remember why. One thing I noted was that The Little Memphis Blues Orchestra didn’t match my perception of them; they far exceeded it. Each band member is an extraordinarily gifted musician in his own right and plays music from an obvious state of love for music. The fact that Taylor Hicks picked these guys out is further testament to his own gift for good music. From the beginning of the show, Brian Less’ vocals stood out as extraordinarily strong and vibrant. His keyboarding skills rival Jerry Lee Lewis and he proved that by played one of his songs. Zippy Dietrich is not only talented, he’s very happy about playing the drums. I rarely saw him without a huge grin. His exuberance surely gives the band a boost. Sam Gunderson gave the crowd a laugh when he gave a shout-out to all the Gundersons in Minnesota. Jeff Lopez, , the incredible flute and saxophone player, was a surprise for me; his name is not listed on the band’s My Space site. His voice and styling are like Dr. John, along with wearing a dress hat. A flute in a rock band is a good thing, but I was a Jethro Tull fan so maybe I’m biased. Livin" For The City |
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2:18 AM Jul 11