Summer is here: it’s time to dig out your old sleeveless rock tour t-shirts from the 80’s. In the same way that retired folks flock to Florida for the summer, aging rockers tend to come out of hiding and head south, too.
Rock
If you need your Van Hagar fix, Sammy Hagar visits the Woodlands this weekend, with Michael Anthony. (6/10 @ Cynthia Mitchell Woods Pavilion)
Def Leppard just released a covers album of some of their favorite rock songs from the 70’s. Give them 10 more years, and they’ll be singing standards like Rod Stewart. Journey joins them on this double bill, but instead of Steve Perry, you get Steve Augeri, who looks and sounds like Perry (see photo on right), which is kind of freaky. (6/30 @ Cynthia Mitchell Woods Pavilion)
The girls in Fast Times at Ridgemont High wanted to be just like Pat Benatar. Pat is touring with her husband and guitarist Neil Giraldo. (7/7 @ Verizon Wireless Theater)
See how many Confederate flags you can spot at the Lynyrd Skynyrd show this summer. Alternate game: count the number of lit lighters during “Freebird.” (7/8 @ Cynthia Mitchell Woods Pavilion)
If you miss the days when male rockers had bigger hair and wore more make-up than women, you’ll get a double-shot of it at the Poison and Cinderella concert. (7/9 @ Verizon Wireless Theater)
New Wave
One of the rare examples of a band that is still producing quality music 25 years later (even if they aren’t selling as many records as they did back then) is Echo & the Bunnymen. (6/18 @ Warehouse Live)
A Flock of Seagulls returns with When in Rome. Now, we know that AFoS had several hits (“I Ran”, “Space Age Love Song”, “Wishing”), but seriously, can anyone name another song from When in Rome besides “The Promise”? (7/1 @ Fitzgerald’s)
Over the years, Mark Mothersbaugh has kept Devo together, even though he’s been busy writing and producing TV shows, like Rugrats. As one of the pioneers of the New Wave movement, they should be worth checking out. (8/19 @ Reliant Arena)
Pop
Chicago has been around longer than most of us, and even though they’ve been through many band members (no, Peter Cetera won’t be there, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing), they stayed consistent through the years. We’re not sure if their stage partners Huey Lewis & the News will prove to be the same. (6/25 @ Cynthia Mitchell Woods Pavilion)
The whole Rock Star: INXS phenomenon still puzzles us. INXS without Michael Hutchence just doesn’t seem right. However, we’re in the minority. For $60 per ticket you can catch the new INXS with lead vocalist J.D. Fortune. (6/28 @ Verizon Wireless Theater)
R&B and Hip-Hop
When the Essence Music Festival comes to Houston this summer, they’ll be bringing several old school acts with them. Classic R&B artists Earth, Wind & Fire will join the stage with Doug E. Fresh (surely you remember “The Show”) and the reunited New Edition, with Bobby Brown. (7/1 - 7/2 @ Reliant Park)
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