Overpriced NYE parties

I love a good party as much as anyone, but a few New Year’s Eve party promoters are absolutely losing their minds.

We have three parties with triple-digit cover charges. What!?
The first is Cirque du Theatre in the Carolina Theatre. It costs $150 a person and $250 a couple. They have live music, visual artists, grub and top-shelf liquor. I’ll give them credit for the top-shelf liquor, but still.

Rich & Bennett’s New Year’s Eve Bash at Hawthorne’s is charging $60for women and $80 for guys. For VIP access, it’s $100-$125. VIP allows you to enter at 8 p.m., and gets you access to the VIP room with a separate buffet, as well as a private bar with premium liquor.

The other is Groovin’ at the Village at Ballantyne Village. It costs $100 per person and features live music by The Real Hot Sauce and clips from ’70s and ’80s movies. They’ll have free beer and wine, and a cash bar for liquor. Come on! That’s crazy. For $100, liquor should be free.

With the exception of Loft 1523 ($85), most places in Charlotte are charging less than $50 for NYE. I realize Charlotte is growing, but we’re not big enough to charge triple-digits for a New Year’s Eve party. Heck, anything over $50 seems steep to me.
What do you think? Post your replies below.

Wu Tang and Kid Rock coming to Carolinas

Enter the Wu!

Wu-Tang Clan is coming together to perform at Amos’ Southend on Jan. 20. Tickets go on sale Wednesday. The rap group’s new album, “8Diagrams,” comes out on Tuesday. www.amossouthend.com.

Also coming up: Kid Rock will perform at the Bi-Lo Center in Greenville on March 1. Rev. Run of Run-D.M.C. will also perform. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday. www.ticketmaster.com.

And Comedy Central’s Brian Regan will perform at War Memorial Auditorium in Greensboro on Feb. 8. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday. www.livenation.com.

LeBron and Jordan

LeBron James wasn’t the only celebrity at NV lounge on Friday night.
Michael Jordan and Nelly also made low-key appearances at the club. They were tucked away in the club’s super-secret VIP room.

LeBron, on the other hand, was visible. Usually, the VIP area is upstairs, but the club turned the stage into a VIP so everyone could see the Cleveland Cavaliers superstar. Hundreds of patrons packed the Lake Norman club, and dozens more stood in line to get into the monthly 1st Friday party sponsored by Thomas Washington, Black Ice and Troy Veale. 1st Friday is already hugely popular, but adding King James, as he was called, took it over the top.

Other local promoters turned out as well as Power 98’s Tone X. The club was so packed that it was too crowded to move on the dance floor, and people were shoulder-to-shoulder trying to move about the club.

LeBron and his entourage, including teammate Drew Gooden, arrived about 12:30 a.m. James stood near the front of the stage talking with his friends and watching women try to impress them with their body-winding skills.

Patrons in the VIP area not only got to hang out with LeBron, but some got to taste the new Crown Royal Cask 16. Diaegeo sponsored the VIP area to showcase Cask 16, which is Crown Royal whiskey aged in rare cognac casks from France. I’m a whiskey and bourbon drinker, and I have to say Cask 16 is the smoothest whiskey that I’ve ever tasted. (At $100, it should be.)

"The Wire" in South Charlotte

Patrons at Table last night probably didn’t realize it, but they were dining with celebrities.

Two cast members from HBO’s “The Wire” -- Andre Royo (Bubbles) and Felicia Pearson (Snoop) -- were hanging out. HBO brought them to Charlotte to get some street time in to help publicize the critically acclaimed series, which returns on Jan. 6.

Royo is becoming a regular here. He partied here for CIAA. This is the final season for the crime drama about cops, drug dealers and politicians in Baltimore. Last season's central storyline examined the public school system. This one focuses on the newspaper.

The Americana closes - already

Whoa, I knew The Americana was going to have a tough time surviving in Pineville, but I didn’t think the live-music venue would close less than a month after its grand opening.

But it did.

In a brief e-mail today, music director Kevin Clark wrote: “The Americana in Pineville has closed its doors. "

Hopefully, Charlotte will be able to support a venue of this caliber in the future.”

The problem isn’t Charlotte. The problem, as I wrote last week, was The Americana’s business plan. You don’t open a spot like that in Pineville and expect success. Plus, there was no way people in this area were going to pay casual-dining prices and also be expected to fork over a cover charge to hear roots music. For example, The Little Dooey Barbecue & Blues restaurant in Concord has great food, but doesn’t charge a cover for its live blues on Sundays.

And to everyone blasting me about the previous blog, get real. You obviously read my blogs consistently, so you know I support live music. But I also know that in Charlotte, people don’t like to pay cover charges – period.

Light rail bar crawl

On Saturday, I hopped on the Box Car Crawl, a bar crawl along the light rail line.
The crawl started at Brixx and then went to McKoy’s on Old Pineville Road. From there, it was off to Tyber Creek, Tutto Mondo, Gin Mill and Morehead Street Tavern.


Center City Magazine, an upcoming Observer publication, co-sponsored the crawl. For the record, I went because Larken told me about it -- not because it was affiliated with the Big O. He works for Sparrow, a liquor distributor, and each stop featured specials on some of their liquors.

The next crawl is scheduled for Dec. 15. For details go to www.lightrailbarcrawl.com. Saturday’s event was a test. It started slowly, with about 10-15 of us meeting at Brixx. (Apparently, many more people joined up later.) We rode the train to McKoy’s and hung out there for wings and cocktails. Larken and I headed back early to go to Hom nightclub, and to see Grandmaster Flash spin at Tempo. On the train trip from McKoy’s, about a dozen people leaving a wedding jumped on the train.

Only in Charlotte can you be silly drunk, bump into folks on mass transit, and not worry about getting your booty kicked. Gotta love this city.

Local longtime deejay returns

I was navigating the crowded dance floor at Woods on South on Friday when I saw a face I never expected to see: Wearing a headset and working the turntables at the Toys for Tots party was Scott Beaty!

Beaty, who deejayed at uptown's Cosmos Cafe, for Panther and Hornets’ games and at other clubs, was seriously injured in an accident after a Panthers’ game on Christmas Eve two years ago. His road to recovery looked extremely difficult because deejays don’t make a lot of money and often don’t have health insurance. His left hip was broken and badly seperated.

I hadn’t heard from him in at least a year, so my mouth spread into a big grin when I saw him deejaying at the annual holiday party. He looked good, but he said he’s only slowly getting back into things. He still can’t feel part of his left shin and the top of his left foot. He still deejays private parties.

Beaty spun a mix of mostly old-school hip-hop and R&B for the hundreds of holiday revelers. Dancers partied in front of the stage where Beaty spun; everyone else filled in pockets of space throughout the restaurant, either sitting in booths or squeezing in a place to stand.

Springsteen tix announced

Tickets for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are $67 and $97. They go on sale Dec. 7 at 10 a.m. The concert is April 27 at Bobcats Arena. www.ticketmaster.

As I announced in a Paid to Party blog last week, this is their first full tour of the U.S. and Europe since 2003, and many of the U.S. and European dates have already sold out. The band’s new album Magic came out Oct. 2, and features the single "Radio Nowhere."

However, the band will be without keyboardist (and original E Street Band member) Danny Federici who will be seeking treatment for melanoma.

Giving a voice to black life

A who’s who of black Charlotte turned out for a red carpet screening of “All About Us” at Ballantyne Village Theater on Thursday.

Former mayor Harvey Gantt was there, along with former mayor pro tem Patrick Cannon, in addition to club owners, promoters and others. They all came out to see the indie film, by the husband-and-wife team of producer Michael Swanson and writer-director Christine Swanson. They also came to see the film’s stars, Ruby Dee and Boris Kodjoe. Both hung out for a Q&A and a cake and coffee reception afterward. It was a semi-formal event, with many people wearing evening dresses and suits.

The film drew praise from most of the people who got to see it. During the Q&A, Dee talked about the importance of having more films that explore the complexity of relationships among black men and women. She also talked about how Hollywood rarely expresses interest in those types of films.

During the reception, sponsored by Baileys, she posed for pictures with fans. Her fans quietly shook her hand and talked with her. Kodjoe’s fans, however, squealed as they gathered for shots. It was funny and fun to see women dressed in cocktail dresses acting like schoolgirls.

The movie begins an open-ended run of at least two weeks tonight at Ballantyne Village Theater.

Must-see concerts

After the Stevie Wonder concert Wednesday night at Bobcats Arena, several friends and I sat at Prevue lounge talking about the best concerts we've ever seen, and the concerts were glad we had a chance to see.

For example, if I died tomorrow, I'd go out glad to have seen Michael
Jackson, Prince, Tina Turner and Stevie Wonder. And the best concerts
I've ever seen have to be Michael, Prince, Tina and Chuck Brown.

Jummaune from Tempo said he's glad he's seen Stevie and Luther Vandross.
His best-ever concerts: Erykah Badu, Talib Kweli and Dave Chappelle's
impromptu performance at his club a few years ago. (He swears he
isn't just plugging his club!)

Kitch said he's glad to have seen Prince, Michael, Stevie and Luther. The two best:
Prince and Michael.

What about you? What artists are you most glad to have
seen live? And what was the best concert you've ever been to? Post your
replies below.

Lovin' Stevie

Stevie Wonder reminded fans why love conquers all.
He did it from his opening monologue about how his late mother's spirit told him "Nothing can separate us, not even death," to him performing two hours' worth of music about love.

Few artists can walk onstage and begin their concert by chatting with the audience, but that's exactly how Stevie Wonder started his show at Bobcats Arena on Wednesday. With his daughter Aisha Morris (no longer the baby cooing on "Isn't She Lovely") holding his arm, Wonder talked about losing his mother, Lula Mae Hardaway. An image of his mother flashed on the video screens.

It was one of many stories he told during an unforgettable performance, in which he couldn't possibly play every song fans wanted to hear. But he performed a bunch of them. I was most excited to hear "Superstition," "As" and "All I Do." Oh wait, and "Love's In Need of Love Today." Ugh, there were so many.

The biggest flaw in the performance was that his band didn't include horns. On songs, such as "Superstition," the keyboard's synthesized horns don't punch you in the chest the way the real instruments do on the album.

Surrounded by a seven-piece band and three backup singers, including Morris, Wonder made thousands of people feel like one family. His concert drew parents with children, couples, young adults with their parents and friends of all ages and ethnicities. Some were dressed in their Sunday best, matching suits with hats, and others were casual.

He played his harmonica and piano. At one point, he stood up on the piano bench to sing. He bantered with the audience throughout the night, and took a couple of swipes at the South. Before singing a countrified version of "Signed, Sealed, Delivered," he told fans that he expected them to like country music. At the end of the show, he thanked fans who skipped Bible study to come out to the concert. (I guess he heard ticket sales were slow here.)

As usual, he was political. He talked about current issues and lamented the war in Iraq and the lack of affordable healthcare. Addressing these problems were part of his message about the healing power of love. It was a message he delivered through his music.

Good luck Americana

I like the concept for The Americana in Pineville, but I’m not sure it’s going to work.

It’s got good food and good music. Always a plus.
But it’s not close to uptown, and they want way too much money.

Road Dawg and I went there late Friday. We were two of maybe six people there at about 11 p.m. We ate the black-eyed pea battered shrimp appetizer, and bread pudding dessert. The bread pudding wasn’t worth talking about, but the shrimp was tasty. It was lightly battered, and it didn’t taste black-eyed-pea-ey at all. The waitress gave us a discount because our order was one shrimp short.

She also only charged us $8 admission because we arrived so late.
The place is homey, like Cracker Barrel without the clutter. They sell knickknacks such as Southern-themed recipe books, roots music CDs, muscadine syrup, etc. Tuesday through Sunday the venue features a live Americana band, from bluegrass to jazz to gospel.

It also offers a Sunday gospel brunch. (No alcohol on Sundays.)
We heard Neighbor Acres perform last week, and the band was good. But here’s the rub: After 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, you pay an $8 to $12 cover charge even if you’ve arrived earlier and ate dinner. Entrees range from $8-$22.

The restaurant should waive the cover for patrons who arrive before 9 p.m. and who spend a pre-determined minimum.

Roots music is a niche genre. The Americana is competing against the Sylvia Theatre in York and the Neighborhood Theatre in Charlotte. Both attract more well-known acts. During the holidays, people will be shopping at and around Carolina Place. Why not entice them with good food and no cover charge?

Not so acoustic, but great

Jonathan Davis wore a black suit and sat in a red velvet-cushioned wooden chair that looked like a throne. If that wasn’t strange enough, his band members wore suit jackets or vests and button-down shirts. There were candelabras on stage as well at Davis’ performance at Tremont on Wednesday.

It wasn’t what I'd expected from the frontman for Korn, which gave us slit-your-wrist hits such as “Blind” and “Freak on a Leash.”

The setup for his solo show reminded me of an Alfred Hitchcock movie, but man did he rock. Advertised as an acoustic set, it was anything but a typical guitar-strumming-love-songs gig. His backing band used a drum kit, electric violin, keyboards, upright bass and a guitar. And Davis didn’t lull fans with yearning vocals. He screamed until my throat was raw.

Several hundred people filed into Tremont for the show. I’m not a Korn fan, so I didn’t recognize any of the songs. But fans told me one was the Korn hit “Falling Away From Me,” and that many of others were tracks Davis co-wrote for the “Queen of the Damned” soundtrack. The performance made me want to go watch the movie again.

The tunes often began with Caribbean- or Middle Eastern-style drumming or instrumentation, then climaxed with Korn’s nu-metal energy. It’s a combination that I'd never heard before, but I dug it.

Turkey Bash not so hot

For the longest time, I didn’t attend gala fundraisers because they seemed uptight. But the Great Gatsby and Black & White galas changed my perception.

At these events, Charlotte’s young professionals shed their bank uniforms to party like they do at any uptown club. I expected the same vibe at the Red Hot Turkey Bash in the Wachovia Atrium on Nov. 20, but it didn’t happen.

This party, a Greater Carolinas Red Cross fundraiser, needs revamping. I’ll start with the libations and grub. They had plenty of beer stands serving Bud products (I don’t drink Bud). They didn’t have enough wine bars, so the line for a glass of wine (about as much in a Dixie cup) was ridiculous.

There weren’t a lot of food stands. BTW: Cold pizza in cardboard boxes or sandwich wrap snacks that I could buy at Sam’s are not suitable for this type of event. I did have some tasty chicken wings from sponsor The Fig Tree. Other food included pasta, shrimp in some kind of broth, and crab dip with tortillas. The line for the pasta and crab dip was too long, and no one seemed to want the shrimp (not a good sign).

All this would have been OK if the music had been better, but I wasn’t feeling Liquid Pleasure. Most of this cover band's repertoire was too dated for the crowd. The group’s orange suits and black shirts added to my feeling that my parents would have enjoyed them more than I did.

While I was there (7:30-9ish), only a handful of people danced. Everyone else chatted in small groups. I had a nice time, but it’s not something that I will plan to attend each year.
The Great Gatsby and Black & White raised my expectations. I expect these types of events to be as fun as a night at Cans. The Red Hot Turkey Bash was not.

Why is Charlotte lame?

Readers and friends often ask me why doesn’t this artist come to Charlotte? Or why don’t we get that tour? I’ll tell you why, we’re the pits. We have the most fickle and unpredictable concert goers.

Stevie Wonder, an unquestionable music legend, performs at Charlotte Bobcats Arena on Nov. 28 and the concert has barely sold 5,000 more tickets. He’s not doing much better in Raleigh either.

That’s crazy.

And I hear white ticket buyers are outselling black ticket buyers. I totally don’t understand why black Baby Boomers aren’t buying more tickets. White boomers have had plenty of shows to get excited about at Bobcats arena, from the Police last week to the upcoming Bruce Springsteen concert.

In the last year, black boomers have had few concerts to appeal to them. I mean, really, how many times do you want to see Frankie Beverly & Maze?

Wonder hasn’t toured in 10 years. He’s been touring since August and performing to mostly sold out crowds. In New York earlier this month, Tony Bennett and later Prince joined him onstage. If we can only muster up a handful of people, I doubt they’re bother popping up here. I wouldn’t.

Money can’t be the issue. The maximum ticket price is $95. The maximum ticket price for the Police concert last week was $200, and the arena was packed from the bottom to the top. Are you telling me that in his genre, Wonder isn’t as good as the Police? Heck, I paid, okay the Observer paid, $75 for me to go see comedian Dane Cook a couple of weeks ago. That show was slammed as well.

So, someone please tell me, why is Stevie Wonder selling so slowly here?

Post your replies below.

The Boss is coming (maybe)

Shore Fire Media announced that Bruce Springsteen and the E. Street Band will perform at Bobcats Arena on April 27. Tickets go on sale Dec. 7. I assume it’s through Ticketmaster, but I haven’t received confirmation about this show from the folks at Bobcats Arena. Stay tuned.

This is their first full tour of the U.S. and Europe since 2003, and many of the U.S. and European dates have already sold out. The band's new album Magic came out Oct. 2, and features the single "Radio Nowhere."

Police deliver despite age and cooties

“Roxanne, you don’t have to put on a red light.”
I’ve been annoying my friends and singing that line for the last two weeks in anticipation of Thursday’s Police concert.

Before the show, Kitch and I joined a mob of people hanging out at Blue. I haven’t seen the restaurant that packed since CIAA. (I hear LaVecchia’s was equally crowded.) Luckily, we ran into a friend of Kitch’s at Blue and we joined them in a booth at the bar. And we knew a waiter so we were able to get food and drinks quickly. (Tonya’s bar tip: If you’re at a crowded bar, use cash. It makes things move so much faster for you and the staff.)

I met a couple from Winston-Salem who came down for the show. Everyone I asked had a different song they wanted hear. I’m pretty sure the Police played them all after opening with "Message in a Bottle."

The Police gave 15,000 fans a night full of flashbacks and memories during the band's concert at Bobcats Arena. The trio played all of its major hits during the nearly two-hour show, which included two encores.

Fans I talked to afterward had mixed reactions. Some said it was great; others, who saw them perform in the ’80s, were disappointed by the performance. The show was exactly what I
expected: Three old rockers still doing their thing.

Sting, fighting the flu, looked a little flush and forgot the lyrics to one song, but the crowd kept singing.

He and guitarist Andy Summers moved around the stage some, but this concert didn’t have the energy of the Red Hot Chili Peppers or other younger rock acts. A three-panel screen flashed images of the band above the stage, and the setup on stage was sparse.

It was Sting, Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland putting on a tight show. Most of the songs sounded like they did on the albums, with little live
improvisation. The best improvisation was “Wrapped Around Your Finger.” Copeland plays these huge gongs, the lights were low and the song had a dark sinister feel. Nice.

The near-capacity crowd stayed on its feet most of the
night, singing and dancing. Sting ended the night by saying, "God bless - we'll see you again." Hmm?

Robin Thicke's not coming, but Matchbox Twenty is

The Robin Thicke concert at Amos’ Southend scheduled for Dec. 2 has been cancelled. I'm out of town so I don't know the deal. But if you're looking for sensitive music then try the Matchbox Twenty show. The band is bringing its Exile in America Tour to Cricket Arena on January 29. Alanis Morissette & Mutemath will open. Tickets on sale 10 a.m. Saturday. www.ticketmaster.com.

I get Dane Cook

Dane Cook was way funnier than I thought he would be at Charlotte Bobcats Arena on Thursday. I saw the first few minutes of his HBO special, “Vicious Circle,” and I turned it off because I didn’t get his humor.

Now, I get it. His jokes are sophomoric, but not dumb grosser than gross humor. He does some sex/relationship stuff, but a lot of his material ranged from bits about family, Thanksgiving dinner and a family trip that didn't happen, to current events, such as why he shouldn’t go to war: "he doesnt' like backpacks."

The stage was set up in the round and he was energetic enough to fill it. The only problem was that you had to keep looking at the TV screen if Cook had his back to you because you couldn't see his facial expressions. The near capacity, mostly college-aged, crowd didnt't mind. They laughed their faces off for nearly two hours on Thursday.

He's an obvious student of comedy and did a good job of referencing jokes he set up earlier in the night. His sound effects were great. For example, he did a perfect imitation of tires screeching in a parking garage as part of his bit about the mad dash to find a parking space at the maul, as he spelled it, during the holiday season. He also referenced jokes from past material. He would say the most mundane thing, like “There’s only one October” and fans started howling. I totally didn’t get it.

He did a fan favorite; the one about his dad wearing a robe that was too short to hide the family jewels. He also delivered Cookisms, such as “In a fight, guys, we just want to make you cry, just a little…Aha! I win,” he said dancing around.

My favorites were when he talked about going to war. He said he wouldn’t want to be the guy playing the flute. Then he skipped around the stage playing an annoying tune on an imaginary flute until he got shot. The he limped around the stage playing the flute. The other piece I liked was about the condom fairy. Sorry, I can’t repeat the details, but imagine you and your boo are about to get in the groove and she asks, do you have a condom.

Partying to the Maxx

The Young Affiliates of the Mint did it again.

Last night’s Black & White Gala was a great party and great fun. The new location at the Forum added a bit of hipness to the annual fundraiser, which raises money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

There was a VIP area upstairs on the mezzanine. And the food, not as much as last year, was on the rooftop, which was heated and tented. The private auction was in the Pravda lounge. The party mostly drew young professionals.

The Maxx, based in Georgia, provided the music again, and they didn’t disappoint. They are one of the best cover bands I’ve seen. They had the dance floor packed when we arrived about 9:45 p.m. They played everything from “I’m Coming Up” to “Let’s Get it Started” to “September,” which included a trumpet and saxophone player.

Women hiked up their little black dresses, guys unbuttoned their collars and everyone cut loose on the floor.