By Niki D'Andrea
Here are some of the concerts that were announced this week.
”Music Builds” Tour Featuring Third Day, Switchfoot, Robert Randolph & the Family Band, and Jars of Clay Thursday, September 25, 6 p.m. $25-$125 www.livenation.com
Fans of charity and uplifting Christian rock can groove out and feed their consciences by purchasing a ticket to see four of the most popular non-secular music acts around. There are six Grammys between Third Day and Jars of Clay alone, and several multi-platinum sales amongst all the acts. Proceeds from the tour benefit Habitat For Humanity.
Random band fact: The members of Switchfoot consider themselves Christians, but shun the “Christian band” label. "For us, it's a faith, not a genre,” frontman Jon Foreman told The Boston Globe in August, 2006.
Below: Third Day performs "Mountain of God" on the TBS STORYline Soundstage.:
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Lyle Lovett With Shawn Colvin Wednesday, August 6, 7:30 p.m. $39.50-$75 www.livenation.com
While people have often picked on Lovett for his looks (they’re just jealous they didn’t have a brief marriage to Julia Roberts), you can’t really argue with Lovett’s merits as a performer -- the man’s released 13 albums, won four Grammy Awards, and appeared in more than a dozen films. And with Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Shawn Colvin opening the show, we’re guaranteed to get “Sunny Came Home” stuck in our heads -- again -- for the next several weeks.
Random band fact: While attending Texas A&M University in the 1970s, Lovett lived next door to country-fusion musician Robert Earl Keen.
Below: Lyle Lovett performs “L.A. County” on A&E’s Live By Request:
Joe Bonamassa Thursday, June 26, 7:30 p.m. Tempe Center for the Arts $32.50 www.livenation.com
Acclaimed blues-rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa has been blazing a path in music since B.B. King first discovered the six-string slinger when he was 12 and took him on the road as his opening act. He’s been featured on the cover of Guitar World, Guitar Player, and Guitarist; he continues to play more than 225 shows a year and has shared stages with artists like Willie Nelson, Buddy Guy, and Gregg Allman; and and his latest album, Sloe Gin, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues Chart and stayed there for ten weeks straight.
Random band fact: Bonamassa is the spokesperson for the National Blues Foundation’s “Blues in the Schools” program.
Below: Bonamassa performs “Sloe Gin” at the Aladdin Theatre in Portland:
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Melissa Etheridge Monday, August 18, 8 p.m. Dodge Theatre $35-$100 Tickets on-sale Monday, May 19, at noon. www.ticketmaster.com
Melissa Etheridge’s latest album, The Awakening, chronicles the singer/songwriter’s battle with cancer, her love for God, and her perspectives on religion and politics. But while the album debuted at #14 on the Billboard Hot 200 Charts, sold 48,000 copies its first week, and came in at #20 on Rolling Stone’s list of the “Top 50 Albums of 2007,” Etheridge has never been a “studio performer.” Her records are successful and impactful, but anybody who’s seen Etheridge perform live knows that the real fire -- the real goose-bump inducing moments -- lies in Etheridge’s live show. She’s one of the few performers that can maintain an intimate rapport with her audience, whether she’s playing a small club or a massive amphitheatre.
Random band fact: In her book, The Truth Is…My Life in Love and Music, Etheridge mentions that her former partner, actress Julie Cypher, had an alleged affair with k.d. lang.
Below: Etheridge’s video for “I Want to Be in Love,” featuring Jennifer Aniston and Etheridge’s partner, Tammy Lynn Michaels:
