2 NIGHTS, 2 GREAT SHOWS

Friday night was WAYV presents Duran Duran, and put simply, they delivered. I was lucky enough to have a repeat meet with the band prior to their show at House of Blues, and it should be no surprise that I was most excited about a reunion with Simon LeBon--I LOVE HIM! We had a photo taken together last year that the WAYV air staff has dubbed the "Simon/Heather Prom Picture" (see 951wayv.com to view). Super-cool Simon was gracious enough to sign my picture "To my prom date 2006", and I thought I would faint. Now on to the IMPORTANT part of the night--the show! Amazing! HOB was packed with Duran fans--and anyone who may have been comp-ed throught the Showboat didn't leave disappointed. It was truely a show for the fans being that the band, now minus Andy Taylor, had no new album to promote. The 4 remaining members never LOOKED better, and Simon's voice never SOUNDED better. Through songs like "Union of the Snake" and "Save A Prayer" I was in pure 80's heaven! If ya missed them this time around, trust me, you don't want to make that mistake again!

Now for Saturday's show--Lionel Richie at Boragta. I've been waiting what feels like just shy of 5 years of my whole life to see this man live. Yay, wish granted! Could there BE a cooler guy on the planet? Ok, well maybe Prince, but even The Purple One would have to tip his hat to Lionel. Richie called this show at Borgata his "test run" for the real world tour he embarks on in 2007. Test away Lionel! We got the best of the best! From the opener "Hello" straight through to his biggest hits with The Commodores, Lionel didn't leave the audience with much to complain about, if anything at all. His voice never wained once, and I believe it sounded as good if not better than studio recordings of the songs he performed. Young, old and what-not, the event center sang almost every line of every song in sync. I think even my boyfriend who is as rock as they come enjoyed the night with one of R&B/Pop's best. Lionel showed why his singing and songwriting has had staying power for almost 30 years. He even played my FAVORITES like "You Are" and "Sail On". Couldn't ask for more, and yes I will be back when HE comes back!

2 HD thumbs up for 2 awesome weekend concerts!

TTYL, Heather