Pete Seeger at Clearwater 2009 (more by )

The 2011 edition of the Clearwater Festival boasts some big names over its two days, June 18th and 19th, in Croton Point Park in Croton-on-Hudson, NY. Founder Pete Seeger will be joined by Drive-By Truckers, Martin Sexton, Indigo Girls, Josh Ritter, Arlo Guthrie, Suzanne Vega, Billy Bragg (who plays NYCx3 a month later), and man other artists who are listed elow. Tickets are still available.

In related news, Martin Sexton will play four NYC shows before that Clearwater appearance, as part of a residency at City Winery. Tickets are sold-out for Martin Sexton on June 2nd, 3rd, & 4th at the venue but he just added a fourth late show on 6/4, and tickets are still available.

All Martin Sexton tour dates and the full Clearwater lineup is below.

Continue reading "Clearwater Fest 2011 lineup & other Martin Sexton dates"

Bob Lefsetz writes...

Seeing the decline in recorded music revenues, ticket prices soared. We can blame Live Nation, but let's first and foremost blame the acts. Who not only priced tickets exorbitantly, but scalped their own tickets. They were greedy.

What's the end result?

The club business has been devastated. Live music is about the special event, one doesn't go regularly. It's about paying top buck for a name brand. Take a chance? At these prices!

And now we've got Sarah McLachlan admitting that Lilith Fair tickets are "pretty soft" (the story is everywhere, but it originated on "Billboard": Sarah McLachlan says Lilith sales "pretty soft")

What Sarah says seems reasonable, that only 300 seats or so out of 16,000 are $250, and that there are 9,000 that are $25, until you click through and try to buy some.

At the local L.A. date at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre/Irvine Meadows, the first Ticketmaster choice is:

'Lilith Universe' - Diamond Package

The price? $750 a ticket.

Then we've got:

'Lilith Spirit' - Gold Spirit

The price is: $450 a ticket.

Then there's 'Lilith Spirit' - Silver Package. Prices there are $300 a ticket.

And then, fourth choice down, we come to "NEW FULL PRICE TICKET". Where the options are: $252, $101, $71.50, $41.50 and $31.50.

But it gets even worse. After that, there's a line for "Citi Cardmember Preferred Tickets". And then, at the very bottom, we've got "Lawn 4 Pack Offer". Those are only $14.25 apiece, but after service charges, aren't you just better off buying the ultimate DVD, which you can watch again and again in the privacy of your own home. up close and personal?

In other words, first and foremost, we've got a perception problem. No matter how many super-expensive seats there are, perception is you just can't get a good one unless you pay up, demoralizing potential attendees.

Furthermore, no one on the bill is "hot". There's no GaGa that makes people NEED to go. [Bob Lefsetz]

Lilith Fair 2010, back from a 10+ year hiatus, kicks off June 27th and runs into August. The maxi pad-sponsored tour comes to the NYC area for a July 31st show at PNC Bank Arts Center. Acts at that date include Cat Power, Chairlift, Carly Simon, Sarah McLachlan, Selena Gomez, Missy Higgins, Jill Hennessy, Indigo Girls, Sara Bareilles, Priscilla Renea and a "special guest" (other acts not playing NJ include Loretta Lynn, Metric, Gossip, Beth Orton, La Roux Erykah Badu and Tegan and Sara). Tickets are currently on sale with "no service fee."

The tour recently canceled its July 8th stop in Arizona for undisclosed reasons, but there's speculation that it's in protest of the state's controversial new immigration law.

"The GoGo's are encouraging Lilith to move this date to another state in protest of the new immigration law. We are NOT supporting the state government," [GoGo's Belinda Carlisle] wrote on her Facebook account a few weeks ago. "I don't mix business and politics but I'm afraid I have to this time."

Carlisle eventually deleted the post, but The Go-Go's released a press statement last week informing fans the show was cancelled and tickets could be refunded. But they also said the band had not been told why the show was cancelled. [ChartAttack]

Full tour schedule is below...

Continue reading "maxipad-sponsored Lilith Fair tour dates & soft ticket sales (happening in NJ, but not NYC or Arizona...)"

Lilith Fair, which has been dormant since 1999, will reform this year for a North American tour this summer. Exact dates and venues are forthcoming, but the ongoing list of confirmed acts is impressive (though they won't all play every city). The lineup currently includes Beth Orton, Cat Power, Emmylou Harris, Erykah Badu, the Gossip, Grace Potter and The Nocturnals, Heart, Indigo Girls, Janelle Monae, Ke$ha, La Roux, Lights, Loretta Lynn, Mary J. Blige, Metric, Miranda Lambert, Norah Jones, Rosie Thomas, Sarah McLachlan, Serena Ryder, Sheryl Crow, Tara MacLean, Tegan and Sara.

New York City is one of the tour's confirmed stops. The rest of those and the fest's so-far lineup are below...

Continue reading "Lilith Fair 2010 (Cat Power, Norah Jones, Tegan & Sara, Janelle Monae, Metric, Grace Potter, Gossip, Erykah Badu, Beth Orton, Sia, many more)"

I was never an Indigo Girls fan, and for whatever reason, the inner immature child in me still thinks it's funny just to say their name ("Indigo Girls. ha ha ha! worst! ever!...").... They're probably amazing. My experience is limited to, like, "Galileo"....

I already mentioned that I thought it was funny interesting that PJ Harvey (who is playing Irving Plaza tonight (3/26)!) was opening for the Indigo Girls at Stubb's during SXSW. Even more interesting, was that the special guest at the Perez Hilton SXSW party was not, as rumored, Britney Spears, but was in fact the Indigo Girls (on the same bill as Ladyhawke, Ida Maria, Little Boots, etc...).

I have since also found out that the Indigo Girls have at least three NYC shows coming up. The first is tonight, March 26th, at the very tiny Living Room on the Lower East Side (file under big artist playing very small venue), and after that it's Highline Ballroom on April 15th (file under Tax Day concerts), and finally a much larger headlining performance this summer (June 16) at Central Park Summerstage (file under who is playing Central Park Summerstage this year).

More Lilith Fair fans HERE.

The Cyndi Lauper-headed True Colors Tour show hits Jones Beach on June 1st, and starting today you can get mezzanine seats for just $15 each.

Produced by True Colors Concerts in partnership once again with the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the 24 city North American tour is presented by Logo in support of the newly created True Colors Fund of Stonewall Community Foundation. The concerts feature nearly five hours of nonstop music with exciting special guests appearing on select dates throughout the tour including Wanda Sykes, Tegan and Sara, Regina Spektor, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Joan Armatrading, Indigo Girls, Nona Hendryx, Deborah Cox and The Cliks.

Cyndi Lauper and The B-52's are headlining.

This is the tour started by Cyndi Lauper that featured that last year featured Erasure, The Gossip, Dresden Dolls, Debbie Harry, and Cyndi herself. Last year's NYC-area show was at Radio City Music Hall. This year's show is at Radio City again (June 3rd w/ Cyndi Lauper, The B-52s, Regina Spektor, Rosie O'Donnell, Indigo Girls, The Cliks, & host Carson Kressley), but it's also at Jones Beach two days earlier (w/ the same lineup, but without Regina for some reason). That sucks that we don't get Tegan & Sara at all.

An "HRC Exclusive" presale starts March 10th. Regular tickets go on sale March 15th. All dates below....

Continue reading "'True Colors' is back - 2008 Tour Dates & lineup"