One of the most recognizable bands from the New Wave era of the 80's, The B52's kicked off a 3 night residency Friday July 7th at the House of Blues in the beautiful Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV. The B52's are original members and vocalists Fred Schneider, Kate Pierson, and Cindy Wilson, along with their talented band Tracy Wormworth on bass, Sterling Campbell on drums, Greg Suran on lead guitar and Ken Maiuri on keyboards/rhythm guitar.
This was not just your usual concert, this was a dance party, a celebration of good times and fun music with an infectious beat that had the crowd dancing and singing all night! You could see people dancing all over the HOB, especially in the back by the bar where that area became a big dance floor. This was a night of beehive hairdoos and go-go boots, with crazy colored hair and wild throwback outfits - in other words it was a see and be seen party!The band kicked off the show with "Cosmic Thing" followed by "Mesopotania", and then the lights went retro for the song "Lava". Kate, Cindy and Fred traded off lyrics when the band kicked into "Funplex", and at this point Fred left the stage for a break and the girls showcased their amazing vocals "Summer Of Love", "52 Girls" and "Roam".
Fred returned to the stage holding an old antenna and you could hear the sound of different radio stations fading in and out as the band started playing the song "Channel Z", and then the beginning of monster hits strung along with "Dance This Mess Around", "Wig" and the final song before the encore"Love Shack".
The band left the stage briefly, and returned to a standing ovation from the packed HOB, and with the lights low Cindy began playing that hypnotic beat on bongos to the opening of "Planet Claire", followed up by "6060-842" and the B52's ended the evening with another monster hit "Rock Lobster".
After 90 minutes plus the band took their final bow, and told the crowd to please come back the next two nights and enjoy themselves this weekend! Even after 4 decades The B52's are just as solid as they were back in the 80's. Kate still dances nonstop and was a joy to watch perform on this night, Fred's vocals are solid and sound as good as ever and Cindy showed her vocal range throughout the show trading off song lyrics with Fred and Kate throughout the set. This was one of the best shows in 2017 and hope the House of Blues brings this talented group of musicians back for more of these short residencies.
We would like to thank Sasha and LiveNation along with the staff of the HOB for always taking such good care of us. Catch the B52's at a venue near you, they will continue the tour into October and tour dates are HERE.
Setlist B52's HOB Las Vegas
Cosmic Thing
Mesopotamia
Lava
Funplex
Private Idaho
Summer of Love
52 Girls
Roam
Channel Z
Dance This Mess Around
Wig
Love Shack
Encore:
Planet Claire
6060-842
Rock Lobster