Last year, in its first full summer season, Tulalip Amphitheatre did well to bring in big-name acts such as B.B. King, Gordon Lightfoot, The Beach Boys and Julio Iglesias.
With that first year under its belt and a new summer concert series lined up, Tulalip is proving to be a destination spot for returning artists and widening its reach to bring in more diverse acts, adding more contemporary acts to the kind of fare that plays well with the nostalgia-seeking crowd.
King, Lightfoot and The Beach Boys are coming back, but newcomers such as R&B singer Brian McKnight, young R&B sensation Chris Brown, country star Gretchen Wilson and many others will be sure to draw crowds to the 3,000-seat outdoor venue tucked between Tulalip Casino and Seattle Premium Outlets.
Grammy-nominated singer McKnight starts the summer series with a show at 7 p.m. Saturday. McKnight first broke into mainstream success with a duet with Vanessa Williams called “Love Is” in 1993, but had plenty of his own smash hits, including “One Last Cry” and “Back at One,” as well as his version of Van Morrison’s oft-covered “Crazy Love.”
Husband and wife Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi bring their different styles of music to the same stage for the first time during their “Soul Stew Revival” tour, which stops at Tulalip at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The show will include musicians from The Derek Trucks Band, as well as Tedeschi’s touring band, in addition to Duane Trucks playing on a second drum set, providing what will be a colorful mix of sounds that includes some songs written specifically for this tour.
Other notable acts from Tulalip Amphitheatre’s 2007 summer schedule include:
The Wailers, June 23: Bob Marley and Peter Tosh are no longer there, but new lead singer Yvad joins a huge cast of performers who backed the legendary Marley as they promise to revive the band’s timeless material.
The New Cars, June 24: In another legendary-singer-replacement act, The New Cars, sans lanky lead singer Ric Ocasek, bring their act to Tulalip. Former Cars guitarist Elliot Easton and keyboardist Greg Hawkes lead the new version of the band that scored hits such as “Shake it Up,” “Just What I Needed,” “You Might Think” and “Good Times Roll.” Veteran rocker Todd Rundgren fills in for Ocasek.
Gretchen Wilson, July 11: The seemingly overnight sensation that is Gretchen Wilson pays a visit to Tulalip in July. Wilson burst onto the country and Southern rock scene in 2004 with her debut single, “Redneck Woman” and her album “Here for the Party.” The album went platinum four times over and scored her a Grammy, as well as multiple awards from the Country Music Association, Country Music Television, the Academy of Country Music, and virtually any other organization that bestows awards unto country performers.
Chris Brown, July 14: He’s only 18, but Chris Brown is making the rounds in anticipation of the follow-up to his hit self-titled 2004 debut. His new single, “Wall to Wall” is already creating a buzz and the singer was named to “People” magazine’s “Most Beautiful People” list in April.
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, July 20: The Southern California swing band captured a moment in the ’90s when they seemed to be everywhere with their hits “Go Daddy-O” and “You and Me and the Bottle Makes Three Tonight.” They were featured in the cult classic Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn movie “Swingers” and scored a spot playing the halftime show at Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999.
Victor Balta: victor.a.balta@gmail.com.
Brian McKnight performs Saturday at Tulalip Amphitheatre.
Chris Brown
Gretchen Wilson
B.B. King
TEtta James
The Beach Boys
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