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March 29, 2024

Live music gets boost with Lon Bronson-David Perrico; Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s $6.2M rides; ‘Showstoppers’ summons ‘Grease’

Lon Bronson's All-Star Band at Caberet Jazz

Jake Klein Photography

Lon Bronson’s All-Star Band at Caberet Jazz at the Smith Center in March 2014.

Updated Monday, Jan. 12, 2015 | 7:05 p.m.

David Perrico’s Pop Evolution

David Perrico and vocalist Naomi Mauro perform in Pop Evolution, an 18-piece band featuring musicians from various Las Vegas productions, inside the showroom at the Stratosphere, July 2, 2013. Launch slideshow »

Lon Bronson’s All-Star Band at Cabaret Jazz

Lon Bronson's All-Star Band at Caberet Jazz at the Smith Center in March 2014. Launch slideshow »

The Kats Report Bureau over the weekend was stationed at two Station Casinos hotels on opposite ends of the valley, Sunset Station’s Club Madrid on Friday and Red Rock Resort on Saturday.

This course of action could be called the Anti-Zowie Bowie itinerary. Not on purpose, trust me, but Chris Phillips and his ebullient backing crew plays those venues on nights opposite of when I attended: Red Rock on Fridays and Sunset Station on Saturdays. ZB opened Rocks Lounge in 2006 and has been filling the room regularly since. The act just recently opened at Club Madrid, and is creating a scene there, too.

This all reminds of the first act I ever saw at Club Madrid, in a year that had a “9” in it, was Louie Louie. Remember him? The love interest from Madonna’s “Borderline” video. He worked that connection to great effect in VegasVille for a few years.

I called Louie Louie once, either to set up a photo shoot or ask for relationship advice, and he had this hilarious outgoing message where he sang: “You have reached the home of LOOOOOUIE-LOUIIEEEEE but LOOOOOUIE-LOUIIEEEEE cannot come to the phone AAAT THE MOOOOOMENT …”

I loved that guy. L-Squared brought the party, same as Phillips. Even the gravity-defying hair from Louie Louie was similar to Phillips’. The thundering, dance-infused formula never gets old, I guess. God bless Louie Louie is the point.

What else? In the here and now, Friday was another set with Lon Bronson’s All-Star Band at Club Madrid. The room was about filled, customarily. Saturday was another tour de force with David Perrico’s latest project, the 15-piece Pop Strings show band at Rocks Lounge.

Another packed house, with Perrico taking on Daft Punk, Bruno Mars, Justin Timberlake and even the latest from Taylor Swift, “Blank Space.” Perrico’s show is Saturdays at 11 p.m. (doors at 10); Bronson continues to appear at 10 p.m. at Club Madrid.

Perrico’s Pop Evolution band is back at Cabaret Jazz on Jan. 28. His previous appearances have filled the room considerably, people- and sound-wise. The next show by Bronson at Cab Jazz is Feb. 22 and is the second to feature vocalist Larry Braggs, late of Tower of Power.

“The Great American Soul Book” is the title, and this show has already nearly sold out. Even Bronson isn’t sure of the reason for the swift sales, but the end result of all this word assemblage is the live music scene in 2015 is already looking mighty impressive.

Onward:

‘Steve Wynn’s Showstoppers’ Press Conference

Director Philip William McKinley, Andrea Wynn, Steve Wynn and choreographer Marguerite Derricks attend the press conference for “Steve Wynn’s Showstoppers” in Encore Theater on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2014, in Wynn Las Vegas. Launch slideshow »

• Hearing that two of the songs being developed for “Steve Wynn’s Showstoppers” are “If They Could See Me Now” from “Sweet Charity” and “You’re the One That I Want” from “Grease.” The latter might be an effort to draw in a younger audience familiar with that song from “Glee.” Regardless, we need to get Adrian Zmed back into the theater when that song debuts.

• On the topic of “Showstoppers,” Steven Spielberg visited the show Wednesday and met the cast. Quick takes: He was very nice, loved the show and is smaller than you might expect. Some of the guys in the company towered over him, but only in a physical height sort of way.

• There is some concrete reporting around boxing media (and really, who wouldn’t want to box the media?) that the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao fight is moving fleet afoot to a date this year. As that speculation bubbles up, Mayweather sent a photo on his Instagram that reminds of the wealth “The Sweet Science” has afforded him.

Dude be rich, I am just sayin’.

Mayweather Jr. vs. Maidana 2

Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Marcos Maidana 2 at MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2014, in Las Vegas. Mayweather Jr. won for the second time in four months by decision. Launch slideshow »

In the post from Wednesday, three of Mayweather’s new exotic vehicles are lined up in front of what looks to be a private jet where a man who appears to be Mayweather stands in the doorway. The cars are a Bugatti Grand Sport Chassis 088 “1 of 1 in the USA,” priced at $3 million; a Bugatti Veyron Chassis 116 White over Soft Silver valued at $1.6 million; and a Bugatti Veyron Chassis 101 Black Metallic/Red Metallic costing another $1.6 million. As the post reads, that’s $6.2 million “spent for just three cars that don’t depreciate, only appreciate.”

Obviously, Mayweather did not test the new Mazda 6 Grand Touring sports sedan. But I’ll see him on the road, somewhere.

• A follow note on the interview I conducted last week with new Club Paradise owner Steve Paik, which was published in the new edition of sister publication The Sunday. The club’s oft-troubled owner, Sam Cecola, was in the business at the time of the interview and even walked into Paik’s office during our conversation.

Cecola, who in 1997 was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison for defrauding the IRS and filing false income tax returns, was back in charge of the club when it was closed in June. The club went dark after IRS agents and Metro investigators raided the business because of reports of credit card fraud.

He was allowed to visit the club he built only because Paik said it was OK for him to hang out there. Cecola has nothing to do with Club Paradise other than acting as a figure of a bygone era. Still, his presence caused a lot of confusion. Paik is a really nice guy, but in this instance maybe he was too nice.

Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at Twitter.com/JohnnyKats. Also, follow “Kats With the Dish” at Twitter.com/KatsWiththeDish.

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