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The big concert news this month is not particularly good news. The Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center unveils its inaugural season in September with five pop and jazz shows.
Unfortunately, there is little that's exciting. Ramsey Lewis, the Association (both part of the preview season), Arlo Guthrie and Buffy Sainte-Marie. Spyro Gyra, Righteous Brothers and Bob James are well-distanced from the cutting edge. Safe, solid, mainstream entertainment is apparently the center's tack in the early stages.
The rest of the schedule is short on highlights as well. David Bowie's Tampa Stadium show is a rare treat - it's getting strong reviews throughout the country. Otis Day & the Knights (the Animal House Band) could be a party throw-down or limp as overcooked spaghetti - but it costs only five bucks to find out. But the ageless James Brown is always a highlight.
Meanwhile, Boston - the epitome of lowest-common-denominator rock bands - sold out its concert Sept. 30 at the Sun Dome in about two hours. A second show has been added - the next day, Oct. 1 - and tickets will go on sale this Friday at 4 p.m., available through Select-A-Seat. Sept. 4: James Brown - The Godfather of Soul is still going strong at 54, a whirling dervish of funk. Last year's Gravity album and the preceding hit Living in America resuscitated a sagging career. He'll play at the Sun Dome (instead of the Armory), 8 p.m. Sept. 4: Millie Jackson - Bold, sassy Millie knows how to shake folks up with her R-rated shows. Fort Homer Hesterly Armory, 8 p.m. Sept. 4: Ramsey Lewis - The pianist has broad appeal. With a handful of instrumental hits in the '60s, including The In Crowd, Lewis has tasted...