Labor Day Weekend Concerts

Switch, SOS Band, & DeBarge: 3 Stars

By Neonu Jewell

I was super excited about this concert. So much so that I attended on a night that I normally do not leave the house. You remember Switch and its hits "I Call Your Name" and "There'll Never Be." Two of my favorite songs I must mention. Tommy and Bobby Debarge, two of the original members, died in the early 80's and with them the voices behind these great songs. The new lead singer of the group does not have the voice for these songs. Frankly, he sounded terrible.

This was my second time seeing the SOS Band perform in recent years. They consistently provide a good show. They have a number of hits, notably "Take Your Time (Do It Right)," "Just the Way You Like It,""Weekend Girl," and my favorite "Tell Me If You Still Care."

DeBarge...sigh. The DeBarge family has suffered quite a bit over the years - drugs, death, prison, sickness, and scandals. It seems to have caught up with them. The DeBarge representatives in attendance were El DeBarge, Bunny DeBarge, Chico DeBarge (not an original group member), and some cousins. El can still hit the notes, but he has no breath control and thus cannot really sing the songs. While I am a fan of Chico DeBarge's 1997 album "Long Time No See," at the concert he was a HOT MESS! We had to continually laugh to avoid screaming, because of how bad he sounded and what a distraction he was from El's singing. Bunny should have sang "A Dream," but only sang back up for El.

The only reason this concert rates 3 stars is because the SOS band was good, it was fun singing the songs of my youth, and most importantly it only cost me $16.

Donna Summer: 4 Stars

By Neonu Jewell

You may have heard Donna Summer was on tour with her new CD, "Crayons." I (and what seemed like 50,000 other people) saw her perform at Ravinia, outside of Chicago, and Summer still sounds fantastic! Her music continues to make you want to dance and sing. She sang songs from the past and a few songs from the new CD. The bottom line is go see her live if you can and buy the new CD.

Raphael Saadiq: 5 Stars

By Treva Saunders

Raphael Saadiq performed at the Black Cat in Washington D.C. I loved it! I highly recommend everyone go see his show. It's too bad more people do not recognize his talent. Saadiq debuted a few new songs from his third solo CD, "The Way I See It," and they were great. Saadiq has a knack for creating new music that sounds old school (hence the title of his debut CD "Instant Vintage"). He also performed songs from his two groups Tony Tone Toni and Lucy Pearl.

The background singers were awesome and his band was fantastic. The Black Cat was the perfect intimate setting (although the ambiance is awful) for this concert. It's not often that we get an opportunity to see a true artist like Saadiq. Check out the show if you can and buy the new CD, which will be released September 16.