‘Country Superstars’ at Golden Nugget features tributes to Reba, Willie and more.
The tribute artist phenomenon continues to provide acting and singing opportunities for talented performers who can successfully convey the essence of superstars without the excessive overhead. Not to mention that you can have a bunch of stars in one setting.
The Legends in Concert template, which launched this fascination for tribute artists beyond the Beatles and Elvis, has been extended to numerous other shows in the past 25 years or so.
Just such a fine example is Country Superstars, a tribute show that is a popular attraction at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas. Well, the show hitched up its wagon and headed east for performances at the Golden Nugget here in Atlantic City.
The show, featuring tributes to Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Ronnie Dunn and Willie Nelson, continues through Aug. 23 at the Showroom at Golden Nugget.
Like the better shows in the tribute genre, there is a an excellent live band, in this case five players including a pedal-steel guitar, and none of the singers lip-sync.
Opening the show and acting as the host for this concert is Reba McEntire (Corrie Sachs), complete with flaming red hair and a feisty attitude. Reba begins the show with her hit songs “On the Radio” and “Take It Back.” While Sachs doesn’t blow you away with her Reba impersonation while singing, she is very successful at imitating Reba’s speaking voice, making her comedy bits stronger than her songs. She did have the physical mannerisms down as well, making her a solid host for the night.
Next up was Tim McGraw (Adam D. Tucker) and his presentation was the exact opposite of Reba. While Tucker featured the traditional black hat and mustache, he didn’t look all that much like McGraw, but he did an excellent job of sounding like him for such McGraw classics as “Real Good Man,” “Live Like You Were Dying,” “Something Like That” and “I Like It, I Love It.”
Reba then returns for a couple more songs, “Strange” and “Consider Me Gone,” before turning over the stage to Willie Nelson (Roy Hammock). All you need is a red bandana and pigtails to pull off the Willie look and Hammock does a solid job on such Nelson classics as “Whiskey River,” “Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys,” “You Were Always On My Mind” and “On the Road Again.” Willie adds to the fun by joking that the profits of his music are going to the IRS.
Country Superstars keeps up with the real performing lives of its tribute stars. The show used to have a regular Brooks & Dunn act, but now that he has gone solo in his actual career, the show presents Ronnie Dunn (Ron Keel) minus his longtime partner, Kix Brooks. His presentation therefore includes the Dunn solo hits “Let the Cowboy Rock” and “Bleed Red,” as well as Brooks & Dunn favorites “Play Something Country,” “Boot Scoot Boogie” and “My Maria.”
Reba returns for the finale, joining Dunn for their duet “If You See Him/If You See Her,” one of the strongest vocal performances in the show.
From the famous organ at Boardwalk Hall and the Atlantic City Pop Festival of 1969, to Boardwalk Empire era tales and KY & the Curb.
Legends in Concert has been a mainstay in Las Vegas and Atlantic City for decades. One of the prominent reasons for its continued success is the show’s constant search for talented new performers. Over at Bally’s Legend in Concert Theater, the show just refreshed itself with a new cast May 25 and it represents a diverse spectrum of the music industry.
A comprehensive listing of entertainment coming to the Atlantic City casinos, Boardwalk Hall and Bader Field.
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