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Bruce, Aerosmith Taking Off 9-11
Some big-name rockers are deciding not to roll on September 11.
Out of respect for the victims and survivors of the 9-11 terrorist attacks two year ago, major touring acts like Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Cher, Steely Dan, Fleetwood Mac and the Aerosmith-KISS combo, have opted not to schedule shows on the two-year anniversary, according to Billboard.com.
"It's going to be a while before we see [all] artists have events on that day," Larry Vallon, senior VP at House of Blues Concerts, tells Billboard.
Vallon foresees most tours skipping 9-11 altogether, at least in his lifetime. Of the 31 House of Blues venues, he notes that not one has been booked for a concert.
But honoring the victims and their families isn't the only reason musicians are skipping the date. Some music-biz types believe fans would shy away from events on what many view as a somber day, while other industry observers say a massive concert could be considered an attractive terrorist target.
"I think it's probably a situation where if the tour routing would allow it, they'd probably be off that day if only because there's a certain element of risk with that date," says Gary Bongiovanni, editor-in-chief of concert industry trade Pollstar "It's hard to read the mood of the country as to whether people are going to want to go out and party on that day."
However, the concert industry isn't shutting down entirely.
R.E.M. is going ahead with a gig scheduled for Las Vegas' Thomas & Mack Center, while Willie Nelson is set to take the stage at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington, West Virginia.
"Personally, being a Vietnam veteran, I think it's totally important to forge ahead and not succumb to the pressure of terrorists," Buck Williams, R.E.M.'s booking agent at Progressive Global Agency, says in Billboard.
Some lesser known acts have taken those words to heart, especially country musician and multi-instrumentalist John McEuen. During last year's anniversary, the acoustic auteur played a show in Bemidji, Minnesota, to benefit 911 Emergency Medical Services. According to Bongiovanni, artists like McEuen feel performing can have a healing effect.
"McEuen came to [the Billboard Music Awards] show back in February and told the audience that playing [on 9-11] was a great way for people to remember what happened and do something positive for the world," says Bongiovanni. "He encourages other artists to do the same."
While musicians grapple with how to handle the date, the anniverary will pass largely unremarked on TV.
Unlike last year, tube coverage of memorial ceremonies will be sparser this year. While all broadcast and cable news networks will have live coverage of special ceremonies at Ground Zero, prime time will be a little more business as usual on CBS, which plans to air its twin hits CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Without a Trace in their regular time slots, and NBC, which is moving forward with its "Must See" lineup of Friends, Scrubs and ER.
ABC, meanwhile, is running with a two-hour block of Extreme Makeover followed by Primetime Live.
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