Friday, June 1, 2007

Last year, rock superstars ruled the roost, with money-churning tours by the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, U2 and the Who. Barbra Streisand and Madonna had the No. 2 and No. 4 grossing tours, respectively (the Stones were No. 1), while country's leading couple, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, had the No. 3 tour, earning close to $90 million.

McGraw and Hill's Soul2Soul tour is the only one back on the road this summer, but nostalgia rules as a number of bands put away old differences and tour once again. The Police, together for the first time since 1984, looks to have the year's biggest tour (with tickets topping out at $250, it's already taken in $100 million in sales stateside). The band headlines the Virgin Festival at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on Aug. 4, the day before the Smashing Pumpkins do the same as part of their first American tour since 2000, albeit with just Billy Corgan and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin; founding guitarist James Iha and bassist D'Arcy Wretzky apparently weren't invited.

Genesis, which doesn't get to Verizon Center until Sept. 23, is touring for the first time in 15 years with the most commercially successful edition of the band: drummer-vocalist Phil Collins, bassist-guitarist Mike Rutherford and keyboardist Tony Banks. Rage Against the Machine has so far announced only a handful of dates, but its headline appearance at Coachella helped sell out that festival three months in advance. Also reunited: Squeeze and Crowded House (we get the first, not the second).

Country music, like last year, may be best represented in terms of star power, with local shows by McGraw and Hill; Brooks & Dunn co-headlining with Alan Jackson; Kenny Chesney; Toby Keith; Keith Urban; Vince Gill; Travis Tritt; Randy Travis; and Brad Paisley.

Beyonce will be doing her first headlining tour since Destiny's Child broke up, but it's otherwise quiet on the diva front. The original "American Idol," Kelly Clarkson, will be at Verizon Center in August, a month before this year's "American Idol" contestants mass their talent downtown. Chris Daughtry, the most successful also-ran in "Idol" history, shares a July Merriweather Post Pavilion bill with Nickelback, the Canadian band whose 2005 album is quietly approaching 6 million in sales.

Destination festivals -- multi-day and multi-act -- have long been a mainstay of the European summer scene and are arguably the healthiest and fastest-growing part of the North American concert business. With the second Virgin Festival set for Aug. 4 and 5, local promoters I.M.P. are continuing to build a festival brand at Baltimore's Pimlico Race Course, competing with Coachella, Pitchfork and the now-Chicago-centered Lollapalooza.

Touring festivals are in flux: Ye olde Ozzfest (which went with free tickets this go-round) and the newer Sounds of the Underground skipped Washington this year, but we'll still have the Vans Warped, Family Values and Projekt Revolution tours as well as the new True Colors tour supporting the Human Rights Campaign.

The good news? Industry trade magazine Pollstar reported 2006 ticket revenue at a record $3.6 billion, a 16 percent increase from 2005's revenue, reversing a three-year drop. And Billboard Boxscore's first-quarter 2007 reports show concert attendance up 19 percent and dollars up 28 percent. All of which suggests the concert industry may be emerging from its slump.

-- Richard Harrington