The only REAL Dad... Dr. Antony Kidman

Did you read the spittle that came out of the aging Nicole Kidman this week? It seems that Nicole couldn't have gotten over her marriage ending with Tom without her Daddy. That’s nice; that’s even sweet; but what she said was creepy in a way. Her father showed her how a man should act. Seeing her father the way he was prepared her to fall in love again. I guess Lenny Kravitz, who many now believe was going to be Nicole's second husband wasn't quite up to the Dad standards. I love how this story paints her father as a hero and Tom as a failure. We do know that Tom does have custody of the children that Kidman agreed to parent. One of the children actually carried her father’s name as a middle name. We also know that Nicole's father’s profession is not one that is in agreement with the religion of Tom. We have also heard the stories that the Kidman household was combative and verbally challenging. This man that is so admired by his daughter actually allowed her to leave home and live with a man in another country when still in her teens.

Isn't it also interesting that Antony Kidman named Nicole's third child? Remember, Keith Urban admitted it in an interview in June, 2009 on Australian television. "We got the name from Nic's father," he explained. Sure you did, why not Keith? You see the Kidman's are so far above the Urban's; you saw that at the wedding. Of course he also said a few months ago that she was named after the day of the week. Whatever works, depending on which interviewer from which country is interviewing you.

Wasn't Keith a wonderful choice for a second husband? A weak alcoholic drug addicted womanizer. Wonder how he passed Daddy’s radar? Nothing makes Daddy a hero more than a husband with a weakness. And when this marriage ends, and we all know it will, Daddy will be there and Nicole will continue to sing his praises. Perhaps in retrospect, instead of looking at Nicole and finding fault, we really should look at her father and blame him. At least Tom will be off the hook!

Escape Tour - June 19th

Raleigh, NC - RBC Center - Friday, June 19th

Opener: Sugarland

Capacity: 18,800

Escape Tour - June 18th

Charlotte, North Carolina - Thursday, June 18th

Opener: Sugarland

Urban's wide appeal a hit in Charlotte

By Sarah Aarthunsaarthun@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Thursday, Jun. 18, 2009

Keith Urban brought his Escape Together tour to Charlotte on Thursday night and did what he does best – a high-energy concert with wide appeal beyond the country genre.

Opening for Urban at Time Warner Cable Arena was country duo Sugarland, whose hour-long set rivaled the energy of Urban's. Lead singer Jennifer Nettles powered through 15 songs to the packed house, including recent singles “It Happens” and “All I Want to Do” as well as their 2006 hit “Stay,” performed with believable emotion from Nettles.

Many in the audience came just for Sugarland – it was the most full I had seen the arena for an opener -- but if they left before Urban took the stage, they truly missed a great show.

While Sugarland has a distinct country twang (Nettles let her Georgia roots show as she conversed with the audience, calling one woman “Honeypot.”), Urban's brand of country regularly crosses into rock territory thanks to his fast-fingered skills on the electric guitar and his guitar-heavy band. That rock-star style appeals to male fans, while the women swoon for his heartfelt ballads about love.

He provided a mix of both on Thursday, opening with the high energy “Hit the Ground Runnin'” from his latest album “Defying Gravity” and 2004's “Days Go By” before slowing things down with “Stupid Boy.” It was a formula he followed throughout his two-hour set, but he's clearly at his best with his faster-paced rock songs (I found the back-and-forth between slow and up-tempo made the concert drag a bit). Highlights included “Who Wouldn't Want to be Me” and “Somebody Like You” both of which were punctuated by his elaborate stage setup – five huge HD screens that showed every drop of sweat along his brow and a massive light show timed to the music.

Perhaps the biggest thrill for the audience came when Urban ventured into the crowd (twice), popping up on a stage toward the back of the floor (“Who's got the good seats now?” he asked nearby concertgoers who rushed the area for an up-close view) and again in the lower bowl.

He seemed genuinely grateful for his fans, and I think that's what makes his shows so successful – he cares about giving back to them whether it's giving an intimate performance to fans in the cheap seats or acknowledging that disposable income for things like concerts is harder to come by.

Before he ended his two-song encore, he took a moment to give thanks. “I know there are a lot of seriously hard times” right now, he said in a nod to the recession and the budgets many are operating under. “Thank you so much for choosing to come see us tonight.”

His final song: “Better Life.” The chorus: “Someday baby, you and I are gonna be the ones, good luck's gonna shine. Someday baby, you and I are gonna be the ones, so hold on, we're headed for a better life.”

Escape Tour - Wednesday, June 17th

BI-LO Center, Greenville, South Carolina - Wednesday, June 17th

Opener: Sugarland

Capacity: 15,000

Escape Tour - Saturday, June 13th

Philips Arena - Atlanta, GA - Saturday, June 13th

Opener: Taylor Swift

Capacity: 21,000

Escape Tour - Friday, June 12th

FedEx Forum - Memphis, TN - Friday, June 12th

Opener: Sugarland

Escape Tour - Thursday, June 11th

Scottrade Center - St. Louis, MO - Thursday, June 11th

Opener: Sugarland

Capacity: 22, 000

Escape Tour - Sunday, June 7th

Sunday, June 7th - Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, Ft. Wayne, Indiana

Seating - 13,000

Opener: Taylor Swift

Escape Tour - Saturday, June 6th

Saturday, June 6th - The Palace of Auburn Hills, Detroit, Michigan

Concert Seating: 23,000

Opener: Taylor Swift

The Palace of Auburn Hills has several different types of banners hanging from its rafters. These include all time great Pistons, both Piston and Shock team achievements as well as some musicians who have consistently sold out the venue.

Musicians:

Elton John & Billy Joel
Bon Jovi
Richard Marx
Fleetwood Mac
Neil Diamond
Kid Rock
The Eagles
Eric Clapton with Mark Knopfler

Escape Tour - Friday, June 5th

Friday, June 5th - U.S. Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio

Opener: "Very Special Guest" Taylor Swift

Venue seats 17,000

From the Cincy paper:

Swift, Urban sets a contrast in styles
Concert review
By Chris Varias • Enquirer contributor • June 6, 2009

After the fanatical response opening act Taylor Swift received at U.S. Bank Arena Friday night, you wondered if it should have been her – not fellow pop-country star Keith Urban – headlining the show. The 19-year-old singer, who has fashioned a fast-rising career out of autobiographical songs about teen romance, had fans shrieking through the course of her energetic hour-long performance.

Urban followed with a two-hour set that served as a contrast in styles. Where Swift came off as hungry for adulation and made a show out of giving back love to the audience, Urban played it cool throughout the evening. And the sellout crowd loved him as madly as it did Swift. It’s as if those shriekers wanted to be Swift and wanted to be with Urban.

The 41-year-old Australian singer and guitar player, also known to popular-culture junkies as Nicole Kidman’s husband, put on a perfect pop performance without it seeming as if he had to try to hard. Standing there in order to let the ladies admire him was half the job, and his lead-guitar playing – seldom thrilling but always technically sound – seemed to come as natural to him as looking pretty.

And, yes, it was a pop performance, though he works the country circuit. The 19-song set list, filled with middle-of-the-road rhythm and acoustic-guitar balladry, had more in common with the music of Bryan Adams than that of any honky-tonker you could name.

Urban visited several corners of the arena, three-quarters of which was set up for the show. Most of his performances took place on the main stage, with him either running around during an up-tempo rocker like “I Wanna Love Somebody Like You” as his five-piece band back him or sitting on a stool, playing acoustic guitar, and going it alone on a ballad like “You’ll Think of Me.” A smaller stage was set up at the opposite end of the arena floor. Urban went out there for more ballad action in the form of the song “Once in a Lifetime.” Later in the show, he ventured to a microphone stand set up in a section of the bowl of the arena. There he sang the rocker “You Look Good in My Shirt” while, for his trouble, he was pawed by most every female fan he passed. Back on the main stage, Urban was framed by an impressive array of video and lighting. The five-column video screen behind the band changed its location from song to song, and during “’Til Summer Comes Around,” the screen went from its vertical position to a horizontal one, become a ceiling above the band and radiating greens, blues and reds to augment the tune’s moody vibe with tremendous effect. Swift’s show was similar to her previous opening-act appearances in recent Riverbend seasons. She stretched out her set a bit longer this time, adding a theatrical piece of music-making where she banged away with mallets on rusted 55-gallon drums. Her strength is not found in emulating the Blue Man Group. Swift was at her best when she was setting up a song with a story, usually about a boy who wronged her, then letting the tune rip. It will be interesting to see her finally get the chance to headline her own show in Cincinnati, and judging by indicators like awards, hits, and record sales, that day should be coming soon.