Commentary: Caesars at capacity for Wynonna

Friday, March 29, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

WYNONNA'S BACK, and a Caesars Palace Circus Maximus capacity crowd welcomed her with open arms; it was a 90-minute love fest. ... The show started five minutes late at 10:05 p.m., and the audience sat through 20 minutes of Kim Richey and a 10-minute stage wait (that should have been covered by Gary Mule Deer) before the stage lit up, her musicians and backup became visible and the lady descended a short flight of stairs to wild acclaim.

Eighteen months away is a long time, but Wynonna's timing could not have been better with "To Be Loved By You," her latest single, hitting No. 1 in the charts this week. ... The 17-song program gave the assemblage Wynonna's best at her very best.

Two hours and five minutes is too much time onstage for any performance in a LV showroom. ... It should be noted that the audience was reluctant to let her leave, the highest compliment.

In conclusion

Everything Wynonna sang was a show high point, but the highest came next to last when, aided by the three horns and the super backup singers, she sang a gospel air, "Live With Jesus," that took us back to our Decca studio days in the late 1940s and Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Marie Knight in their prime -- a glorious personal memory moment.

Richey is a successful songwriter-singer, highly touted, with a great vocal sound that was terribly over-decibeled and made worse by poor articulation. ... Not being familiar with her recorded repertoire, I could not decipher her lyrics. ... Whatever was wrong is curable and should have been by the time you read this.

Wynonna's opener was too loud, but from then on it was heavy but bearable, only too much when the bass and drums rattled the room on up-tempo songs. ... Production values: Richey, nil; Wynonna, full measure.

Sharing strength

In Thursday's SUN, we wrote of "Share Our Strength's Taste of the Nation 1996" presented by American Express and Calphalon, to take place 6-9 p.m. April 17 in the Riviera's Convention Center, but space precluded our listing the restaurants participating in this year's fourth annual fight-against-hunger taste festival.

Thus far, it's Bertolini's, Coyote Cafe, Crepes Pierette, Dive!, Emeril's, Fiesta hotel-casino's Garduno's, Fog City Diner, Golden Steer, Hard Rock Cafe, Hard Rock Hotel, Lady Luck's Burgundy Room, LV Hilton's Bistro Le Montrachet and the Outback Steak House.

Plus Palace Station's Guadalajara Bar & Grille, Palm Restaurant, Panini, Planet Hollywood, Renata's, Ricardo's, Riviera hotel-casino, Sam's Town's Papamio's, Sfuzzi, Sheraton D.I., Spago-LV, Tropicana's Papagayo's and Z-Tejas.

Concluding

Tickets are $40 if purchased in advance and $50 at the door, with open seating or reserved tables for groups of 10. ... The reservation number is 226-3254. ... Las Vegas is one of more than 100 participating cities. ... One-hundred percent of all ticket proceeds go directly to participating hunger-relief agencies; there's no overhead.

Another upcoming event: "The Lindy Hop & Jitterbug Swing Dance Concert" on April 6 in the West Las Vegas Library Theatre with legendary singer Joe Williams, Jimmy Wilkins' Big Band and host Norman Miller. ... Admission is free, but by ticket only, available at the West Las Vegas Art Center on Lake Mead Boulevard.

Don't miss Nevada Dance Theatre's "La Luna Gitana," continuing through Sunday, UNLV's Judy Bayley Theatre. ... There are two performances on Saturday and Sunday, check for times.

Re Red Cross

March is Red Cross Month. ... Local TV, radio and Strip personalities will act as Star Hops at local Sonic Drive-ins, contributing their tips between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday to the American Red Cross. ... Call the Sonic Drive-ins for celebrity servers at their locations. ... The Clark County Chapter does good work; if you can't participate, make a donation.

Star-policy: Paul Anka-Stewie Stone (Bally's); Wynonna-Richey (Caesars); Chuck Berry (Sheraton D.I.); Lance Burton (Hacienda); Nancy Wilson-Ramsey Lewis (LV Hilton, tonight only); Oak Ridge Boys & Jay Leno in separate theaters (MGM Grand); Siegfried & Roy (Mirage); and Frankie Valli, et al (Sands). ... See you next Thursday.