Columnist Joe Delaney: Welcoming songstress Warwick back to town

Joe Delaney

Friday, Feb. 15, 2002 | 9:42 a.m.

Joe Delaney's column appears on Thursdays and Fridays. Reach him at joe@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4066.

Dionne Warwick, too long away, appears through Sunday in the performer- and audience-friendly Orleans showroom ... A re-released version of "What the World Needs Now," joined by rappers Ray J. Terese, Coolio, Bobby Brown and Big Daddy Kane, hit the Billboard charts, making Warwick one of the few artists to have chart hits in four consecutive decades.

Warwick ranks among the most-charted female singers over the past 40 years ... As the voice for the compositions of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, she had a succession of hit singles between 1962 and 1970 ... In 1968 she won a Grammy for the songwriting duo's "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" and in 1970, for an album based on the songwriters' composition "I'll Never Fall in Love Again."

Warwick parted company with Bacharach and David in 1971, joined the Warner Bros. label and had a sporadic decade with modest results that did include one No. 1 single, "Then Came You," with the Spinners ... A live album with Isaac Hayes, "A Man and a Woman," resulted in a successful 1978 national tour. Barry Manilow produced her first platinum album, "Dionne."

Two singles from "Dionne" -- a remake of "I'll Never Fall In Love Again" and a new song, "Deja Vu" -- earned Grammy Awards, making Warwick the first female artist to win Best Female Pop and Best Female R&B Vocalist ... Bee Gee Barry Gibb produced her "Heartbreaker" album, with the title song a hit single.

Most of Warwick's hit singles in the early 1980s were duets with Johnny Mathis, Luther Vandross and Jeffrey Osborne ... Her biggest hit in the 1980s came with a Bacharach composition, "That's What Friends Are For," sung with Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder ... Proceeds from the 1985 Grammy Award winner went to benefit the American Foundation for Aids Research.

Warwick reunited with Bacharach and David in 1993 for "Friends Can Be Lovers," as well a duet with her cousin, Whitney Houston, on "Love Will Find A Way" on the Arista label ... Her latest album, "Dionne Sings Dionne," is a combination of updates of earlier hits and and new material ... Her vocals have transcended race, culture and musical boundaries.

Warwick continues to work with a variety of organizations dedicated to empowering and serving others including serving as U.S. ambassador for health during the Reagan administration ... Welcome, Dionne. Come back soon.

Weekend wrap-up

If you would like to spend an evening savoring the best of the original Las Vegas, have a good meal and a great time, we recommend a visit to the Bootlegger on a Friday or Saturday night to enjoy a consummate entertainer, a premier saloon singer, Sonny King, along with Blackie Hunt and his wife, Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt, and a variety of talented guest performers, starting at 10 p.m.

Also at the Bootlegger, on Feb. 25, 2-5 p.m., comedian Bernie Allen will celebrate his 86th birthday with King, the Hunts, and a number of fellow comedians in a Benefit for the Homeless ... Admission: Bring a gift of blankets, clothing or canned foods for a great time, especially for those who work odd shifts and cannot attend evening events ... More on this.

Happy first anniversary to the new edition of "Showgirls of Magic" (San Remo) on Wednesday ... Second and last weekend for "Of Mice and Men," University Nevada, Las Vegas' Judy Bayley Theatre ... The Utah Shakespearean Festival presents "A Midsummer Night's Dream," 8 tonight and Saturday at the Community College Southern Nevada's Nicholas J. Horn Theatre.

LV Little Theatre presents "Master Class," during weekends starting tonight, through March 3 ... Korean percussionists Samulnori perform at UNLV's Ham Hall, tonight at 8 o'clock ... Sunday at 4 p.m., also at Ham Hall, the "Best of New York Stage Series" presents song stylist Dianne Reeves, highly recommended.

"EFX Alive" star Rick Springfield joins host Nate Tannenbaum, KTNV Channel 13 weatherman, on KNPR 89.5-FM's "Guess Who's Playing the Classics?" program, Sunday at 10 a.m. ... Next Friday Springfield and "EFX Alive" will celebrate the production's 3,000th performance ... Singer Laura Taylor is the Riviera Monday Jazz Night soloist ... See you next Thursday.