Monday, April 19, 2004 | 8:17 a.m.
Patti LaBelle, Jessica Simpson, Cyndi Lauper, Debbie Harry, Gladys Knight, Joss Stone, Eve, Sheila E. and Ashanti kept a near-capacity crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena enthralled during the two-hour-plus annual fund-raiser Sunday night, the proceeds of which go to restoring music education in public schools.
The MGM stage design was well used. It consisted of a small circle leading to a bigger circle, in which sat the orchestra. Ramps on four sides of the orchestra led to a circular platform, which raised and lowered performers from view.
Props were generally tasteful and imaginative. Teardrop-shaped balloons hung from the center, and four large C-shaped props were crested by a fifth.
Entertainers and presenters alike moved easily on and off stage, and the sets never overwhelmed the proceedings.
With such a worthy cause and such a great venue, it was natural to expect an abundance of good will throughout the evening.
Most of that good will went toward LaBelle and Lauper, the clear crowd favorites. The evening's one misstep was the inclusion of Harry, who sounded -- and looked -- like someone unsuccessfully trying to relive the past.
LaBelle, Simpson and Lauper combined for a rousing "Lady Marmalade" to open the evening. LaBelle, clad in black leather, wasted no time in dispersing doubts about whether her voice is still as good as it was when she debuted in the '60s.
She was quickly joined by Simpson, nearly spilling out of a black dress, and Lauper, wearing a leather bustier and skirt. They hit their marks -- and their notes -- perfectly throughout the number.
LaBelle and Lauper would later join for the show's undeniable high point, a duet combining Lauper's hits "Time After Time" and "True Colors," with Lauper playing the dulcimer and a guitarist and trumpeter sitting in.
The crowd exploded in applause before Lauper and LaBelle were even done, and the performers refused to stop playing even as The VH1 crew cut to a commercial break. It was a musical moment that no one wanted to end.
Every performer seemed to be having a genuinely good time, but none more so than Lauper. In addition to climbing onto the ledge of the orchestra pit and getting in some dance moves during a performance of "Stay," Lauper yelped out lyrics as she sauntered into the audience -- the only moment of audience participation in the show.
LaBelle, referred to by presenter Tyra Banks as "the woman who makes the best fried chicken," was a close second to Lauper in her enthusiasm, sometimes contorting her body to accentuate high notes. In addition to performing some new material, she went through much of her repertoire, including a showstopping version of "You'll Never Walk Alone," which brought one of her many standing ovations.
Ashanti had a good time with "I'm Coming Out," with a bevy of white-clad dancers making their way around the stage as she sashayed in a glittery dress with two backup dancers of her own.
Sheila E., who played backup for Lauper early on during "Stay," later got to show off her drumming and vocal prowess with her 1984 hit, "Glamorous Life."
Knight, who the regular headliner at Flamingo Las Vegas, gave those in attendance plenty of reasons to head across town. From "The Way We Were" to "Midnight Train to Georgia," Knight gave her younger co-stars an evening to remember.
"I just sang with Gladys Knight. That is so cool," the 17-year-old Stone gushed after performing a duet of "I Don't Want to Do Wrong" with Knight.
Simpson got her time to shine, but with the exception of "I'm Loving Angels Instead," most of her numbers felt perfunctory. While blessed with a great voice, Simpson still lacks a commanding stage presence, which becomes obvious when she's sharing it with Knight and LaBelle.
Relative newcomer Stone doesn't have that problem. From her first number, a reworking of the White Stripes' "Fell In Love With a Girl" (here changed to "Boy") to a duet with Gladys Knight, the mostly barefoot Stone was a clear audience favorite.
Unfortunately, Stone was saddled with the task of performing a duet of "One Way Or Another" with Harry, who looked underwhelmed to be in Las Vegas and seemed to have lost much of her vocal range.
From her first appearance in army fatigues with a gold lame coat and knee-high boots, Harry failed to get the crowd whipped up. Her singing was often drowned out by the band, and her newest single, "Good Boys," sounds depressingly similar to the music her band was producing nearly 25 years ago.
And while the years have been kind to Lauper, Harry now resembles a soccer mom. When did the doyenne cool morph from Greta Garbo to Florence Henderson?
But Harry can't claim the evening's most bizarre moment. That honor goes to an appearance by Carmen Electra, whose band, the Pussycat Dolls, mauled their way through "Tainted Love" before becoming backup singers to a misused Tom Jones singing "You Can Leave Your Hat On." There's nothing wrong with a Randy Newman song, but it didn't do much to show off Jones' still formidable vocal prowess. (Luckily he got his chance later on with Prince's "Kiss.")
Other non-musical events fell flat.
Most of the crowd groaned when it realized that advertised appearances by Britney Spears, Marg Helgenberger, Carly Simon, Vanessa Williams, Usher, Alisha Keys, Chaka Khan, Gloria Estefan and Pharrell Williams were actually videotaped interviews, shown on the large LED screens throughout the arena.
And the appearance of Omarosa, Amy and Heidi from NBC's reality show "The Apprentice" was dull, despite some lame attempts at humor. (Their appearance must be tied somehow to the Simpson concert some of them helped stage in the show's finale last week.)
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