Ushering in the Fall

Spencer Patterson

Friday, Sept. 3, 2004 | 8:50 a.m.

For many Americans, Labor Day weekend is all about barbecues, swimming pools and road trips.

Several popular headliners will be hard at work in Southern Nevada over the next three days, however, with a packed concert schedule on tap.

Among the options for show-goers: a chart-busting R&B vocalist, a teen pop sensation, an Eagle flying solo, a Hollywood actor-turned-rocker, two 1980s throwbacks, a double shot of Latin-soaked rock and the world's premier modern lounge singer.

A look at some of this weekend's top options:

That's just fine with the Atlanta native's growing legion of fans, who are expected to fill the Mandalay Bay Events Center for Las Vegas' stop on "The Truth Tour."

Already a mainstay on the R&B scene with a pair of top-five charting albums, the 25-year-old vocalist has experienced unprecedented success with his latest CD, March's "Confessions."

The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and stayed perched there for nine non-consecutive weeks. "Confessions" remains No. 6 on the chart, 22 weeks after its release.

Three singles from the disc reached the Top 10 of Billboard's Hot 100 in the same week -- "Burn" at No. 1, "Yeah" at No. 4 and "Confessions, Pt. 2" at No. 8 -- making Usher the first solo artist ever to accomplish that feat.

Kanye West, the hip-hop uber-producer behind such hits as Jay-Z's "Izzo (H.O.V.A)," Ludacris' "Stand Up" and Alicia Keys' "You Don't Know My Name," opens Sunday's show.

West's debut album, February's "The College Dropout," includes the popular singles "Through the Wire" and "Slow Jamz."

At press time, a few tickets were available from $47 to $89.

Less than a month shy of her 17th birthday, the Houston native brings her "Most Wanted Tour" to the MGM Grand. She made her first Las Vegas concert debut in February at Mandalay Bay.

Duff, who released her first album, "Metamorphosis," in 2003, will be back in town to participate in the "World Music Awards" on Sept. 15 at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Tickets to tonight's show are $48.

Glenn Frey, the Club at the Cannery, 8 p.m. Saturday: Frey takes time out from the Eagles to play the North Las Vegas venue.

Among the vocalist/guitarist best-known solo numbers: "The Heat is On," "You Belong to the City" and "Smuggler's Blues."

Frey is the third Eagles member to play a solo gig in Southern Nevada this summer, following Don Henley (Primm's Buffalo Bill's in July) and Joe Walsh (the Hard Rock Hotel in August).

Tickets are $50-$165.

Bruce Willis & The Accelerators, Golden Nugget's Theatre Ballroom, 9 p.m. tonight and Saturday: Call it moonlighting if you want, but Willis has achieved enough legitimacy as a musician to be invited overseas on a United Service Organizations (USO) tour.

After completing a U.S. tour last year, Willis and his band performed to troops in Iraq and Kuwait. They return to Las Vegas for a far less weighty endeavor tonight and Saturday.

Tickets are $75.

Rick Springfield, Mandalay Bay Beach, 9 tonight: The one-time star of Strip production show "EFX Alive" returns to town for his first Las Vegas appearance in nearly two years.

Springfield brings a new album, "Shock/Denial/Acceptance/Surrender," with him, but fans can also expect to hear his '80s hits: "Jessie's Girl," "Don't Talk to Strangers," "Love Somebody" and "Affair of the Heart" among them.

Tickets are $44.

REO Speedwagon, Mandalay Bay Beach, 9 p.m. Saturday: Trivia time: which single made it higher up the charts, Springfield's "Jessie's Girl" or REO Speedwagon's "Keep on Loving You"?

It's a trick question, of course. They both reached No. 1 in 1981. And you can sing both at the Mandalay Bay Beach this weekend, with REO set to follow Springfield on consecutive nights.

The band's current lineup includes founding keyboardist Neal Doughty and longtime vocalist Kevin Cronin. Look for REO to crank out a slew of familiar numbers, including "Time for Me to Fly," "Can't Fight This Feeling," "Take it on the Run" and "Roll With the Changes."

Tickets are $38.50 in advance and $44 on Saturday.

Ozomatli with Kinky, House of Blues at Mandalay Bay, 6:30 p.m. Saturday: Whether you already listen to Latin rock, or are simply looking to dance your Saturday night away, these bands are famous for fiery live appearances. Los Angeles-based Ozomatli blends Latin, hip-hop, pop and funk elements, to name just a few of the group's many sounds.

Kinky, from Monterrey, Mexico, adds elements of electronica to the mix. The band drew rave reviews for its Coachella Festival sets in 2003 and this year.

Tickets are $22.50 in advance and $25 on Saturday.

Richard Cheese & Lounge Against the Machine, Sunset Station's Club Madrid, 10 p.m. Sunday: America's most progressive lounge act returns to its sometime home at Sunset Station, and might be making its last appearance at the club for some time.

Why? Because Cheese, the man known for his "swankified" versions of modern rock and pop hits by the likes of Britney Spears, Snoop Dogg and OutKast, is getting serious about November's presidential election.

"I've decided to postpone any future shows until George W. Bush is removed from office," Cheese wrote in a recent e-mail to fans. Furthermore, he said, "If your state votes for Bush, I won't play there."

As always, it's hard to say whether Cheese is just having a bit of fun, but fans might be wise to turn out Sunday just in case he's not.

Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 on Sunday.