A busy summer for concerts and the arrival of music stars! PNE entertainment director Patrick Roberge brought forth his Summer Concert Series once again with an all star lineup. The man I was most anxious to see was Chris Isaak. His new CD is Beyond The Sun, a salute to the music created at the legendary Sun Studios in Memphis.

Chris also recorded a song for Listen to Me, a multi-celebrity disc saluting Buddy Holly’s 75th birthday. Buddy will receive a star in the Hollywood Hall of Fame this month. James Burton will be there and is featured on the CD. Here’s a sample:

Chris tells me his contribution is a Holly song titled Crying, Waiting, Hoping. I am going to add this one to my collection.

When British chanteuse Adele came to perform at the Orpheum Theatre her hand-picked opening act was Wanda Jackson. Wanda was one of rock and roll’s first female performers alongside Brenda Lee and Janis Martin. She is still going strong and you must hear her new CD The Party Isn’t Over with Jack White and the White Stripes wailing great rockabilly. My favorite cut is Thunder on the Mountain, written by Bob  Dylan. If this doesn’t rock you, nothing will!

The “party” reference goes back to her biggest selling record Let’s Have a Party, which was a hit for her in 1961 but had been featured in the 1957 Elvis movie Loving You. Wanda dated Elvis for a while back in the  50’s and can’t say enough nice things about him.

Wanda was in great  form and many in the audience who came to see Adele waited in the theatre lobby and wandered in at half time. However, Wanda was so incredible the people in the lobby could hear the audience giving her a standing ovation. Wanda also did a salute to Amy Winehouse which reached to your very soul. She is the first lady  of Rockabilly and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in  2009.