Clay Aiken – A Message From Penn

On Saturday afternoon, Penn Jillette posted a short tweet.  It seems that he and his partner were performing at the Caesars Windsor.  Somehow, he found a couple of pictures posted at the casino.  He put them together and…

Penn Jillette @pennjillette

Backstage at Caesars Windsor with those who have played here before. https://twitter.com/pennjillette/status/209…2212096/photo/1

I took a few moments to find out about Clay’s stop at Caesars Windsor…to my surprise, my article dated August 6th was at the top of the google search…so…This is what I wrote!

 

The Timeless Tour made a stop in Windsor, Ontario on August 5th. The concert was held at Caesars Windsor. This beautiful facility is located on Windsor’s riverfront and overlooks the Detroit skyline. The Colosseum at Caesars Windsor is a 5,000 seat venue and according to the box office, the show was almost a sold-out show.

Ted Shaw, from The Windsor Star, was a part of the audience and posted his review only a few hours after the show ended. Mr. Shaw seemed to like most of the show and called it smart and tasteful.

Ex-Idols entertain with smart, tasteful show

By Ted Shaw, The Windsor Star August 6, 2010 2:02 AM

While neither could be called an American idol, Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken showed Thursday at Caesars Windsor’s Colosseum how they won the hearts and votes of millions who watched them compete in 2003.

They were rivals back in the second season of American Idol, when Studdard took top spot and Aiken was right behind. Now they’re singing side-by-side on a 17-city North American tour called Timeless.

Taking a cue from 1960s TV variety shows, the two teased and joked with each other in a well-rehearsed revue that covered four decades of popular music.

Pretending to still hold grudges from the American Idol contest, they opened with hit singles they have each had since the show — Studdard’s Flying Without Wings and Aiken’s This is the Night.

There were winks about Aiken’s coming-out about his homosexuality in a People Magazine interview two years ago. The audience lapped it up. It was close to capacity, about 5,000, and surprisingly an older-than-you’d-expect audience.

But that made some of their musical choices smart and tasteful, particularly in the first half of the show.

Aiken was first out of the blocks with a cover of Elvis Presley’s Suspicious Minds, backed by terrific vocalists, Qiana Parler and Casey Thompson. Parler and Aiken go back to the earliest days of American Idol — they were performing together before signing up for the show in 2002.

Studdard was up next with Bring It On Home to Me, then they went into a 15-song medley of the 1960s, each taking leads. Studdard’s In the Midnight Hour was followed by Aiken’s Up On The Roof.

There were snippets of Motown, too, with the backup singers and Aiken slapping tambourines on their sides.

Clay’s Still The One, the Orleans song, was a little out of place during this segment, but he did a bang-up job of it.

The highlight was Studdard’s moving performances of two Marvin Gaye songs — Mercy Mercy Me and What’s Goin’ On. Three medleys from succeeding decades followed, each less interesting than the last. The ’90s medley near the show’s end was, unfortunately, a real downer.

Studdard and Aiken work seamlessly together — both have musical stage acting in their backgrounds, and it pays off during the banter between songs.

This is a concept that could easily be translated to the small screen — maybe it’s time to revive weekly variety television.

Be sure and click on the Windsor Star site. It is important for Mr. Shaw and the publication to know that we appreciate news about Clay. To visit, click on Windsor Star (link is no longer valid.)

Did anyone here see Clay at Caesars – Windsor?

Did you enjoy the Timeless Tour?

Did you see Penn’s tweet?

Clay Aiken News Network is an unofficial fansite. We are not affiliated in any way with Clay Aiken or his management. This website was made by fans for fans and makes no impression or impersonation of the official site, which can be found under the domain clayaiken.com.

9 thoughts on “Clay Aiken – A Message From Penn

  1. I was there at Caesars in Windsor. I loved the concert. That is the night that Clay's mic dropped down his pants at the back. He had to go off stage, and then come back. It was hilarious!!

    I loved the Timeless Tour. It was fun, the songs were great and I always felt so entertained from start to finish.

    I did see Penn's tweet yesterday and replied to him. I didn't know they were in Windsor. I could have driven there, but I didn't know Penn & Teller were there.

  2. I was so grateful to see Clay at Windsor …it was my first concert .
    I was so close to him since I was on first row, and if it wasn't for the stage be so high and me being short I probably could touch him.

    It was a great concert with so many fans there.
    After I met many fans in Toronto and traveled with them in a van to Windsor I got to meet so many more there ( thanks to Judy for organize the get together at dinner there at the hotel) and then I traveled with some to Chautauqua. IT WAS A GREAT TOUR and I had a GREAT TIME.

    Nice to know Penn was at Windsor too…… love the pics.

  3. That was a fun tweet from Penn. Nice of him to give a shout out. I didn’t get to see the Timeless tour but definitely checked out all the clack. I did get to theTNT tour though. Greatness.

  4. I am glad that Penn tweeted about Clay's appearence there. I did see this concert in other places and it was so good. He and Ruben really played off one another so well. I agree with the reviewer who said it was time to bring back the weekly variety show. I would love that. Clay would be wonderful in one.Thanks so much for posting this. I had not seen Penn;s tweet.

  5. Didn’t get to Windsor, but did see the Timeless tour in Lancaster PA. How nice of Penn to tweet the photos and comment.

    So happy to hear that the venue was almost sold out…5,000 seats! Way to go Clay.

  6. How nice to see the picture from Penn.

    Windsor, Ontario…well, it looks like a great place. Maybe Clay will perform there again SOON

    Many thanks for all they days and hours you put into this site. It is wonderful.

  7. I am glad to see the picture that Penn tweeted. The Timeless Tour was so much fun. I went to the King Center in Melbourne, Florida to see it. That place was packed with men, women, families, you name it. I hope he does another JBT with a lot of upbeat songs again.

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