Clay Aiken – One Of The Biggest Acts!

On Sunday, the website, mLIVE – All Michigan posted a great article about the Clio Amphitheater with a great mention of Clay Aiken:

Twenty-five of the biggest acts to perform at Clio Amphitheater

by William E Ketchum III

The Clio Amphitheater is celebrating its 25th anniversary this summer, with a strong history of award-winning performers behind it.

In its heyday during the 1990s, the Clio Amphitheater housed some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry — some of them days before they would perform at larger venues like the Palace of Auburn Hills or DTE Energy Theatre…
Here is a list of 25 of the biggest names to perform at Clio Amphitheater.

  1. Neal McCoy
  2. Vince Gill
  3. Wynonna Judd
  4. LeAnn Rhimes
  5. B.B. King
  6. Bill Cosby
  7. Tom Jones
  8. Smokey Robinson
  9. Willie Nelson
  10. Blake Shelton
  11. Heart
  12. Styx
  13. Hall & Oates
  14. Journey
  15. Clay Aiken
  16. Huey Lewis & The News
  17. Jewel
  18. Toby Keith
  19. Larry The Cable Guy
  20. Grand Funk Railroad
  21. Billy Idol
  22. Martina McBride
  23. Jeff Foxworthy
  24. Michael Bolton
  25. Collin Raye
 I was impressed that the only picture they used for the article is one of Clay Aiken.  
The following is the picture and comments in the article.
American Idol star Clay Aiken performs at the Clio Area Amphitheater in this 2004 photo. Clio Amphitheater chairman Gary Langdon said that concertgoers traveled from as far as Seattle and Canada to attend the show.
Be sure and stop by the site and see then entire article…and leave a comment!!!  mLIVE
Clay made tour stops at the Clio Amphitheater a few times.  The Jukebox Tour stopped there on August 13, 2005.  The Flint Journal wrote a nice review of Clay and the concert:

Aiken Croons and Claymates Swoon at Concert

FLINT JOURNAL REVIEW CLIO

By Misty R. Gower 

CLIO – In 2003, he captured the hearts of gals ages 7-70. In 2005, he’s captured the soul of five decades of rock ‘n’ roll.

“American Idol” standout Clay Aiken brought his Jukebox Tour to the Clio Area Amphitheater on Saturday night, singing rapid-fire snippets of hits from the 1950s to ’90s to a crowd of about 2,500 at the 3,100-seat venue.

Make that a crowd of about 2,475 women and 25 men, a lopsided fan base that didn’t go unnoticed by Aiken.

“I know you’ve either been bribed, threatened or tortured to be here,” he told the men in the audience.

From the time Aiken stepped onto the stage dressed as The Fonz, licking his thumbs and bumping a “malfunctioning” jukebox with his forearm, the Claymates were on their feet and screaming.

Fans sat silently only when Aiken belted out ballads, the only songs he sang in their entirety throughout a 21/2-hour show that felt like part Broadway musical and part rock ‘n’ roll history lesson.

Aiken – decked out in costumes from each era – introduced each decade of songs with a narration about what was going on in the world at the time and who touched the nation’s hearts with their music.

Of course, the 26-year-old crooner wasn’t shy to admit that his vast knowledge of each decade wasn’t firsthand.

“Truth is, I was a fetus in the 1970s,” he said to a roar of laughter.

Covering the 1950s and ’60s during the first hour of the show, Aiken embraced the aw-shucks corny factor that made him a star on Season 2 of “Idol” – think judge Simon Cowell telling him to never dance again – and he ran with it, knowing that each shake of his tush and wink of an eye would send the crowd into a frenzy. A jump on the piano during “Great Balls of Fire” had women fanning themselves.

In addition to seeing Aiken’s ever-improving dance skills and his ability to play the piano, fans got to hear quite the range in his voice, often amazing listeners with low tones that many didn’t know he had.

He adapted well to the style and sound of each artist whose songs he sang, but in true “American Idol” fashion, he, well, made it his own.

He also unselfishly helped his fantastic band and three phenomenal backup singers make things their own, often singing backup for them.

But there was no doubt that Aiken was the heartthrob star of the show. His grinding dance with a backup singer during his version of Prince’s “When Doves Cry” during the ’80s segment had many swooning.

“This is too much for my heart,” said Jean Roman, 65, of Toledo, who had never attended a concert until Aiken stole her heart on “Idol” in 2003. The Clio show was the third Aiken concert she had attended in a week.

It was Aiken’s six-song set of his own works at the end of the show that garnered the biggest applause of the evening, proving that while he has built a 2005 tour around songs of the past, he’s going to have plenty of fans in the future.

Have any of you been to The Clio Amphitheater?

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