Posted on 08/08/2006 4:33:04 AM PDT by Pokey78
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Several concerts on the Dixie Chicks' "Accidents & Accusations" tour have been canceled after slow ticket sales, but the group says it has replaced them with other dates.
Kansas City, Houston, St. Louis, Memphis and Knoxville are among 14 cities no longer on the original schedule released in May, according to a revised itinerary posted Thursday on the Dixie Chick's Web site.
Other shows, including Nashville, Los Angeles, Denver and Phoenix, have been pushed back to later dates.
The North American leg of the tour kicked off July 21 in Detroit. Billboard magazine and other trade publications have reported lackluster sales in some markets, particularly in the South and Midwest.
Group spokeswoman Kathy Allmand said Monday that the total number of North American dates remains the same, with several Canadian cities added in place of the U.S. shows.
The trio released a statement last week attributing the changes to attempts to "accommodate demand" and said more dates might be added next year.
The group also said the adjustments will allow them to promote the documentary "Dixie Chicks: Shut up and Sing," for the Toronto International Film Festival in September.
"We hope that our fans who were looking forward to a stop that is no longer on the tour will be able to join us at a nearby arena this fall, and we are sorry for any confusion or inconvenience these changes have caused," the Dixie Chicks said.
Many country fans criticized the band after lead singer Natalie Maines told a London audience in 2003 on the eve of war in Iraq that the trio was "ashamed" President Bush was from their home state of Texas.
County radio stations dropped them from their playlists and have been slow to welcome them back, despite strong sales of their latest album, "Taking the Long Way."
The album, which has more of a rock edge than their previous releases, spent several weeks at the top of the country albums chart and has sold more than 1 million copies.
I was at the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville Saturday night and one of the singer/songwriters commented that he was glad that the Dixie Chicks recorded his song and released it long before they made the comments in England and before they went down the downward slope of their careers.
Even if the # of stops remains the same. Playing in venues 1/3 the size of the originals and taking twice the time do the tour is hardly face saving.
They bombed pure and simple.
What? But a press release I read a week ago about one of the cancelled concerts said they were canceling to work on a documentary.
They couldn't have been lying, could they?
Action, reaction.
They have a right to say what they want.
We have a right to boycott them.
To h*ll with them.
That is good. When other artists routinely comment the Chicks' careers are toast, that is not only the truth but also rings throughout the land.
Heeeheeeheee... ;-)
Chicks said they were amazed by threats for their safety.
GOOD
"Kick me in the ass. . .I'm not askin. .. I'm tellin!"
Waiting for the obligatory "Natalie Maines is fat" and "Their music is overproduced and stinks" comments, as well as the un-doctored magazine cover shot, the Natalie morphing into batboy, etc.
***
For me it has nothing to do with Ms. Maines' physicla appearance or the group's music. I used to be a fan of their music. But when they bad mouthed our President and in effect this entire nation in a foreign land, that was it for me. Sure, they have freedom of speech. But what they did was not only insult the President of the United States, but every one of us...especially our military which is fighting these wars and protecting the Chicks' rights to do and say what they please. I refuse to be insulted and then pay for those insults by buying their recordings or attending their concerts. I'm not that much of a masochist.
ARENA!!??
Ha ha ha ha! You gotta be kidding me. They aren't playing anywhere that approaches the level of "arena" We were in Atlantic City NJ last week and saw that they were playing at the Borgata. So I went up to the box office to see if tickets were available (this was less than a week before the show). There were PLENTY, including many premium seats. This was for an auditorium that sits about 3,500.
Smirk, yeah, arena my butt.
I heard the Detroit show was only about half sold out. I note that the story says that Radio Stations have been slow to put them back in the play list. From what I have heard is that if you put them back the stations get hundreds of calls telling them they just tuned them out.
When the only reactions is listeners tune your station out there is zero reason to add them to the play list. And any PD that does will find himself unemployed when the ratings come out.
I find it interesting that this poll in which people vote with their dollars, seems to get much different results than the media polls.
Today should tell us a lot. If Lieberman should win the media is going to lose even more credibility. The funny thing is the people the Media has put on the air in the last 24 hours sure seem to be talking pro Lieberman
It seems they are trying to tell us the whole world has changed in the last 3 days.
No, no...all of those tour dates were in cities that were too hot, and they cancelled so that their fans wouldn't have to go outside and sweat on the way to the theater. Considerate chicks, eh?
Kansas City, Houston, St. Louis, Memphis and Knoxville If the chicks can't fill these venues, they are in trouble. Houston is the 4th largest city in the US folks. LA is 2nd and that date is being moved back. Is the circus in town or something?
***
I expected the Chicks would not sell well in the south, despite CMT and others promoting their music and their concerts. The Midwest too -- the heartland -- seems the good decent folks aren't taking too kindly to the Chicks and their anti-Americanism. But I would have thought the Chicks would sell well in major liberal strongholds such as LA. Pretty bad when people in the moonbat major cities don't want to come to your concerts.
Perfectly said!
The good news is that this will be their farewell tour. Expect the Chicks to break up after this tour in order to "spend more time with their families".
The bad news is that Fat Nat will try to launch a solo career.
Communist views don't bode well with American values. I love hearing that their sales have tanked! :)
I think they're the opening act for
Da Yoopers.
http://dayoopers.com/
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