*Word arrived in the office Wednesday morning that DAVE MATTHEWS BAND will return to the road this summer with an extensive North American tour, scheduled to launching on May 18 in Texas. The group ranked as the biggest ticket seller worldwide of the past decade, but took last year off from touring.

The 2012 tour will feature numerous two-night stands, including May 25 and 26 at The Comcast Theatre in Hartford. Interestingly, each show will feature a different opener: Mariachi El Bronx is listed as the opener for Friday’s show, while Caroline Chocolate Drops will have the honor on Saturday.

No public tickets yet. An online presale for members of the DMB Warehouse Fan Association will begin Thursday, February 16, at 10 am, at www.warehouse.davematthewsband.com.

Citi card holders will then have access to presale tickets beginning Monday, March 5, at 10  am through Citi’s Private Pass Program (Citi is the official credit card of the tour). For complete presale details visit www.citiprivatepass.com.

Tickets will then go on sale to the rest of us on Friday, March 9. Visit www.davematthewsband.com/#/tour for further information.

*Meanwhile, Live Nation has a pair of Connecticut shows going on sale this Friday morning.

ALISON KRAUSS & UNION STATION featuring JERRY DOUGLAS will be at the Oakdale Theatre in Wallingford on Saturday, April 21. Those tickets have been set at $35 to $75, and will be available online through LiveNation.com, or by calling 800-653-8000.

The second show going on sale Friday morning is 106.9 WCCC Big Gig, a May 19 event at The Comcast Theatre in Hartford, that will feature Main Stage sets by GODSMACK and STAIND, along with Volbeat, Dead Sara, Black Stone Cherry, and Festival Stage performances by Hellyeah, Art of Dying, Jasta, Aranda and Dead by Wednesday. Additional Festival Stage bands are expected to be announced closer to the show.

These tickets are $13.50 for the lawn, $23.50 to $59 for reserved seats, and $59 for the pit.

LiveNation.com will also have these tickets available for purchase, and I believe you can also call the national charge line for these (again, 800-653-8000).

*For those who want to plan in advance for some local shows, OLD SCHOOL has announced its calendar for the rest of February and all of March. Lou Bellofatto and Tony Summo will be at Mona Lisa in Wolcott on Friday, February 17 (call 203-879-7300 for directions or details); and then performing at The Bookends Trio at The Swiss Tavern in Lynbrook, N.Y., on Saturday night.

Next weekend the boys will be at Proud Mary’s, the lounge at The Inn at Newtown, 19 Main Street, from 8 to 11 pm on Friday, February 24.

On March 2, The Bookends will be in Peekskills, N.Y., at Rubens (5 North Division Street; 914-739-4330); Lou will be performing a solo show at Café on The Green, 100 Aunt Hack Road in Danbury, on Saturday, March 3, before he and fellow Bookends Trio head out to Mohegan Lake, N.Y., for a show that night at Brodie’s Pub (3262 East Main Street; telephone 914-528-1614).

The weekend of March 9-10, Old School will make its debut at Junipers, at 1383 Whittemore Road (Route 188) in Middlebury. The duo will be performing from 8 pm until midnight on Friday and Saturday.

After another weekend of shows in New York (March 16 back at The Swiss Tavern and March 17 at Murphy’s Law in Harrison, both as The Bookends Trio), Old School will return for another show at Mona Lisa in Wolcott on March 23, and then to Proud Mary’s on March 30.

Lou will be closing out the month (literally, on March 31) with another solo show at Café on The Green in Danbury.

Until next week, I’ll be seeing you… on the road.

Questions and comments should be sent to Shannon Hicks c/o The Newtown Bee, 5 Church Hill Road, Newtown CT 06470, or shannon@thebee.com, or call the office at 426-3141.

 

 

UPCOMING SHOWS

FEBRUARY 17 — Everlast at Mohegan Sun’s Wolf Den, Uncasville; Old School at Mona Lisa, Wolcott; Johnny Boots at The Georgetown Saloon, Redding;

February 18 — Lynyrd Skynyrd at The MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods, Mashantucket; Roomful of Blues at Infinity Music Hall, Norfolk; Foreigner at The Klein, Bridgeport; Lucy Kaplansky at Fairfield Theatre Company’s StageOne, Fairfield; New Edition at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville; 7th Annual BlackRock Rocks Mardi Gras Fundraiser at Acoustic Café, Neutral Ground and Lulu’s Hot Spot, Bridgeport (2 pm to closing, concurrent events at three locations, fundraiser for Original Works, Inc. and Music 4 More); Low Maintenance at The Georgetown Saloon;

February 19 — George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic at Toad’s Place, New Haven;

February 20 — Wolf Den Hall of Fame Concert at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, featuring Little Anthony & The Imperials, John Cafferty and The Beaver Brown Band, Eddie Money, America, Jay Black, et al;

February 21 — Marc Huberman at The Georgetown Saloon (acoustic open mic);

February 23 — An Evening with Wilson Phillips at The Ridgefield Playhouse, Ridgefield; Artie Tobia at The Georgetown Saloon (acoustic open mic);

February 24 — An Evening with Wilson Phillips at Infinity Music Hall (CPTV filming); Old School at Proud Mary’s; Stretch at The One-Eyed Pig, Newtown; Blugruve at The Georgetown Saloon;

February 25 — River City Slim at The Georgetown Saloon; Scarab: A Tribute to Journey at Downtown Cabaret Theatre, Bridgeport (shows at 5 and 8 pm);

February 26 — Cowboy Junkies at The Ridgefield Playhouse; Blake Shelton at Mohegan Sun Arena, Dia Frampton opening;

February 28 — Artie Tobia at The Georgetown Saloon (acoustic open mic).

MARCH 1 — Black 47 at Infinity Music Hall, Norfolk; Taj Mahal Trio at The Ridgefield Playhouse, Ridgefield;

March 3 — Van Halen at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville; Face To Face: A Tribute To Billy Joel & Elton John at Downtown Cabaret Theatre, Bridgeport (shows at 5 and 8 pm); Lou Bellofatto at Café on The Green, Danbury;

March 4 — The B-52s at The Ridgefield Playhouse;

March 7 — Jane’s Addiction at The Palace Theater, Waterbury;

March 9 — Terri Clark at Infinity Music Hall, Norfolk; Old School at Junipers, Middlebury (also March 10); Travis Tritt at The Ridgefield Playhouse; Old School at Junipers Restaurant, Middlebury (also March 10);

March 10 — Dropkick Murphys at Mohegan Sun Arena, Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls opening; Old School at Junipers Restaurant (also March 9);

March 14 — Jon Anderson at Infinity Music Hall;

March 15 — Jefferson Starship, David Freiberg, Slick Aguilar, Nona Hendryx, et al at The Ridgefield Playhouse;

March 16 — Nitty Gritty Dirt Band at The Ridgefield Playhouse, Roger Sprung & The Progressive Bluegrassers opening; Brit Floyd at the Oakdale, Wallingford; Jackie Greene at Fairfield Theatre Company’s StageOne, Fairfield;

March 18 — The Saw Doctors at The Ridgefield Playhouse;

March 23 — Toni Braxton at The MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods, Mashantucket, with special guest Babyface; Old School at Mona Lisa, Wolcott;

March 25 — Third Annual Ridgefield BandJam at The Ridgefield Playhouse (middle and high school age bands showcase);

March 28 — Shawn Colvin at Fairfield Theatre Company’s StageOne;

March 30 — Joan Osborne at Infinity Music Hall; Old School at Proud Mary’s, Newtown;

March 31 — Thomas Dolby at The Ridgefield Playhouse, with special guests Aaron Jonah Lewis and Ben Belcher; Lou Bellofatto at Café on The Green, Danbury.