from Ann Latner

I had the wonderful good fortune of being at a private show that Stevie did at a trade show in New Orleans on June 8th. This trade show traditionally has dinner and entertainment on one of the last nights, but they hadn't announced who the entertainment was. On Tuesday, the convention floor started buzzing with the rumor that the "entertainment" was Stevie Nicks. I couldn't believe it! In fact, I didn't believe it until she actually took the stage -- nothing had been officially announced until then.

That night, there was a dinner in the ballroom of the New Orleans convention center. It was like being at a giant wedding -- hundreds of round tables everywhere, everyone eating and drinking and mingling. But there was a great excitement in the air. I couldn't say how many people were actually there, but I'd guess that it was about 2500 perhaps. The only clue that it was really going to be Stevie was that the stage was all set up with instruments. When dinner was done, and the announcement was finally made, the crowd went wild.

Stevie looked and sounded terrific! She had a large back-up band which included two keyboard players, a drummer and precussionist, two back up singers, a bass player and a guitarist. The show lasted well over an hour, and included many, MANY, of her most popular songs. It was a well balanced set, including both fast and slow songs. I was extremely pleased that she did two of my favorites, Rhiannon and Gold Dust Woman. All her musicians were excellent, and her precussionist especially stood out. When she left the stage at the end, the whole room was on its feet, screaming. People were picking up the candles that were on the tables and waving them in the air -- clapping and yelling -- until she returned for an encore. The room looked like a sea of waving candles.