Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Catch the B-52s’ anniversary tour
Perennial party rockers the B-52s know where their particular kind of party is at, and will return to South Florida for an end-of-summer concert on Aug. 29 at Fort Lauderdale’s Broward Center for the Performing Arts.
With their recent appearance at SunFest in West Palm Beach still a fresh memory, the band announced plans for another local performance on their 40th anniversary world tour, joined by fellow ’80s pop favorites Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and Berlin.
Tickets cost $59.50-$129.50 at BrowardCenter.org and Ticketmaster.com, and also are available at the venue box office (201 SW Fifth Ave., Fort Lauderdale) or by calling 954-462-0222. Other ticket options include the JetBlue Flight Deck on the Club Level for $159.50 and two VIP packages for $214.50 and $464.50, which include premium seating and other exclusives. Visit BrowardCenter.org.
The music of the B-52s was one of the defining cultural touchstones of the 1980s, from the release of an eponymous album in 1979, featuring “Planet Claire,” “Rock Lobster” and “Dance This Mess Around,” through 1989’s “Cosmic Thing,” which included the massive “Love Shack.”
But beyond the hits, the Athens, Ga.-based B-52s were cherished for more obscure grooves like the David Byrne-produced “Mesopotamia” and the punchy dance track “Whammy Kiss.” And for a classic windows-down summer sing-along, it’s hard to beat “Roam.”
The B-52s will remember the 30th anniversary of “Cosmic Thing” with the release of a remastered version of the album via Rhino Records on June 28 (digital and double CD). Visit TheB52s.com.
Also celebrating its 40th anniversary, the synthy British band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, better known as OMD, had three of the ’80s signature pop hits with “Enola Gay,” “So in Love” and “If You Leave.” The latter will be familiar to anyone (everyone) who has seen John Hughes’ iconic ’80s romance “Pretty In Pink.” Visit OMD.uk.com.
Berlin cut a provocative path to stardom in 1982 with the hit single “Sex (I’m A…),” featuring eyecatching vocalist Terri Nunn. Berlin followed with “The Metro,” “No More Words” and the career-changing ballad “Take My Breath Away,” which won an Oscar after appearing in the Tom Cruise film “Top Gun.” Nunn and co-founders John Crawford (bass) and David Diamond (keyboards) are set to release a new Berlin album in July. Visit BerlinPage.com.