24 Karat Gold Tour, Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin, New Zealand, The Pretenders
(Stephen Jaquiery / Otago Daily Times)

Nicks and Hynde wow Dunedin

Veteran rockers still fresh in 70th show

The headline artists were 60-somethings; so were many in the near 12,000-strong crowd.

But there was enough energy at last night’s Stevie Nicks and Chrissie Hynde Dunedin concert to show there’s plenty of life in the legs of older musicians and fans yet.

Following a set full of hard-on rock tunes from Hynde (66) and her band The Pretenders, Fleetwood Mac songstress Nicks (69) took to the stage to rapturous applause.

This was the last show of a lengthy tour, but there was no sign of road-weariness.

“This is the last of 70 shows, and we have chosen to share that 70th show with you and your city,” Nicks said.

She said her spirits were high despite the recent death of close friend Tom Petty.

She told the crowd the concert setlist had been designed to tell the stories behind her songs, and Petty would have wanted her to celebrate his part in her musical story.

That was no more evident than when Nicks dueted with Hynde on “Stop Draggin My Heart Around” — a song from her 1981 debut solo album Bella Donna, which she and Petty had a worldwide hit with.

Each song was preceded by an anecdote or an explanation of how it came to be written.

“It’s like writing a book on stage,” Nicks told the crowd.

Among the readers in the audience were a strong contingent from Christchurch.

This was a Dunedin show, but it was hard to find a local among the early arrivals.

The front rows filled up within minutes of the gates opening at Forsyth Barr Stadium — and everyone spoken to had come from Christchurch for the show.

“The roads were really busy coming down,” Nigel and Dierdre Bratten said.

The Brattens are dedicated Nicks fans: Mr Bratten was wearing his Fleetwood Mac T-shirt from the band’s previous Dunedin visit and the couple had also seen Nicks in New Plymouth — and they saw Hynde on her last New Zealand tour, too.

“Absolutely we wanted to see her again — she’s brilliant,” Mr Bratten said.

Fellow Christchurch devotees Liz Nichol and Steve Grant — the first fans seated in the front row — were savouring their view of proceedings.

“We were watching a documentary about her on television and I said to Steve ‘can we go see Stevie Nicks?’ and he said ‘yes’,” Ms Nichol said.

Nichol, a former singer in a country rock band, said she loved Nicks’ music and the couple had bought her CDs for years. Last night they had as good a view as a fan could possibly get of their idol.

Two of the younger fans at the front were Christchurch’s Andrew Te Groen and Brienna Henderson, who had no intention of missing last night’s show, having grown up with Nicks’ music.

“I’m a really big fan of both Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks,” said Mr Te Groen.

“I sort of sneaked out from work and made sure we got good seats.”

Hynde and The Pretenders took no prisoners in their opening set, firing out hard-rocking tunes like Alone and Gotta Wait as an opening salvo, before playing fan favourites like Don’t Get Me Wrong and Brass In Pocket.

Hynde told the crowd she had spent a couple of days in Dunedin and loved the town. Highlights included seeing the Cirkopolis show and First Church.

“It really is just like the north of Scotland, if they had daylight up there.”

Mike Houlahan / Otago Daily Times / Friday, November 24, 2017

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LIVE IN CONCERT (2023)

Billy Joel and Stevie NicksStevie Nicks

March 10, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
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Las Vegas, NV
T-Mobile Arena

March 23, 2023
San Francisco, CA
Chase Center

March 26, 2023
Sacramento, CA
Golden 1 Center

March 30, 2023
Oklahoma, OK
Paycom Center

April 2, 2023
New Orleans, LA
Smoothie King Center

April 5, 2023
Birmingham, AL
Legacy Arena at the BJCC

April 8, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
Arlington, TX
AT&T Stadium

May 12, 2023
Raleigh, NC
PNC Arena

May 16, 2023
Knoxville, TN
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May 19, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
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May 22, 2023
Atlanta, GA
State Farm Arena

May 25, 2023
Orlando, FL
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June 16, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
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June 20, 2023
Toronto, ON
Scotiabank Arena

June 23, 2023
Chicago, IL
United Center

Jun 27, 2023
Louisville, KY
KFC Yum! Center

August 5, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
Columbus, OH
Ohio Stadium

August 19, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
Kansas City, MO
Arrowhead Stadium

September 23, 2023
Foxborough, MA
Gillette Stadium

October 7, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
Baltimore, MD 
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Minneapolis, MN
U.S. Bank Stadium

December  8, 2023 – BILLY JOEL
Phoenix, AZ
Chase Field

Two Icons One Night presented by Live Nation

2022 Tour

Stevie Nicks

Jazz Aspen Snowmass
Snowmass, CO
Labor Day 2022

Ravinia Festival
Highland Park, IL
September 8, 2022
September 10, 2022

Pine Knob Music Theatre
Clarkston, MI
September 13, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Sea Hear Now Festival
Asbury, NJ
September 17, 2022

Xfinity Center
Mansfield, MA
September 19, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Maine Savings Amphitheatre
Bangor, ME
September 22, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Sound on Sound Festival
Bridgeport, CT
September 24-25, 2022

Ohana Festival
Dana Point, CA
September 30, 2022

Hollywood Bowl
Los Angeles, CA
October 3, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

POSTPONED
Ak-Chin Pavilion

Phoenix, AZ
October 6, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

POSTPONED
Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

The Woodlands, TX
October 9, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Alpharetta, GA
October 12, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Ascend Amphitheater
Nashville, TN
October 16, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Credit One Stadium
Charleston, SC
October 19, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

PNC Music Pavilion
Charlotte, NC
October 22, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
Tampa, FL
October 25, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
West Palm Beach, FL
October 28, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Orion Amphitheatre
Huntsville, AL
October 31, 2022

RESCHEDULED SHOWS

Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
The Woodlands, TX
November 2, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

Ak-Chin Pavilion
Phoenix, AZ
November 5, 2022
w/ Vanessa Carlton

 

Edge of Midnight (2020)

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New Release

Stevie Nicks, Stand Back 1981-2017, compilation

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