Here are the Top 5 Concerts of the Coming Week:
1. TONY! TONI! TONE!/JODY WATLEY
From the late 1980s, Tony! Toni! Toné! was the hottest thing in soul/r&B music, with four gold and platinum albums and a dozen Top 10 R&B hits.
Jody Watley was just as hot, selling 2 million albums, scoring eight Top 10 R&B hits and winning the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.
So what happened? Tony! Toni! Toné! broke up after its fourth (and best) disc,1996’s “House of Music.” Front man Raphael Saadiq went solo and won three Grammy Awards with his 2008 masterpiece “The Way I See It,” but Tony! Toni! Toné! never recovered.
Watley turned to dance music and had three more No. 1s on that chart, but never again had a charting album, even though Billboard magazine last year ranked her among the Top Female Artists of all Time.
But that original music still is great.
8 p.m. Saturday, March 9, Keswick Theatre, 291 N. Keswick Ave., Glenside. Tickets: $39, $59 (other areas sold out), www.keswicktheatre.com, 215-572-7650.
2. THURSDAY
New Jersey band Thursday once rivaled Taking Back Sunday for post-hardcore/emo crown. At its 2003 slot as an opening act at Allentown Fair, Thursday upstaged headliners New Found Glory.
As it turns out, Thursday never really reached its potential. After its 2003 disc “War All the Time” broke the Top 10, emo fell out of favor, and in 2012, Thursday took a four-year hiatus.
Now, to mark the band’s 20th anniversary, it will play a two-night residency at Philadelphia’s intimate Underground Arts, playing its sophomore breakthrough disc “Full Collapse” sequentially Thursday and “War All The Time” on Friday.
8 p.m. Thursday and Friday, with American Pleasure Club, Underground Arts, 1200 Callowhill St., Philadelphia. Sold out, but resale tickets available, www.undergroundarts.org.
3. WE THREE
Country/pop/rock sibling trio We Three only made it to the semifinals on Season 13 of “America’s Got Talent” last year. But it won the judges’ hearts, bringing singer Mel B. and model Tyra Banks to tears during its audition.
Members Joshua, Bethany and Manny did that with their song “Heaven’s Not Too Far Away,” a tribute to their mother, who had recently passed away.
Now they’re winning listeners’ hearts, as well. The trio released its self-titled debut album in December, featuring “Heaven’s Not Too Far” and other singles “Lifeline,” “Make Up” and “So They Say.”
7:30 p.m. Sunday, March 10, Musikfest Cafe at ArtsQuest Center, 101 Founders Way, Bethlehem. Tickets:$25, www.steelstacks.org, 610-332-3378.
4. LIZ LONGLEY
Singer-songwriter Liz Longley has been a critic’s favorite since her eponymous 2015 debut album. Her follow-up Her “Weightless” in 2016 was perhaps even more effusively praised, and he music has been featured on TV shows such as Lifetime’s “Army Wives,” ABC’s “Beauty & The Beast” and MTV’s “Scream.”
If there’s a question about what makes Longley special, just listen to her new single — a tortured, aching, desperate version of The Four Tops’ “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)” that eclipses the pain in the original.
7 p.m. today, March 7, Godfrey Daniels, 7 E. 4th St., Bethlehem. Tickets: $23.50, www.godfreydaniels.org, 610-867-2390.
5. THE MAVERICKS
The genre-blurring county music of The Mavericks led to the group to twice win the Academy of Country Music Award for Top Vocal Group and a Grammy Award.
Since its Top 15 single “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down (with Flaco Jiménez)” in 1996 and its 1994 album “What a Crying Shame,” the band as explored many other avenues of music.
It even released a Christmas album, “Hey Merry Christmas,” on Nov. 2.
8 p.m. Saturday, March 9, Penn’s Peak, 325 Maury Road, Penn Forest Township (near Jim Thorpe). Tickets: $32, www.pennspeak.com, 800-745-3000.
OTHERS TO CONSIDER:
HOWIE DAY, 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 13, with Emma Charles, Sellersville Theatre 1894, 24 W. Temple Ave., Sellersville. Tickets: $29.50, www.st94.com, 215-257-5808.
In his 20-year career, singer-songwriter Howie Day has released four albums, all of which have made the Top 25 on the Adult albums chart (the latest, 2015’s “Lanterns,” was released independently). He’s had four songs that achieved that same distinction on the Adult singles chart. But truth be told, Day’s claim to musical fame is his 2004 hit “Collide.” The song, Day’s only Top 20 hit on the overall Singles chart, went platinum and has been featured on countless TV shows. With it, Day proves the adage that all you need is one great song.
REBA MCINTIRE, 8 p.m. March 9, Parx Casino XCite Center, 2999 Street Road, Bensalem. Sold out, but resale tickets available, www.parxcasino.com, 888-LUC-PARX.
More than 40 years into her career, Reba McEntire’s designation as Queen of Country Music remains true. She’s still one of the best-selling country artists of all time, with 24 albums hit the Top 20 on the country charts, including 11 that went to No.1. In all, McEntire has sold 45 million copies of her 43 albums in the Unites States alone. That makes her second the second-best-selling female country artist ever, behind only Shania Twain. Even at 63, her past two albums have hit No. 1, and she has a new one, “Stronger Than the Truth,” due out April 5.
