Las Vegas Weekly

April 16, 2009 · 10:04 AM

Wish list of acts for The Joint includes David Bowie and Rolling Stones

By Robin Leach

Carlos Santana at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel on April 14.

Photo: Justin M. Bowen

If John Meglen had his way, he’d sign David Bowie and The Rolling Stones to join Carlos Santana as new resident headliners at the Hard Rock Hotel’s new Joint concert venue opening tomorrow with The Killers.

John, the president of AEG Live/Concerts West, not only signed Carlos to 70 shows over two years, but he also runs Caesars Palace, where he’s been responsible for Celine Dion, Cher, Bette Midler and Sir Elton John, who ends his three-year run there next Wednesday. Now he’s begun plotting which acts to add to The Joint on a rotating residency basis.

John told me: “There are others in the works. We managed to keep Carlos a complete surprise. It’s not a big residency, but it is a powerful one. I have a wish list: David Bowie, Linkin Park. Fifty shows each would be ideal. I would love that. I keep bothering David’s people. I bother The Who. I bother The Rolling Stones and The Foo Fighters. For the first time, I can say there’s a lot of interest out there, now that Carlos signed the contract, to play Vegas in some form of a residency.

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

Randy Kwasniewski, Paul Davis and Carlos Santana at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel on April 14.

“Carlos brought a lot of credibility to playing Vegas regularly. I wanted that to happen from the start. I wanted people to go wow. I didn’t want to lead with an old, hairy rock and roll band. Carlos is the master. He’s a guru looked up to by many people and stars in the music industry. I want people to feel here like it was when they saw him at the Fillmore. We want it to be an extraordinary experience, but rougher, edgier than what we do more formally at The Colosseum. The Joint will always be funky.”

Carlos himself commented at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Joint on Tuesday: “I would like to start by saying how grateful we are to be here. When eternity nears, time disappears. We came here for the first time with The Grateful Dead in 1967, before Woodstock, and by the grace of God, we are still here. These, though, now are challenging times because of the flow of the economy. This economy is fear, one hell of a fear. We bring an element that is far different than fear. We bring hope, trust and faith as the alternative to fear.

“Everybody needs the answer to fear. By the grace of God, we have been given this tool of resonance and sound vibration that are connected eternally and, when eternity nears, time disappears: Marvin Gaye, Bob Marley, Miles Davis, Frank Sinatra, Jerry Garcia. When we come here to play, we intend to channel all of them, sometimes all at the same time.

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

Patrick Berge, John Meglen, Carlos Santana, Mayor Oscar Goodman and Randy Kwasniewski at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel on April 14.

“We feel grateful to be here, so we extend an invitation not only to the audience, but also to other artists -- Willie Nelson or Bob Dylan or Prince -- to come join us. We will have South African musicians and others from Hawaii because when Santana is up, we bring it all with us. We don’t leave anybody out. “

I also talked at the ribbon cutting with Randy Kwasniewski, Hard Rock Hotel president. Randy told me: “It is very important we have big names in The Joint. It’s a major part of the budget allocation. We started right out the gate with the big hitters, the important people. The venue is fabulous, and it was built for the best, not for second-rate acts. We built it first class for first-rate acts.

It’s not a stadium but big enough for us to feel confident we can bring in those big acts. It’s great for our city, great for the Vegas community and great for the Hard Rock Hotel. Since we’re promoting the brand of Vegas and the brand of the Hard Rock, utilizing and leveraging those acts with these brands makes a lot of sense putting them all together. It generates international value and attention.

Photo: Hard Rock Hotel

The Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel.

“The Santana launch has already brought us the highest room bookings in five years. I thought it was a one-day anomaly, but it’s happened each day since. That’s made a hell of a lot of difference for us. Big bands cover big areas, not just this country, but internationally we need that attention at this time for Hard Rock and for Vegas.

“We spent 10 percent of our expansion budget on The Joint -- about $65 to $70 million, but it will contribute far more than 10 percent to our operations. It is the lynchpin to everything. The Joint was important before, but now this venue is a hell of a lot different. It’s fantastic, and this new one is vital and gets respect. We have been hell bent on it since day one. We built the right thing in the right size, and the business model works. We’re after the Stones, U2 and David Bowie. We’re after them all.

“I think Carlos will bring some of those people here. I think they will be playing onstage with him before too long. I’m a big fan of his, so I am glad it worked out. He spans several decades and all kinds of demographic and is known worldwide.

Photo: Hard Rock Hotel

The Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel.

“Nobody else in town does rock and roll like we do at the Hard Rock. We do it and stick with it. We’re different -- we used to do a lot of different things, but now we don’t do a lot of stuff we did in the past. No more mosh pits; just high-end rock and roll. We’re not pop. That’s not what we do. We don’t do certain kinds of acts that others will do. We’re staying with rock and roll and maybe hip-hop.

“The Joint is the carrot for everything here at the HRH. It’s extremely important because it supports the brand and promotes quality. We’ve got Carey Hart’s new tattoo operation, the new Rare 120 rock and roll steak restaurant -- very cool. It has different DJ booths in there with sexy video walls and fantastic food. We’re adding a couple of other retail outlets -- haven’t signed them yet -- but they will be high-end male and female fashion clothing stores with cosmetics. They will complement our Love Jones boutique. The walkway from the garage is going to be upscale with five or six more stores coming in and three more cool restaurants and nightclubs. We are building a new entertainment center outside, too.

“I want to keep the Hard Rock we know with that old vibe. Rehab means edgy, crazy and having lots of fun, and our new Euro pool that will be tops optional. We’ll mix it up a little bit so not only for kids but also for people who think that way. Our new South Tower is all suites and opening in December. The rooms are fabulous, and the tower has a brand new salon and a 25,000-square-foot spa with unique Turkish baths. On the top level, we have seven brand new big penthouse suites, three with their own pools.

Photo: Tom Donoghue/www.donoghuephotography.com

Brandon Flowers of The Killers.

“All is good for the Hard Rock at this time. We hope the economy picks up because we’ll be happier. But we sensed a turn when the bookings went up with Carlos. I felt like it did, so I hope it stays. It has continued, and we’re looking big in the summer: May and June will be big months for us. When the pool opens, it changes everything.

“Remember we have been without The Joint for three months, so now it opens this weekend, and we get a lot of energy. Things are picking up. The vibe is picking up, and I feel good. The vibe is picking up.”

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

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