Even after 18 No. 1 hits, Las Vegas could use more Mariah
We should probably start a petition to get Caesars Palace and Mariah Carey to renew their relationship. That’s all I can think about after I finally caught the chart-busting singer’s “#1 to Infinity” resident show Sunday night at the Colosseum, a production that will end Tuesday.
Even in the new headliner-dominated era of Las Vegas Strip entertainment where performers from various eras and pop music genres like Cher, Britney Spears, Celine Dion, Ricky Martin, the Backstreet Boys and Elton John are all plowing through their hits in magnificently massive stage shows, losing Carey, the best-selling female artist of all time, is a big deal. There are plans to bring Mariah back for a series of December shows celebrating her catalog of Christmas music, and that would surely be a successful endeavor.
But let’s try to lock her down for a few more years, especially since she sounds spectacular. In this show, she famously performs all 18 of her No. 1 hit singles in chronological order, opening with 1990 slow-burning ballad “Vision of Love.” She sang strong right out of the gate on Sunday, then hit some of those hallmark “whistle register” high notes on “Love Takes Time.” Even if the 47-year-old diva’s voice occasionally dips down to a 9 or even an 8, a Mariah 8 is pure and powerful, with a little more grit and soul to it these days.
There were few stumbles at my show. The highest highs came on the early “I Don’t Want to Cry,” the more upbeat “Emotions,” the classic duet with Trey Lorenz covering the Jackson 5’s “I’ll Be There,” the wisely remixed and hip-hopped version of “Heartbreaker,” and the 2005 smash “We Belong Together.” She brought out her unbelievably adorable kids Moroccan and Monroe so she could serenade them with “Always Be My Baby.” She brought out Lorenz and keyboardist/singer Daniel Moore to sing the Boyz II Men parts on “One Sweet Day.” And she brought plenty of energy to the second half of the nearly twohour show, invigorated by performing her more recent hits.
If this is the end of this huge star’s Vegas residency, go see it while you can. Not all of her fellow headliners can or will perform anywhere near Mariah’s level, and they certainly don’t have 18 No. 1 hits with which to play.
“Mariah Carey: #1 to Infinity” will be presented at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace at 8 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Tuesday, and that’s it. Find ticket information at thecolosseum.com. brock.radke@gmgvegas.com / 702-948-7811 / @brockradke