There are many artists we associate with musical residencies in Las Vegas: Elvis and Sinatra in the days of old, and more recently, Kylie Minogue, Katy Perry, Cher, and Adele. But despite their global popularity, a few musical icons have also performed on the famous strip that isn’t mentioned in the same breath as Sin City. Here are three you never knew played in Las Vegas.
The Beatles
Back at the height of Beatlemania, the Fab Four were touring America in a whirlwind of crazed fans and controversy. Still, as the biggest band on the planet, it makes sense that they played in the world’s entertainment capital. Casinos have always used musical acts to draw in punters, and the enduring popularity of classic games like blackjack, poker, and slots has seen them transition into a massive online industry. Now, players can enjoy the classics and play Plinko Go alongside other new style slots.
Their management discouraged The Beatles from enjoying the casinos in case unruly fans followed them into the gaming halls. Nonetheless, on 20 August 1964, they played two shows at the Convention Centre in Las Vegas on a detour between San Francisco and Los Angeles. Both the 4 pm and 9 pm gigs enjoyed sell-out crowds of 8,000 in defiance of a bomb warning—the police deemed the outcry of a no-show to be more dangerous.
Daft Punk
While Daft Punk didn’t technically grace the stage of one of the grand Vegas casinos, the much-beloved French house superstars put on an absolute barnstormer of a performance at the Vegoose Festival 2007. In an 81-minute set, they mashed up bangers from their decade-old career before 40,000 rapturous fans with incredible visuals and their trademark robot suits.
As part of the Alive 2007 tour, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo perfectly harnessed the exploding popularity of EDM in North America, becoming icons on both sides of the Atlantic.
By 2007, EDM was experiencing a surge in popularity, especially in North America. The genre, characterized by its synthesized beats and vibrant, high-energy performances, was taking over nightclubs, music festivals, and mainstream radio. Artists and DJs once confined to underground scenes were now headlining major events and reaching broader audiences. Already well-established in Europe, Daft Punk seized this moment to expand its influence and reach.
David Bowie
London, LA, and Berlin are synonymous with various eras of the late, great, chameleon-like artist, with albums like Aladdin Sane, Station to Station, and Low recorded during his creative heyday in the 1970s. But David Bowie did play beneath the glittering lights of Las Vegas twice, with very different outcomes.
The first was during a tour with Nine Inch Nails in 1995 and represented his urge to avoid a nostalgic set rather than showcase new material from his Outside album. Sadly, as the opener, this didn’t go down too well with NIN fans, who jeered and even threw bottles at the legend during his show.
This may have influenced David Bowie’s decision to hammer out two extremely well-received ‘greatest hits’ style performances in January and February 2004, wowing audiences at the Hard Rock Hotel with an incisive journey through his formidable back catalog (he featured plenty of newer material).
