Sunday, August 13, 1989

They're great-- no kidding

If you screamed as you read those words, chances are you're between 12 and 16, female, and possess a great pair of lungs.

And you, and 14,000 others just like you, are probably still hoarse from using them to full advantage last night at Kingswood.

For those of you who pride yourselves on not keeping up with these things, New Kids On The Block are the latest in a long line of teen sensations. Last night, they proved they're also among the best.

Given the hysterical reaction of the sold-out crowd, they could've just shown up and stood around on stage for 75 minutes, and no one would have minded. (Some of us might even have preferred it).

To their credit, they turned in the kind of slick, high-energy, performance that their fans will long remember.

After a suitably frenzied build-up that reached its peak when the MC introduced each of the Kids' microphones, the Boston quintet raced onstage for My Favorite Girl.

Backed by a five-piece band that was a lot better than it had to be, the New Kids hit all the high points from their second album, the year-old Hangin' Tough.

The group - put together by producer Maurice Starr, who also gave us the Boston teen quintet New Edition - romped good-naturedly through the uptempo numbers - The Right Stuff, Hangin' Tough and Cover Girl.

They got bogged down only by an interminably unfunny routine about "getting funky."

Obscured by all the high-pitched squealing was the fact that these guys can really sing. They made their case with a surprisingly effective version of the pretty ballad, I'll Be Loving You (Forever).

One-time teen queen Tiffany preceded the Kids with a terrific 45-minute show that was just the right length to show off her particular talents. Dancing pretty much non-stop, she gleefully trashed I Saw Him Standing There and belted out the slow stuff (All The Time, Could've Been) and the fast (Radio Romance, and I Think We're Alone Now) with equal panache.

Tiffany played Kingswood last year, with New Kids On The Block as her opening act, which is as succinct a statement as you're going to get about the fleeting nature of pop stardom. In fact, we can't help but wonder who next year's new kids on the block will be.

We're willing to bet it won't be Tommy Page, who opened the evening with a short set performed to backing tapes. Page has two things going for him: He's very good looking, and he's very good looking. Unfortunately, apart from A Zillion Kisses, he was so forgettable that I'm no longer entirely sure he was really there.

Set List