Rock Vegas

Rock Vegas shines a spotlight on the untold history of the development of live music in the Entertainment Capital-from the lounges and showrooms of the '60s and '70s to today's mix of nightclubs, midsize theaters, concert halls, arenas, stadiums, and music-festival sites, with emphasis on the behind-the-scenes innovation that made it all happen.

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As recently as the early 1990s, Las Vegas was considered the place where headlining bands went to die; the Entertainment Capital of the World didn't attract a major touring act until 1993. Compared to the rest of the country, Vegas wasn't only far behind the live-music curve, but the paradoxically conservative instincts of the casino bosses and city fathers made it very difficult for touring bands, especially rock and rollers, to gain a foothold. In the past 20-odd years, however, Sin City has evolved into the number-one live-music market in the world.

How did that happen? How did Las Vegas make the transition from Sinatra, Newton, and the Folies Bergere to a city with more than 500,000 seats for live-music events that draw more than 5 million fans annually, 75% of them from outside Nevada?

Las Vegas Rock City chronicles the contemporary history of concert bands, venues, promoters, and marketers, as seen through the eyes of one of the most active participants in the process, with 500 live-music events in 35 years under his belt. Author Pat Christenson was deeply involved in the events and intimately connected to the characters who made Vegas come alive!