It's not often so late in the summer that we actually have a choice when it comes to concerts.
But on Saturday, music fans have six.
• Will it be kickin' it in the country: Big & Rich are bringing their Muzik Mafia misfits to Kino Sports Complex for Xtreme Muzik. Rebel rouser Gretchen Wilson and hick-hopper Cowboy Troy join the dynamic country-twisted duo of John Rich and Big Kenny Alphin.
• Or downtown Saturday night: Descarga, Ted Ramirez, A Son Y Sol and Suerte are among the local bands that will have Tucson hopping for 2nd Saturdays Downtown.
• Perhaps a little Latin spice: Latin pop heartthrob Alejandro Fernández will swoon and croon at Casino del Sol's AVA.
• Maybe some soulful slow jams: Old School Summer Jam features Heatwave, the Delfonics, Rose Royce, GQ, the Floaters, Evelyn Champagne King and others at the Tucson Arena.
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• Or some roots rock and jam: Austin singer-songwriter James McMurtry brings along his Heartless Bastards for a show at Club Congress.
• Or head out of town: Phoenix radio station KUPD holds its annual Red, White & UFest featuring Five Finger Death Punch, Anthrax, Black Veil Brides and others at Firebird International Raceway.
How will you spend your Saturday night?
Xtreme Muzik The Tour
This is the first time we've seen the innovative genre-mashing duo of John Rich and Kenny Alphin since they went on hiatus in 2008. According to reviews, the pair has picked up where they left off. This is country music hyped up on adrenaline - impossibly energetic, blending elements of hard rock, traditional country and hip-hop, which they have dubbed "hick-hop."
Big & Rich will share the stage and a band with special guests Gretchen Wilson ("Here for the Party") and Cowboy Troy ("I Play Chicken With the Train"). The pair represent Big & Rich's Muzik Mafia, the musical misfits who never quite fit Nashville's mold. The summer-long tour winds up by month's end.
If you go
• Featuring: Big & Rich, Gretchen Wilson and Cowboy Troy.
• 411: 4 p.m. Saturday at Kino Sports Complex, 2500 E. Ajo Way. $37-$75 at the gate or through www.clickjab.com
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2nd Saturdays Downtown
You gotta love when the monthly downtown party adopts a theme. For September, we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with some of Tucson's finest Latin artists, including the 19-year-old Descarga. The 10-piece Latin jazz outfit, headlining the big Fox Tucson Theatre show, blasts away with impressive horns and strings, creating an infectious energy. Also performing: Ted Ramirez, A Son Y Sol and Suerte.
If you go
• Featuring: Ted Ramirez, A Son y Sol, Suerte, Descarga and others.
• 411: 6 p.m. Saturday at various downtown locations (www.2ndsaturdaysdowntown.com for complete schedule and stages). Most shows free.
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Old School Jam
The Mega 106.3 Old School Summer Jam will be an end of summer concert like no other.
Go back in time with nine R&B artists and groups that will rock the stage with hits that span the 1960s-'80s.
"The experience at the concert should be fun," Ken Carr, a DJ and program director for the station, said in an email. "You'll be able to sing along to a lot of the songs. The artists have a long history in the music business and they know how to appeal to a crowd."
If you go
• Featuring: Heatwave, Delfonics, Rose Royce, GQ, Barbara Lewis, the Originals, Evelyn Champagne King, JoJo (original lead singer of the Mary Jane Girls) and the Floaters.
• 411: 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Tucson Arena, 260 S. Church Ave. $25.50-$38.50 at www.ticketmaster.com
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Alejandro Fernández
Tucsonans will be among the first to hear the Mexican pop heartthrob perform his latest single, "Bajo un mismo sol," live. It's a song that might just tug at the heartstrings of listeners worldwide when he performs it during the opening ceremonies of the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, on Oct. 14. The games, featuring 6,000 athletes from 42 nations around the globe, will run from Oct. 14 to 30.
Fernandez, the son of famed ranchera singer Vicente Fernández, mixes Mexican folk, ranchera, bolero and pop music in shows that are renowned for sex appeal and energy.
If you go
• 411: 8 p.m. Saturday at Casino del Sol's AVA, 5655 W. Valencia Road. $50-$150 through tickets.solcasinos.com
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James McMurtry
He calls Austin, Texas, home, but this son of the famous novelist Larry McMurtry ("Lonesome Dove") launched his career at Tucson's former Sawmill Cafe while he attended the University of Arizona in the early 1980s. His career has taken him around the globe, but it seems he feels almost as at home in Tucson as he does in Austin, where he has a weekly gig at Austin's storied The Continental Club. Don't be surprised if you spot McMurtry and his band mates Darren Hess and Ronnie Johnson eating at South Tucson's Crossroads Restaurant.
If you go
• 411: 7 p.m. Saturday at Club Congress, 311 E. Congress St. $15 in advance at www.hotelcongress.com or at the door.
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Red, White & UFest
If you're up for the drive and in need of a heavy metal fix, Phoenix radio station 98 KUPD is delivering Anthrax with Five Finger Death Punch, Danko Jones, Filter, Jamey Jasta, My Darkest Days, Black Veil Brides, Times of Grace, Boy Hits Car, Digital Summer and Back From Ashes during a daylong festival at Phoenix's Firebird International Raceway.
The only downside might be getting out. Thousands of concertgoers will be scrambling out of the parking lot along a single road leading back to Interstate 10.
If you go
• Featuring: Five Finger Death Punch, Anthrax, Danko Jones, Filter, Jamey Jasta, My Darkest Days, Black Veil Brides and others.
• 411: 2 p.m. Saturday at Firebird International Raceway, 20000 S. Maricopa Road, off Interstate 10 in Chandler. $35, $125 for VIP at 98kupd.com
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Local promoter brings big show
Chris Click has quietly promoted concerts in Tucson for the past two years. On Saturday, he brings in Big & Rich's Xtreme Muzik The Tour to Kino Sports Complex.
"This is my biggest show to date," said Click, 39, who worked with his father, Jim Click, at the family car dealerships until he started Click Jab Promotions, a concert-promotions company. His events have included a minor-circuit World of Unpredictable Wrestling event that featured Dennis Rodman as a DJ last October and producing the KIIM-FM Freedom Fest at Kino Sports Complex on July 2.
Click has been promoting Saturday's concert for months, advertising locally and with Phoenix country radio.
Little did he know when he booked the duo - who are wrapping up a reunion tour of sorts this month - that he would be competing with four other high-profile Tucson concerts.
"I'm not that nervous," he said, then admitted, "I am worried about the attendance."
Tickets to Saturday's concert have been selling, but not as well as he anticipated. He is hoping at least 3,500 people show up, which would more than half fill the reconfigured stadium. Click said they are using part the bleachers and the infield, which can hold about 5,000 people.
Click said he could break even with about 3,000 tickets sold and would make a little profit at 3,500. If he drops below that, he joked, "I could lose my shoes."
Click said the show has big appeal with country fans.
"Big & Rich haven't been on tour in three years. They sold out Cricket Pavilion (in Phoenix) three years ago," he said. "That's why I brought them, because of their track record."
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Two concerts commemorate 9/11
Sunday marks the 10th anniversary of 9/11. There are two commemorative concerts planned in Tucson.
Remembrance and Renewal
• Featuring: Tucson Chamber Artists, Tucson Symphony Orchestra and Kingfisher String Quartet.
• When: 3 p.m. Sunday.
• Where: Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd., on the University of Arizona campus.
• Cost: $19 to $64, free for students at www.uapresents.org.
"Americana: Remember 9/11"
• Featuring: Tucson Pops Orchestra with guest conductor George Hanson.
• When: 7 p.m. Sunday.
• Where: DeMeester Outdoor Performance Center, Reid Park, near South Country Club Road and East 22nd Street.
• Cost: Free.
The Star's Jamar Younger contributed to this report.
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