Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will play Buffalo's HSBC Arena on March 7 during the second leg of their tour behind "Magic."
Tickets ($96.50, $66.50) will go on sale Nov. 19 at tickets.com.

Also, Celine Dion is finally leaving Las Vegas -- where she's performed the past five years -- and hitting the road. She'll play Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena on Sept. 24. Tickets range from $43 to $185 and will go on sale Nov. 19 at Ticketmaster. Dion's itinerary also includes a Sept. 3 show at Buffalo's HSBC Arena, but that on-sale date has not been announced.

Rob Thomas and Matchbox Twenty will hit the road with Alanis Morissette and Mute Math. Billboard and the band's web site reports the tour will play Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena on Feb. 7. No on-sale date is available, yet.

The tour also hits Seneca Niagara Events Center in Niagara Falls, N.Y. pn Feb. 16. Those tickets will go on sale this Saturday.

Seneca Niagara has also added a couple big blues acts: Buddy Guy (March 30) and Etta James and the Roots Band (April 12).

As much as I liked John Mellencamp's set Thursday at Tullio Arena, it would have been nice to hear a few more songs. He played 110 minutes but spent a lot of time talking, which limited the set to 18 songs. The encore -- "The Authority Song" -- felt like a too-quick send off, though it rocked hard.
Would have been nice to hear "Cherry Bomb" or another song, just to flesh it out a bit. Other than that, it was a first-rate show with Mellencamp smiling and dancing a lot. He can seem surly in photos and interviews but seemed to genuninely be enjoying himself -- and the crowd's loud, fervent reaction as well.
This was also the first night of the second leg, which probably contributed to some of the pent-up energy. Mellencamp mentioned that he has been ailing a bit, and he took lots of water breaks and cleared his throat a couple times. But it sure didn't seem to affect his voice at all. Lucky we got him when we did; he may sound more hoarse on future dates.
And Los Lobos was cool, too. They packed in 10 songs in 45 minutes, and rocked pretty hard. Loved the "Dear Mr. Fantasy" cover with flute solo. Very nice.

Look for a Showcase interview with comedian Jim Gaffigan on Dec. 6. Coincidentally, Dec. 6 also brings the new-look Showcase. You'll find a whole new design, and some new features but also the core stuff you come to expect, including Around Town listings, Music Muse and Take 30.

Bluesbeaters kick off their annual Christmas swing with Friday/Saturday shows at Peek 'N Peak. If you'd rather hear their enjoyable, bluesy take on Christmas favorites in Erie, you're in luck. They will also play Christmas sets Dec. 7 at Mound Grove; Dec. 14-15 at Presque Isle Downs; and Dec. 21 at Billies before playing the Peak again Dec. 28-31.

Cattle Cruisers are back Saturday at 5 p.m. at Norb's Bar. This is their 19th anniversary show. The owner of Norb's Bar requested they learn at least one new song for the occasion, so it'll be fun to see what they pull out.