R. Kelly

By DAVID WOLLOCK

R. Kelly (Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim; 14,000 capacity; $ 45 top) Presented by Nederlander. Reviewed May 26, 1996. R.Kelly's live show doesn't exactly reflect the new "maturity" of his latest, self-titled album, but the slow-grind balladeer's state-of-the-art production does transform his silk-sheet patter and pelvis-pumping into a brilliant spectacle for a near capacity, female-heavy crowd.
 
Band: Keith Henderson, Steve Huff, Percy Bady, Curtis Dowd, Ray Bady, Luke Austin, Fred Grabes, Cynthia Gernijan, Calandra Glen, June Brown, Gerald Jones. Dancers: Andre Lee, Lydia Griffin, Vivian Edwards, Danielle Underwood.
 

Chauffeured via "stretch Land Cruiser" onto a multitiered Chicago skyline-inspired Theatrics included a small fleet of dancers, background vocalists and musicians, as well as an R. Kelly adventure cartoon and a Max Headroom-esque computerized image of Kelly, which sang background vocals and interacted with the crowd, projected on a massive overhead screen. When Kelly flapped his tongue erotically or thrust his hips, his live band fluttered or bumped in synch accordingly.

The show wasn't all hype and sexcapades, though, as Kelly flexed his gospel-fed vocals on songs like his upcoming third single, "I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)," imbuing every lyric with the drama of an ailing heart.

After an hour of teases and hints, he closed by dropping trou and jiggling himself through his polka-dotted briefs -- the subject of mild controversy during his '94 tour. Women loved it; some men looked stoic or even uneasy as they held their dates.

Like foreplay, the sensually tinted stage shows by opening acts Solo, Xscape and LL Cool J warmed the crowd up for the king of bump and grind.

Set, Kelly kept the ladies screaming and panting for his entire show. Despite his newest, nearly triple-platinum album's spiritual edge -- a step beyond the strict bump-and-grind fare of his first two releases -- he stuck to the sexy stuff, like the platinum singles "You Remind Me of Something" and "Down Low (Nobody Has to Know)," and past hits like "Your Body's Callin."