As a year of big-name concerts winds down during the 50th anniversary of Harrah’s Lake Tahoe South Shore Room, Year 51 also looks impressive.

Joe Perry, the Yardbirds and Jonny Lang are among the artists slated to perform at Harrah’s during the first half of the season. Also performing will be MC Hammer, Foghat and Chubby Checker.

“By and large we did very well with a wide variety of music,” said John Packer, the director of entertainment. “So when we started thinking about 2010 we thought that was a pretty good formula.”

Perry, who plays at Tahoe Feb. 14, was in the news this week when he was asked about Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler.

“Steven quit, as far as I can tell,” Perry told the Las Vegas Sun.

Perry said on the micro-blogging site Twitter late Monday that Aerosmith is “not splitting up” but “looking for a new singer to work with” amid growing speculation about the future of the band and the role of frontman Steven Tyler, The Associated Press reported.

But on Tuesday, Nov. 10, Tyler made a surprise appearance with Perry during a concert in New York, and said he was not leaving the band, according to Reuters.
“He just couldn’t stay away,” Perry told TMZ.com/

Tyler, 61, last performed with the 40-year-old band in the summer when he fell off a stage in South Dakota, ending a tour.

MC Hammer, who wears parachute pants and has no reported falling incidents, hasn’t had a hit bigger than “You Can’t Touch This,” in the early 1990s, but is still keeping up with technology. He has 1.5 million followers on Twitter.

The Dan Band, which appeared on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” this week, will debut at Harrah’s April 3.

“The Dan Band has been in several movies,” Packer said. “They are pretty goofy, yet they are really good.”

Several bands from, or with roots at, the United Kingdom will come to Tahoe, including the Yardbirds, Dave Mason, Eric Burdon and the Animals and the Celtic Tenors, who play traditional Irish and Scottish songs and ballads. (Tahoeans: It’s pronounced “Kel-tik,” not Celtic, like the basketball team.)

The Yardbirds, which had a major rock ‘n’ roll influence with guitarists Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, has a propensity for saving occasional dates for venues that hold less than 1,000 spectators. It will be the Yardbirds’ third South Shore Room appearance in five years.

Foghat, which was spawned from the British Invasion, will be the first Harrah’s show of the year. Classic rockers Blue Öyster Cult, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts and Pablo Cruise also will perform in 2010.

Comedy acts include the Smothers Brothers and Louie Anderson, a comic for all ages.
Newer artists include Lang and G. Love & Special Sauce.
Some Saturday dates have yet to be filled.

“We found a groove as far as types of entertainment to provide,” Packer said. “During the 50th year it was mix it up with the classic entertainers and comedians and the ones who had a history with Harrah’s and the South Shore Room along with some newcomers who had played recently and also some new acts. It’s interesting to see different types of crowds.”