Top weekend shows: Shakira, Bob Dylan, Ghostface
Shakira: The Colombian singer, songwriter, musician, producer and belly dancer is an international superstar, better known just about everywhere else in the world than she is in America. What’s all the fuss about? Her show is pure, multilingual spectacle, 8 p.m. Friday at Allstate Arena, 6920 N. Mannheim Rd., Rosemont, Ill., $49.45, $80.35, $111.25, $162.75; ticketmaster.com.
Bob Dylan: The bard and his band in relatively intimate confines, with Charlie Sexton on guitar – usually a formula for above-average Dylan. His raspy voice is erratic, sometimes gaining power as the show proceeds, sometimes sinking into the mud, and he’s pretty much stopped playing guitar in favor of keyboards. But he’s still capable of surprising us, and perhaps even himself, with casual greatness, 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Riviera, 4746 N. Racine, $60; etix.com.
Ghostface: The Wu-Tang Clan MC has been putting out excellent slice-and-dice street tales and neo-psychedelic musings on his recent solo albums; two decades into his career, he has to be recognized as one of the most consistent hip-hop voices ever to command a microphone. He’ll be joined by a stellar lineup of talent, including the always cutting and savagely incisive Psalm One, 8:30 p.m. Sunday at Abbey Pub, 3420 W. Grace, $20 and $22; ticketfly.com.
greg@gregkot.com