Nicks can handle being Valley legend

[MacMan]

Randy Cordova
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 4, 2005 12:00 AM



Most artists have diehard fans.

But Stevie Nicks fans are in a class by themselves.

After all, intense followers of the Phoenix native are often known to dress like their heroine, copying her distinctive flowing capes and lacy shawls.

In the '80s and '90s, a Valley woman named Cheryl Cusella even made a living by impersonating Nicks. Oddly enough, Cusella later promoted a concert by Nicks bandmate Mick Fleetwood.

Talk about getting too close for comfort.

Nicks' following may be especially intense in her hometown. She was born at the old Good Samaritan Hospital, and even though she never attended school in the Valley - the family moved around a lot - she established ties here.

Her father, Jess Nicks, built Phoenix's now-defunct outdoor concert venue Compton Terrace, which was the only venue Stevie (and Fleetwood Mac) would play while in the Valley.

Nicks, who maintains residences in Paradise Valley and Los Angeles, is admired for her benefit performances for the Arizona Heart Foundation.

That's what she's doing tonight at the Dodge Theatre, joining forces with Don Henley, the thinking man's Eagle. Expect a lot of songs that dominated FM radio in the '70s and '80s: Her Stand Back and Stop Draggin' My Heart Around and his The Boys of Summer and All She Wants to Do Is Dance, among others.

Also expect an outcry from fans if they don't perform their 1981 smash, Leather and Lace.

7:30 p.m. Thursday. Dodge Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. Vanessa Carlton opens. $40-$150. (480) 784-4444 or www.ticketmaster.com.