aaron j. latham / arizona daily star 2001

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Tucson's spring is shaping up to be the season of the superstars.

First up is rapper Kanye West at McKale Center on April 24.

Classic pops crooner Michael Bublé closes out the month April 30 with a show at Tucson Arena, where country superstar Carrie Underwood is set to play May 2 with opening act Josh Turner.

Less than two weeks after that, on May 15, country megastar Alan Jackson returns to Casino del Sol's AVA for his first Tucson show since opening the AVA in fall 2001.

Four major concerts in three weeks — that's gotta be a record for Tucson!

But don't get your hopes up that we're turning some magical corner and will find ourselves on the map of the promoters bringing in arena shows by the semi-truckloads. We made that leap of faith back in 2000 when Elton John played the Tucson Arena, and again three years later when Cher brought her never-ending Farewell Tour to the arena — one of two farewell concerts; the second was in 2005.

We viewed those shows as signs that Tucson was back on the radar without fully appreciating them for the gifts that they were.

Tucson, happily or not, has matured into an attractive destination for smaller club and theater shows like My Chemical Romance at the Rialto Theatre March 29 and Story of the Year at the same venue April 6. Americana crooners such as Jim Lauderdale find refuge in the intimate confines of Vaudeville Cabaret (April 9), while rockers The Devil Wears Prada share the bill with Once Nothing and White Chapel at The Rock April 22.

The closest we come to big shows other than the occasional Tucson Arena event is at the AVA, a 5,000-capacity amphitheater that in recent years has turned its attention to Latin acts such as Los Tigres Del Norte (coming March 29) and Juanes (April 27). Desert Diamond Casino, about half of AVA's size, books everything from comedy to classic rock and country. Earlier this week, the Moody Blues played two sold-out shows there. On April 20, Boz Scaggs is on deck to perform.

Surely our thirst for arena concerts will bode well for the promoters of the upcoming shows. Fans tired of the long haul to Phoenix will happily pay the asking price ($35, $45 and $55) for tickets to see Underwood. They go on sale Saturday through Ticketmaster, 321-1000.

This is Underwood's first Tucson show. The closest she has come our way is Country Thunder in Florence in 2006, about six months after she snagged the "American Idol" title.

She comes here with her first headlining tour, squeezed in between dates with country superstar Keith Urban. "Carnival Ride Tour" promotes Underwood's double-platinum sophomore album of the same name.

No on-sale date has been announced for Jackson.