Hologram tours we want to see

Ol’ Blue Eyes is the perfect kind of artist for a tour like this. He was a crooner, so he sang with all sorts of bands behind him. This would be a chance to see the young Sinatra — the one who was the biggest star in the world arguably. How about a hologram belting out “My Way?” That would be great.

Considering that Crosby died in 1977, a lot of people never got a chance to see him perform. However, the man was a huge movie star, an Oscar winner and also one of the most popular musicians in the world. Given that Crosby did the quintessential version of “White Christmas." this could be a great Christmas tour.

The hologram would either have to be put behind a piano, or a hologram piano would need to be included. Once that was figured out, though, Charles would be a lot of fun to see on a tour like this. Put a killer band on stage behind his hologram, and it would be a heck of a concert.

Hey, let’s not leave jazz off this list entirely (even if some of you out there likely wish we would). Lady Day is an iconic singer from the days when jazz was as popular as any other kind of music. Before the rise of rock, artists like Holliday were the stars of the day, but those types of singers aren’t common these days. Let’s get ourselves one in hologram form.

You would need to include a guitar in Hendrix’s hologram. That includes playing his actual guitar work in addition to his vocals. If we aren’t hearing Jimi on the guitar, there would be no point. Bonus points if his hologram lights his guitar on fire.

With an Elvis tour, it would be great to have several different Elvises: the young Elvis, the comeback tour Elvis; pick your favorite flavor of Elvis. They could all perform together at the end of the show! Imagine seeing a few Presleys on the stage at once. That alone justifies a tour like this.

Buddy Holly is arguably the first “gone too soon” rock star. His death in a plane accident is music lore. He was only 22, and it was only 1959. A hologram can’t replace what we lost when that plane went down, but a tour would be a chance to keep Holly’s legacy alive.

Whitney Houston was a huge star in the ‘90s, before her personal issues got the best of her and ultimately ended her life. The image of her belting out “I Will Always Love You” is emblazoned in the memory of everybody who saw her perform it in "The Bodyguard." Now we would have a chance to see it again and to hear Houston’s voice soaring through a concert venue.

The Man in Black is another musician we’d love to see a couple of different versions of. You start the show with young, vibrant Cash singing “Ring of Fire” and “Walk the Line.” Then you swap in old Cash — the one who sang standards and covers and made “Hurt” by Nine Inch Nails into an actually good song. The best of both worlds.

Jackson had some issues of his own late in life before his untimely death, and there is a lot of weirdness we would like to be able to set aside to enjoy the music. We could have a “Thriller” era MJ taking the stage, and of course his hologram would have to moonwalk. That would be a lot of fun.

The death of Sam Cooke, who was killed in what was ruled a justifiable homicide, is murky and unpleasant. On the other hand, he was a pioneer of soul music, and in his short career he put out many iconic songs. A hologram tour of Cooke would probably be the best soul tour of the year.

David Bowie may have died only a little while ago, but he seemed like the kind of guy who would have loved a hologram version of himself to exist. He had that futuristic, sci-fi vibe. And of course, a hologram tour would allow us to see all of Bowie’s personas in one evening. He’s the perfect artist for a tour like this.

Though Aretha only just died, that doesn’t mean this wouldn’t be a good show. The Queen of Soul had such a powerful voice, and having a chance to hear Franklin in her prime sing “Respect” or any of her other classic songs would be awesome. Let’s pay tribute to the recently deceased diva hologram style.

When he was alive, James Brown was the hardest working man in show business. Why should death stop that from being true? The energy may not be exactly the same, but Brown had a ton of hits. He’s been dead for over a decade now, meaning a hologram tour to remember his glory days feels appropriate.

There were a lot of chances to see Fitzgerald perform when she was alive, as the jazz singer was active for almost 60 years. In that time, she was beloved for her scatting vocal style, and she won 14 Grammies and a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Her big voice and commanding presence would be served well by a hologram and a top-notch jazz band.

Despite being cut down in her prime at the age of 30, Cline made a huge impact on country music. She was the first solo female act to make the Country Music Hall of Fame, in 1973, but that was a whole decade after she died. Here we are, over 50 years later, and Cline’s music lives on. Surely some people would want to see something akin to the legend performing.

Marvin Gaye is another member of the “gone too soon” club, as he died in 1984 at the age of 44. Prior to that, he helped define the sound of Motown. You could maybe work some other Motown artists into a concert built around a hologram of Gaye, which would be fun. But Gaye would be the star, of course.

There is more to Redding than “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay.” However, that song alone justifies a concert featuring the late singer in holographic form. Redding’s version of that tune is one of the most iconic recordings ever, but he performed it right before his death, robbing basically everybody the chance to see it live.

There isn’t a jam band alive that wouldn’t want to back up Jerry Garcia’s hologram. Hell, there are living members of the Grateful Dead who may be into it as well. Regardless, Garcia is still practically worshipped by the hippie types. You put his hologram on tour, and watch the sellouts happen.

Barry Gibb is still alive, but unfortunately his brothers Maurice and Robin have both passed on. That being said, seeing Barry perform with holograms of his dead brothers would be a bit morbid. If Barry would be willing to sign off on a hologram version of himself, though, then we could see the R&B trio like they were in their glory days.

Would it make sense to have a purple hologram of Prince? Or at least a hologram with a purple aura? Could we have a hologram of the symbol as well? At least give him a guitar in the shape of the symbol, like he used at the Super Bowl. Regardless, Prince was one of the best musicians ever. Let’s see him in action.

Winehouse is a more contemporary name than a lot of these artists. She’s not a legend of another era that we missed out on by being too young. Winehouse was able to release only two albums before her death at 27, and she died only five years after the release of her seminal 2006 album, “Back to Black.” Enough time has passed that seeing Winehouse’s hologram wouldn’t feel disconcerting and could help bring the singer’s legacy back to the masses.

If you aren’t a fan of modern country, you probably yearn for the days of folks like Hank Williams Sr. Though some don't want to see his son perform, even if they are huge fans of Monday Night Football in the ‘90s, the eldest Hank (his grandson, Hank Williams III, is also a musician), who influenced the likes of Elvis and Johnny Cash, has been dead for 65 years. This would be quite the blast from the past, thanks to technology that would have seemed like magic back in Hank’s day.

Joplin died far too young, robbing us of a chance to see what she would have done had her career continued. It also robbed generations of people of the chance to see her perform live. A hologram could at least give us a sense of what a Joplin concert would have been like.