at 12:09 on January 5, 2007, EST.


Eric Clapton performs at Madison Square Garden in New York, in this Sept. 28, 2006, file photo. (AP/Seth Wenig, File)


SHANGHAI, China (AP) - Guitarist Eric Clapton is set to play Shanghai this month, the latest rock legend to take the stage in China's business and entertainment hub, the concert's organizers said Friday.

Best known for solo hits such as "After Midnight" and "Wonderful Tonight," Clapton, 61, is scheduled to appear Jan. 20 at the Shanghai Grand Stage - the same venue where the Rolling Stones made their Chinese debut last April.

Ticket prices for the show run from about US$230 for stage-side seats to $38 for the upper balcony, Emma Entertainment, one of the organizers, said in a statement.

Western stars from Sir Elton John to the late James Brown and the Black Eyed Peas have played Shanghai in recent months. The Stones' concert was considered the most lavish and high-profile rock show ever staged in the communist state.

Yet while such appearances point to Shanghai's increasingly affluent and cosmopolitan profile, they also underscore some enduring limitations.

Most of the audience at the concerts have been expatriates because many Chinese remain unfamiliar with such stars or are unwilling to pay high ticket prices.

Meanwhile, China's conservative culture czars still call the shots. They ordered the Rolling Stones to strike three songs from their set list due to sexual content and cancelled permission for an October concert by American rapper Jay-Z, citing a need to protect local hip-hop fans from nasty lyrics.


©The Canadian Press, 2007