“Sublime yet mythic in proportions,” is what many in the exclusive circle of East Coast columnists, playwrights and promoters are calling it. “Replacing the obligatory Fresno date with Tulare is a stroke of genius that will make you cry out ‘Author! Author!'” wrote Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun Times, while Playboy enthusiastically predicted that the listing of dates for the third week of July will “challenge American morals as well as inspire new avenues of sexuality not seen since the love-ins of the late ’60s.”

But critical accolades were not the exclusive domain of the yearly x-treme sports / punk-ska festival. Other tours, such as Peter Frampton, INXS and Dan Fogelberg also drew hoorahs from an almost fawning press.

“Steinbeck’s Travels With Charlie meets Death Race 2000. It combines faith in the American dream with the need for speed, and is definitely influenced by the Springsteen routing of 1978 as well as the U2 itinerary of ’86.” wrote the L.A. Times‘ Robert Hilburn about the upcoming Lucinda Williams tour. If one is to believe the critics, it’s shaping up to be a great year for concerts.

Even traditionally non-concert publications got into the act, with Popular Mechanics giving a multipage spread to the state-of-the-art hydraulics being developed for the upcoming Paul McCartney tour, and TV Guide labeling the Britney Spears schedule as “more entertaining than a That Girl marathon on TVLand.”

Of course, Hollywood is watching the development of the spring/summer tour season. Already, rumors abound around Tinsel Town that a major studio is about to snap up the screen rights to the schedule for Bob Dylan with Variety hinting that Robert Redford and Meryl Streep will portray the singer/songwriter’s manager and booking agent. Meanwhile, NBC is considering a television miniseries based on the Jethro Tull itinerary with Ted Danson in the Ian Anderson role.

Will this year be the best ever for concert schedules? And if so, what inspired the tremendous outpouring of creative expression found in the routings for Transmatic and The Beta Band? Even though the movers and shakers of the concert industry are legendary for their shyness, one insider did tell us that this year’s calendar is more than just dates and cities on a printed page, and that it “represents the unrequited love the industry has for the music fan as well as its undying respect for family values, truth, justice and the American way.”

In other words, it’s business as usual.