By Chuck Campbell
News - Journalist Pop Music Writer

Stevie Nicks made history at the Ocean Center Friday night. She was the first rock act to sell out since the center opened last fall (the country group Alabama sold out it's show at the center last year). And although not a perfect show, her performance was deserving of the more than 9,000 fans at the concert.

Peter Frampton, the superstar of the '70s who's making a bid for a comeback, opened the show in good form. Boosted by an eager reception, he played an encore uncommon for a leadoff act.

Although the audience was appreciative of Frampton, the vast majority of them, including a few Stevie clones, were there for the headliner. Making an unceremonious entry, Stevie Nicks walked out to center stage, lofted a rose into the audience, and started singing.

It was an inauspicious beginning, due mainly to the tentativeness of the performer. Not until the third song, "Talk To Me" --- a Top hit last winter --- did she start forcing her voice to proper range.

By "No Spoken Word" (from "Rock A Little" her latest album), the fifth song of the concert, the capacity crowd had the performer going full throttle.

The next song, "Beauty And The Beast," was one of her most dramatic. Garbed in a billowing all white dress and cape, and framed in a faint blue light --- all of which emphasized the singer's paleness --- she sang the ballad at her silver throated best, pausing during instrumental sections for a few spins on the stage.

Some in the audience dished out inappropriate response, whooping at the song's softest parts. But the singer reveled in their enthusiasm. After the song, she addressed the full house: "You know, this is my third tour. I went to Miami during the first one. Where were you then? Later in the concert she said, " Seeing all of you out there spaces me out."

The quality of the performance escalated. Midway through the show, her keyboardist, Bobby Martin, admirably sang the male lead on "Leather And Lace," a hit from the first Stevie Nicks' solo album, 1981s "Bella Donna." Fans broke into sporadic cheers.

" Stand Back" brought the concert to a new high as percussionist Bobbye Hall delivered an outstanding funky intro to the 1983 smash hit. The singer also was geared up at this point, violently swinging her long, frizzy hair to the force of Waddy Wachtel's guitar, and bolting out the lyrics in a most exemplary style. Her voice quavered at the high notes in an almost bleating fashion, a Stevie Nicks trademark. Then all the players left the stage except Wachtel, who wrenched the audience's ears with his guitar --- not a suitable intermission for this singer's concert.

Everyone returned for three numbers from the performer's first solo LP, " Stop Draggin' My Heart Around," " How Still My Love" and "Edge Of Seventeen." Though not up to the level of "Stand Back," these tunes were performed at a rather lofty plateau.

A loud boo should have gone out to the idiots in the audience who pelted the stage with UFO's. One of these, thrown in the middle of "How Still My Love," came within a hair of hitting the singers face, knocking away the microphone stand instead (Welcome to Daytona Beach, Stevie). Like the pro she is, however, she barely registered shock, adjusted the stand, and continued singing without missing a beat.

She concluded the regular part of the show by daring the elements and collecting roses and gifts from fans, who by that point had jammed together along the edge of the stage. As she exited, she said: " I ask you to take care of yourself, the way you ask me to take care of myself, so that I can see you the next time."

Naturally, the singer and her band returned for an encore --- a long, split version of "Rhiannon," one of the few Fleetwood Mac songs she sang (she is a lead singer for the group as well as a solo artist).

Her finale was the tender "Has Anyone Ever Written Anything For You," which she sang angelically under a halo of pink light. Then she said; " I hate this part, I will not say goodbye; I'll say I'll see you soon." And at 11:15 p. m, before the show had lost momentum, she left the stage for good. Some songs were unfortunately omitted from the concert, including "Gypsy" and "Sara," from her work with Fleetwood Mac, and "If Anyone Falls" and "Nightbird," solo hits from 1983.

Also, she was prone to vocal miscues, and she simply didn't dance as one might have expected.

But these flaws didn't prevent the singer from delivering a strong performance. Indeed, the capacity crowd got it's money's worth.