During Eric Church's performance of "These Boots," the crowd decided to show their love by taking off cowboy, work, and military boots and waving them in the air. The song appeared on Church's debut album and is, what we are becoming to know, as "pure Eric Church." Church's lyrics and sound are straight-forward, gritty and rowdy. I thought of him as a "man's man" during his performance and he was constantly pounding his fists to his chest to emphasize those anthem-type lyrics. At times he even kicked up his heels and stomped them almost like a bucking bull antsy to get out of the gate.
Church definitely has a cult following developing, which was well represented at the show. It seems as if everyone in the crowd knew all the words to the songs whether it was a radio single or not. And when his set was over, you could tell that the back- to- basics artist was the reason some folks came to the show.
It's no wonder...this guy is rockin! Church is serving up country and doing it with a modern twist. I fell in love with "Smoke A Little Smoke," "Pledge Allegiance to the HAG," "Two Pink Lines," and "Before She Does."
It is no wonder why he has been joining Hank Williams, Jr. on his "All My Rowdy Friends" Tour. He even looks like a young Hank, Jr.!
The icing on the cake, however, was the legendary Charlie Daniels Band. Charlie Daniels has been making music for over 50 years and when he took the stage, his presence was KNOWN and so was his fiddle! I was on my feet and screaming to "Drinkin My Baby Goodbye" as it has been one of my favorite CDB songs. His vocals were as good as ever and his playing is untouchable. Charlie Daniels could give anyone a run for their money, whether it be musically or expressing his political views.
Daniels put a spotlight on the American flag and recited the Pledge of Allegiance right before he dedicated "In America" to the U.S. troops. He also shared his opinion on rednecks and on having the right carry arms--and use them! He even paid tribute to the late Johnny Cash.
It was amazing to me to see Daniels hold his bow behind him and have his stage manager take it out of his hands and then hand him a new one...all without Daniels skipping a beat or missing a lyric. It was also fascinating to hear the band--particularly drummer, Pat McDonald. What an amazing solo he played during one of the two instrumental songs played! With classics like "Redneck," "Long-Haired Country Boy," and "Legend of Wolly Swamp," I didn't want his set to end. But end it did, but with a rousy performance of his most famous song yet, "The Devil Went Down to Georgia."
At the end of the song, he blew on his fiddle and up came smoke! He was literally smokin!
As a life-long country music lover, it was great to finally see CDB live in concert. It is absolutely a memory I will not forget anytime soon.
What a GREAT show!
No comments:
Post a Comment