Texas visits Ohio

Friday night was the first time I ever saw Robert Earl Keen live in concert. Hopefully it will not be the last. This is a review of the event, location, and other items.

How good could a concert be when the tickets come from a stripper that I met at a bar? Apparently, pretty darn good. Like most tales, the story of getting there is almost as good as the actual event. Long story short. Every Thursday I get an email from Eventful with the events for the upcoming weekend. Usually this email arrives after I have hit snooze for the 2nd time. Well, as I was removing the crusties from my eyes last Thursday, I happened to see the fimilar name of Robert Earl Keen on the list for a Friday night concert. I searched for tickets and found some on craigslist. 4 for 40 bucks. Not bad I thought. Well, eventually the price came down from that to 4 for 20. How could I pass that up? I invited a few of my favorite friends. And after answering the chorus of "who is Robert Earl Keen?" I was off. Turns out my craigslist "friend" is also employed at a local "gentleman's establishment"... which explained why she was going to be at a bar BEFORE going to work... Anyways... Lets start with the facility:

Fraze Pavilion is an enigma. It is like someone said "Hey, let's widen the street and put in an amplitheather in here". Well, they did and it is amazing. To use the worn out phrase: Not a bad seat in the place. There isn't one. A very small place, but still big enough to do the job. The staff was extremely friendly, efficient and professional. I am used to big stadiums such as the Jake & Browns Stadium. Not the best for fans, IMHO. I got a seat on the lawn and patiently awaited my other associates.

The Greencards lead off for the evening. Don't worry, I had never heard of them either. It was hard to understand how two Australians and a Brit could sing about the fertile plains of Kentucky, but hey, I'm willing to listen to anything once. They turned out to be a solid opening act. Upbeat, good lyrics, good harmony, they have all the makings of a strong contender in the bluegrass circuit. But pretty much anyone does. I did enjoy their music, and they knew how to rock it out, all things considered. Would I buy their CD? I dunno, is it on sale?

Sara Watkins was the next one up. You might remember her from Nickel Creek. Her brother Sean and herself and Chris Thile made up that group. They won more awards than the Polyphonic Spree so I'm sure you know of them. I have been a fan of Nickel Creek for sometime, but I had not followed any of their solo efforts. So I was anxious to see how Sara and Sean would do without Chris's lead vocals. Well, they did very well. Sara is like a folksy Janis Joplin and Chris is a bluegrass Tim Reynolds. They sang some new songs, but they didn't do any of the stuff that made them famous. Understandably, they have to carve out their own niche. I see a bright future for them and I hope they go far. She can definitely play the fiddle and is an excellent singer in her own right. They played a lot of upbeat songs and were a great warm up for REK. Would I buy their album. Yes. She is a solid performer in her own right. She is able to delve into herself and articulate good emotional songs that resound with a wide fan base. Check out some of her stuff on iTunes if you have the means.

Now for the headliner. The man, the myth, the legend. Robert Earl Keen. No, this isn't an objective review. On my list of favorite all time bands/performers, he is #3. Pink Floyd. Jimmy Buffett, REK. That is the top 3. So the expectations are high. But with two solid opening acts, a great venue and great seats, I was ready. He opened with "Feeling Good Again/Gringo Honeymoon" medley. Just like his "Live at the Ryman" DVD. It is different when you actually see and experience the artist who articulates some of your deepest emotions. REK sang "Not a Drop of Rain" just as the rain started, and it was the perfect song that night. The depth of that song is amazing. Just read about it on wikipedia. The set was good. Although, if I could change two things, it would be to add "I'm coming Home" and "Rolling By". Two of my personal favorites. Rich Brotherton is the Eddie Van Halen of Texas Country music. I would put him up there with Brad Paisley for guitar work. Don't believe me? Just watch a DVD. With a guitarist like that, it's hard not to do a good concert. I won't review every song, but I will critique one thing. REK likes to slur things a little too much. It can make it difficult for new fans to acclimate to his songs. But hey, everyone likes Darius Rucker, (Hootie & the Blowfish) who was king of the slursolo. (I still can't decipher most of his lyrics). All in all, REK lived up to my own personal hype and it was a great evening. Probably the best concert I have ever been to. But I haven't been to that many concerts, so it isn't a fair scale.

The most intriguing part was the fact that Sara Watkins & REK stayed after to sign autographs. How unreal is that? About 200 people lined up after to show to meet the man of the evening. He signed everything put before him and chatted it up with fans. I won't go so far as to say that REK is one of these guys who doesn't care about the money and is all about the fans, but, he definitely has not lost sight of his fan base. It was a refreshing change from the typical country music star. I've always heard that one should not meet one's heroes. Well, I don't put him in the "Hero" category, but I do respect his talent and I appreciate his song writing ability, so it was great to meet the man. He lived up to the expectations and exceeded them in some ways.

The long and short of it... A great night. Truly a dream builder as I would like to travel to Texas someday and see REK again, and several others.