This was such a fun venue to see a show at. Prior to the show they had line dancing and drunken mechanical bull riding. It was a great way to spend a Friday evening.
The first opener was Ty Stone, who saw the release of his debut album earlier that week. He came on stage to a crowd that did not know him nor the power of his voice. They soon learned. Ty started with Blessed St. Anthony", which is basically a very personal prayer that let's us know where Ty Stone is from and that he comes in peace. I feel as though much of the crowd missed the subtlety in that but Ty turned the tables and let the audience sing a tune that they know and broke out the best rendition I have ever heard of The Georgia Satellites "Keep Your hands To Yourself", which is remarkable for one man with an acoustic guitar. As the audience warmed up, Ty did a magnificent job of drawing us in through sharing the real-life stories of his songs "Down River", "Anywhere's Better" and, the title cut from his album, "American Style". We were also treated to a tune that isn't on his album, which Ty called "The Battle". The songs that Ty Stone writes makes me feel as though they are from the point of view of somebody in my family and that is gonna keep me seeking him out for a long, long time.
The second opener was Sonia Leigh and her band. Sonia has been heralded by Zac Brown as Georgia's outlaw daughter. I find fault with this assessment only because the term outlaw conjures images of someone with a "too cool to care" attitude. Sonia may have looked the part with her black cowboy boots, vest and Levi Lowrey t-shirt, taking the stage to the Rolling Stones tune "Sympathy For The Devil" but her songs outted her poet's heart. The first tune was "Ain't Dead Yet" which parallels the dichotomy of the badass/poet but in this case it contrasts hard, concrete truths about life and love with sentimental abstracts about missing people and not wanting people to miss out on all the hope and potential that their lives may hold. Sonia's band is a collection of very talented musicians that inject their own personality into the songs and it is easy to see that they were having fun up on stage. I find Sonia to be a mesmerizing performer, and I wish that I would have seen her earlier on in her career. Her set consisted of many of the tunes from her Southern Ground Records album "1978 December" with some notable moments being the songs "I Just Might" and "Virginia", both of which I can totally relate to, but seeing the way that Sonia is able to share such personal feelings with a crowd is simply awe-inspiring. Sonia's set also included her releases "Bar" and "My Name Is Money", which rocked the house. The show sounded great, from Sonia's powerful voice to the blazing guitar and pulsating rhythm section.
Uncle Kracker's set was impressive as well. He hit the stage and played all the fan favorites and did a few other tunes that weren't his and executed them really well. The whole experience was so good that I called my buddy up and began the prices of finding tickets for the sold-out show the next night in Ohio and caught the next stop on the tour the next night. I have tickets to catch the tour in Myrtle Beach, SC and am thinking about Nashville, TN. If you get a chance to see this show, do not pass it up.