Random “Q”sings: George Bedard, Taylor Swift and Jason Derulo

Posted on July 4, 2011 by PhilMaq

A brand new website is up and running for George
Bedard! It’s at www.georgebedard.com. It has a calendar with a schedule for all things George as well as some interesting things to read. Check it out!

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Taylor Swift currently holds the #1 video slot on both the CMT
Top 20 Countdown and the VH1 Top 20 Countdown-and with different songs! I can’t ever remember the same artist holding down the #1 position with different songs. “Mean” is the one on CMT, while “The Story of Us” rules on VH1. Talk about a precision cross over. That’s really knowing your audience. I prefer “Mean” and I’ve written about it before here. What I also find interesting is that I could see it being played on VH1 eventually after “story” fades, but I can’t see “story” being played on CMT. I mean “Barton Hollow” by The Civil Wars went deep into the Top 10 on both networks, as well as Lady Antebellum and other country artists on VH1 over the years. The only artists that seem to consistently cross over from VH1 are Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow. I think it would be fascinating to have  both songs transfer over to the other network.

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Have you heard Jason Derulo’s new song, “Don’t Wanna Go Home?” He takes the chorus from the campy classic “Day-O (Banana Boat Song) by Harry Belafonte, both melody and words, and substitutes “don’t” for “me.” So instead of “Daylight come and me wanna go home” his version has “Daylight come and me don’t wanna go home.” Seriously? This is what passes for creativity these days? Jason takes arguably one of the worst songs (that became a monster hit), from one of the best albums that came out of the 50s. “Calypso,” is a creative tour-de-force that blends traditional Caribbean musical styles alongside smooth lounge jazz that created the blueprint for a World Music album thirty years ahead of its time! He works it over into a cheesy “new song.” ODWITS! I thought his debut had some promise and “Ridin’ Solo” was very catchy. But please don’t encourage him by buying this one.

Harry Belafonte Calypso

Speaking of “Day-O,” can this song be retired from sporting events? It has nothing to do with any of the action and I hate hearing only the little piece of it that they play. And while we’re on the subject, let’s also retire “We Will Rock You” and “Rock and Roll, Part Two.” I am so tired of hearing these songs as well as being annoyed at watching fans who have no idea what a downbeat is and continue to clap on the wrong beat. Come on DJs. Come up with some new stuff!

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q

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Random “Q”sings: George Bedard and the Kingpins

Posted on June 29, 2011 by PhilMaq

The weather was unseasonably cool at last Friday’s Northville Arts and Acts, but that did not deter George Bedard and the Kingpins from providing their own heat source. Against a backdrop of quaint local businesses and a dreary monochromatic sky (I’ve always wanted to write something like that!), the band brought both heat and color by playing two very polished sets. Several songs from the upcoming “Pickin’ Apart the Past” were highlighted and they sounded GREAT! The band sounds in top form for the CD release party on July 10.

The crowd was a varied mixture of adults, children, and……dogs! The Kingpins interacted with a group of children throughout the show. Bassist Randy Tessier even boldly offered a quarter to the kids, for the one who could dance the best! Ah, a heart of gold!

The highlight of the night had to be, and I’m a little hazy on this one, when the band played “I’m My Own Dog” from their first album, “Upside,” either for the dogs in attendance or by a special request from a partying group of canines. Regardless, a splendid time was had by all terrestrial life forms.

George has a new website, so be sure to check it out: www.georgebedard.com.

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q

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Random “Q”sings: George Bedard and Paul McCartney

Posted on June 20, 2011 by PhilMaq

Well, it’s been longer than I’ve wanted it to be since I last wrote. There are two reasons for this: I’ve been sick and I’ve been out of town. Let me change that right now.

I have received and previewed the first sample from George Bedard’s upcoming release “Pickin’ Apart the Past.” The name of the song is “Okie Dokie Stomp.”  It’s an intense jump jazz/blues hybrid. (Intense for George, not the listener!)  It’s two and a half minutes of music that flies by at warp speed! The syncopation is perfect and tight. George plays his guitar like he’s “stompin” on an infestation of fire ants to save his house! The song has at least six times the amount of chords than most pop songs put together! In fact, he uses so many chords, he better check his guitar strings for frayed ends! If the rest of the album is as good as this first track, it will absolutely be a winner! And how do you know I actually listened to it? If you checked out my computer you’d see it’s still on “sizzle!” OWWWWW!

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Now, you might be wondering why I always seem to be featuring George Bedard with Paul McCartney or The Beatles. Good question. One is that I am all over anything about The Beatles, both as a group and as solo artists, so if I can pass on anything that you may not have heard, then it’s a labor of love for me. The same is true about George.  Apparently, the two hardest working guys in the music business right now are Paul and George. And why would I put George’s name above Paul’s?  Since Mr. McCartney can pretty much get all the great press that he wants when he wants it, I don’t think he would mind too much if I give the “headline nod” to a local hero who’s worked hard for it and deserves it!

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Speaking of Paul McCartney, this guy is unbelievable. What did he do for his 69th birthday on Friday? Just the typical thing that most normal guys do on their 69th birthday: Put up a stadium of tickets for sale.  

Last week’s Dennis Mitchell’s Breakfast with The Beatles had another pleasant surprise: a great spot-on cover version of an early Marvin Gaye hit called “Hitchhike.”  It was taken from a closed circuit performance by Paul at The Apollo Theatre a couple of months ago. I’m not aware of The Beatles ever performing the song, but it was out at the early stages of their career at a time when they were looking at Motown songs to cover. It’s such a fun song to play that I have to think that they at least considered it. And since Paul is coming to Comerica Park on July 24th, it would be a nice tribute to Detroit to play one of its own songs. Come on Paul. Play “Hitchhike” again for your Detroit show!

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q

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Random “Q”sings: 2011 CMT Awards Show, Sheryl Crow

Posted on June 13, 2011 by PhilMaq

The CMT Music Awards were held last week. This is a show where country fans vote for all of the awards. It is held to coincide with Fanfare – an extremely popular event held in Nashville where fans can wait everyday for hours to personally meet their country heroes.

I won’t take the time to recap the award winners on what turned out to be a very pedestrian show. One highlight for me, though, was the opening sequence of Taylor Swift and Shania Twain satirizing “Thelma and Louise.” Another Highlight was Lady Antebellum breaking into a version of Prince’s “Kiss!” The final “highlight,” I guess, was something that was totally unscheduled: Sheryl Crow momentarily showed her underwear while she sang “Collide”, her current single, with Kid Rock. “Collide” is the couple’s attempt to try to recapture the magic of “Picture,” – a “monster” hit that they had several years ago. I prefer to call it a “bear song.” This refers to the old joke about two people being chased by a bear. One person tells the other person that he doesn’t have to outrun the bear. He just has to run faster than him! “Picture” was a bear song. It wasn’t all that good. It was just better than most of the other songs that were out at that time.

“Collide,” while recreating the “winning formula,” is a much different kind of song. First, it is a true duet, meaning that they both sing together for most of the song. On “Picture,” most of the singing is done separately. Sheryl provides the harmony. Both vocal performances are actually very good. Ah, but when you put the vocals together for the new song, they actually do collide, and they don’t sound very good when combined. The fact that there aren’t any great lines in the song doesn’t help either. No “I was headed to church/ I was off to drink you away” moment.

Now, let’s get back to Sheryl Crow’s underwear. Whoa! STI!!!* (Stop the Internet!) By default, this automatically becomes the most exciting thing she’s done in years!!! Honestly, I didn’t notice it when it happened. But in case you missed it, she announced to everyone watching the show that it happened and half apologized for it.

But then, CMT Insider had to question her about it – and show it a couple of more times. When your underwear is getting more attention than your music is, you’ve got problems.

Now I really like Sheryl Crow. Her first few albums are good enough to put her in the upper tier of most artists operating in the last twenty years. I’d say there were several simbies on each album that are still being played today. But she’s been coasting for a long time. I’d say ever since “Soak Up the Sun” came out. The song is half good. The chorus is light and hummable. Nothing wrong with that. The slower parts of the verses are good, too. It’s when the lyrics start to double time that it falls apart for me. All I hear is blah-blah blah-blah blah-blah blah, blah-blah blah-blah blah-blah blah. If she worked harder on it, it could’ve been a great song.

Last year’s cd, “100 Miles from Memphis,” was a flop. I hate to say that because she was supposed to be paying tribute to the music that she grew up listening to. You know: R&B, Soul Music. Ironically, the only thing missing in the songs was, hmmmm, let me think….. Oh, yeah. SOUL!!!!! I mean, she couldn’t even hit some of those notes in concert. Who let her put this out????!!!!

Now, if I had a band, I would have no problem having Sheryl Crow in it. She is a multi-instrumentalist, has an incredible voice, and at the worst, even if the band stunk that night, I could look over and see that eye candy! But that’s if she were in my band. Since she heads her own, she needs to have things more together than she does.

I’ve seen Sheryl a couple of times in concert – most recently last year at DTE Energy Theater. (A name I don’t understand because it means Detroit Energy Energy Theater. Huh? It’s like ATM machine. Automatic teller machine machine.) The old songs sounded fine, but not sharp. Almost as if she’s played them too many times. But the new songs were not received well. On top of that, she had a meltdown on stage. While playing the intro to “My Favorite Mistake,” she brought the band to a complete stop and f-bombed the sound. It sounded just fine to me. Then it started to get weird. She apologized for the first f-bomb by letting loose with another f-bomb and more swearing. Now I am far from a prude, but there were a lot of little kids there, for what most people probably thought would be a family show. I mean, they weren’t there to see Gilbert Gottfried!

I saw her another time at The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was the last show of the tour, which is usually very loose and often has a party atmosphere. For those reasons, I was really looking forward to it. Boy was I wrong. It was a dead atmosphere. To add to the strangeness, she wanted to film a segment of “Home,” an introspective piano ballad, for VH1. She didn’t like the way it was performed, so at the end of the show, she announced that they were going to do a couple of more takes of the song and that everyone was welcome to stay. Well, “Home” is a quiet, personal song, and, unfortunately, the Detroit Red Wings were in the NHL Playoffs, and some fans couldn’t stop shouting, “Go Wings” during the quietest moments. Now that wasn’t her fault, but for someone who brought a concert to a screeching halt because she felt something wasn’t quite right, she sure didn’t take control of the situation.

I don’t know. I’ve seen her twice now and both times I felt I didn’t get my money’s worth. And the second time, the ticket was free! Some good new music would fix this!

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!
Q

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Music “Q”sings: The Decemberists, Lady Gaga, Christina Perri

Posted on June 8, 2011 by PhilMaq
The King is Dead by the Decemberists

Photo courtesy of The Decemberists

The latest song Stuck in my brain (“Simbie”) is an appropriate one for once: “June Hymn” by The Decemberists. The chorus just keeps rolling around in my head: “And once upon it/Yellow bonnets/Garland all the lawn/And you were waking/And day was breaking/A panoply of song/And summer comes to Springville Hill.” Their latest album, “The King Is Dead” is spectacularly great! It’s like a cross between Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen with better melodies, thrown into a 60s blender in the future using colors from Mario Paint and telepathically force-fed into your brain! I can’t believe that after six albums and finally achieving critical and their largest commercial success that singer-songwriter Colin Meloy plans to have the group take a three or four year break to do “other things.”

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When the muse hits you, you have to listen to her! She doesn’t stay forever, man! You should be working at maximum output during this stretch, especially after you refined your process. There are reasons why the first five albums were mainly only critical successes. I hope that their recent good fortunes, including their most recent tour, will help to change his mind.

At this point, almost halfway through the year, this is the odds on favorite for album of the year. Now I know there is still a lot of the year left to go, and I would be ecstatic to have other great albums push it further down the list, but it is a lock to make most critics Top Ten Lists!

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A trip to Surreal Land:

I was surfing the cable channels the other day and I ran across something that was so bizarre I almost needed a defibrillator. There it was, on the local PBS station, in plain sight: The McLaughlin Group were discussing the breakdown of society caused by Lady Gaga. (ODWITS!!!!!!) I’m not even going to pretend that I know who’s on that show, but it crossed the weird line to even have some of them sticking up for her as a role model. This was after a slew of statistics like “Lady Gaga” has now sold more than 15 million CDs!” and “Lady Gaga” currently has 22 million followers on Facebook!” At least Pat Buchanan was honest enough to admit that “until that report, I wouldn’t have been able to pick Lady Gaga out of a police lineup.” To which, in response, everyone agreed that he would have been able to. (DOUBLE ODWITS!!!!)

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Christina Perri Lovestrong

Christina Perri Lovestrong courtesy of Christina Perri

I have a teenage daughter, and she and her friends are currently hooked on “Bang Bang Bang” by Christina Perri. You’ve been informed!

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!
Q

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Random “Q”sings: George Bedard, Paul McCartney

Posted on June 5, 2011 by PhilMaq
George Bedard and the Kingpins: Pickin' Apart the Past

Cover for George Bedard new CD courtesy of George Bedard

Well, I finally have the info on the new George Bedard album! It’s called Pickin’ Apart the Past” (Cool title!), and it’s a thinly veiled reference to George’s approach to this new CD. The all instrumental approach is a switch from his previous rockabilly nature and focuses mainly on other musician’s works and his interpretations of them. Any musician who has ever tried to learn someone else’s song has always had to deconstruct and analyze a song before reconstructing it for themselves. This is a process that goes back as far as anyone has ever been inspired to pick up a “git-box”-or whatever they had on hand to learn someone else’s song. George is paying homage to those who went before him as he figuratively stands on their shoulders. In a nutshell, that’s what the title means – along with the double meaning that he plays guitar and uses a pick. I’m also excited to read that liner notes will be included with the CD because that gives direct insight into the artist’s thought processes.

Of course, George throws in a couple of his own originals. And this is not mentioned lightly. I can’t wait to hear it judging by his previous instrumental releases. On his first album, “Upside,” with The Kingpins, they did, quite possibly, one of the greatest instrumental covers of all time – let alone the equal of any song: The Chantays’ “Pipeline!” The song ebbs and flows in atmospheric dynamics created by all three members: George, Randy Tessier, and Rich Dishman. Then it literally EXPLODES after quiet segments until the climactic finale! The song is the equivalent of being on a rollercoaster ride because you can’t get off once you’re on. Just like being on a coaster, the quiet sections give the listener (rider) a chance to catch their breath before tumbling headfirst down the steepest hills! It is literally 3 minutes and 41 seconds of pure pleasure, and it’s even more dramatic when you see them play it live, because all three use their body language to hit their notes perfectly! It is a masterpiece!

And don’t get me started on “Hawaiian Boogie” on their second CD, “Hip Deep!” The Kingpins have been performing Floyd Cramer’s “Last Date” live for a number of years, and ironically it is almost the exact opposite of “Pipeline,” giving the listener a “comforting feeling” like a warm blanket on a chilly night. Not every band can convey such diverse emotions.

I love instrumentals and I believe they are often underappreciated, so I’m quite thrilled that George has chosen to do an all-instrumental disk. On “Pickin’ Apart the Past” , George surrounds himself with all-star guest musicians. Judging by past performances, George’s first solo CD should be a GREAT ride! 

You can read the entire press release on George’s Facebook page. Here’s the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/George-Bedard-and-the-Kingpins/119563528063815

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I heard Paul McCartney’s new release on Dennis Mitchell’s Breakfast with the Beatles last week. It’s for a new Buddy Holly tribute album Rave On! to be released later this month. The album has an eclectic mixture of artists ranging from The Black Keys and Nick Lowe to Kid Rock and Cee Lo Green. McCartney does a cover of “It’s So Easy.” He slows it down and gives it a slightly harder edge than other cover versions, and the vocal sounds like vintage 70s McCartney-kind of raw and dramatic like on “Oh Woman, Oh Why.” I’m not sure if I like it yet, but I’m also sure that it will probably grow on me like most things that he’s done. 

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q

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Random “Q”sings: Little Big Town, The Civil Wars, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift

Posted on May 31, 2011 by PhilMaq

I saw Little Big Town do an incredible performance of Coldplay’s “Fix You”-an already incredible song (Yeah, yeah. So I like Coldplay. Get over it. I like a lot of different music.), for a charity concert on Country Music Television (CMT) to raise funds for tornado victims in Alabama. The first time I ever heard the song was when Coldplay played it for Hurricane Katrina victims, and I was a mess when it was done. I sure hope it never has to be used for this kind of thing ever again. But, unfortunately, I know it will be used again for another disaster. It’s too perfect of a song not to use it.

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I heard on the VH1 Top 20 Countdown that the couple that makes up The Civil Wars are not married to each other and are not even dating! Whew! With that load off of my mind, I can now solely concentrate on just their boring music that seems to be growing in popularity for some reason. ODWITS!* (*Please refer to the May 15 “Q”sings.)

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Also, on the same countdown show, host Jim Shearer, stated that singer Katy Perry has had a song in the Billboard Magazine Top Ten for at least 52 straight weeks, breaking a record held by pop group Ace of Base set in the 1990s…………………………………..

DOUBLE ODWITS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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“Mean” by Taylor Swift is my current favorite song, and it’s also the one stuck in my head. Sometimes the stars do align!

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q

                                        

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Random “Q”sings: The Beatles, Taylor Swift

Posted on May 27, 2011 by PhilMaq

I caught Dennis Mitchell’s Breakfast With The Beatles last Sunday, as I do most Sundays, and I caught him playing some live versions of “She Loves You” and “Twist & Shout” from 1963. That was so much better than that video of them for “Ready, Steady, Go!” That’s the one where they do that awful version of The Isley Brothers’ “Shout.” That has to be one of the worst videos I’ve seen of anybody. The Beatles look fine, but the sound isn’t properly synched to the picture. It sounds great if you only listen to it, but they almost fall apart during “Shout” with George Harrison on the vocals. I have to think they didn’t perform the song very often if at all.

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I really like the new Taylor Swift video for “Mean” from her “Speak Now” album. It features her playing banjo in a couple of Depression-era scenes reminiscent of “O Brother, Where Art Thou.” She gets tied to the tracks like in a silent movie as well as performing with a minstrel group. The video also follows the life of a little girl who seems to be a member of the “out” group, who even has to resort to eating her lunch in a stall in the bathroom(!) (Gag!!!! Creative, though.), as well as another woman struggling as a sandwich sign carrier so she can get a college degree. Now, for whatever reason, country artists seem to have a fascination with period videos. Most recently, LeAnn Rimes and Kelli Pickler have gone down this path. However, when Taylor, as well as the other characters, emerges triumphantly over the person who is “mean” because he said she couldn’t sing, she looks like she actually belongs in that time and would have made a great flapper! Anyway, it’s a zillion times better than “Mine.” I don’t know. Maybe I should say she can’t act just so she’ll do another great song and video………

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q

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Random “Q”sings: Christina Perri, Renaissance, Rodrigo Y Gabriela

Posted on May 25, 2011 by PhilMaq

I just got around to watching Christina Perri sing her latest single “Arms” on the May 18th Jimmy Kimmel Live. It’s really very sweet! She pretty much can’t help but smile all the way through the first couple of verses before she gets serious and kicks the song into gear. I’m sure a lot of that smiling had to do with starting her performance cold with a song that she’s been placing second to last on her current tour with James Blunt. She is getting so much more confident than when she started! Musically, the symphonic musical arrangement was translated surprisingly well by her band. That is not easy to do and she should be proud!

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OK, speaking of bands that do a great job translating symphonic arrangements to a live show, let’s go waaaay back in time. I featured Renaissance, a prog rock band from the 70’s, on my show last week, and I can’t get a song of theirs out of my head! Although I have always liked the band, I have never really cared for “Can You Hear Me Call Your Name?” from their “Novella” release. It is a dense 13+ minute symphonic excursion with a couple of false endings. Maybe it was too much for me to take in at the time that I first listened to it. Over the years, I have heard it a few more times and have never given it a positive rating on my own music rating system. Now I can’t get it out of my head! Go figure. It’s very atmospheric, and I should have known it was good because it isn’t available as a download! On the other hand, I still have never warmed up to “Midas Man,” quite possibly their most accessible radio friendly song. I wonder how long it will take it get used to that one……………..

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Let’s stay in the symphonic vein.

I was very pleased to see that Rodrigo Y Gabriela have several songs featured in the new “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” movie. They performed one of them on May 13th on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno with a small symphony and they were very impressive! They are extremely underrated, and it was good to see them expanding their musical vision even more!

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q

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Random “Q”sings: Steve Holy, The JaneDear Girls, Steel Magnolia, Jason Aldean

Posted on May 23, 2011 by PhilMaq

Well, I finally broke down and decided to take in a day at the Detroit Country Hoedown. I chose last Sunday because of what I considered to be a pretty solid lineup.

I arrived at the time slated for The JaneDear Girls, but they were running late, so I was able to catch some of Steve Holy’s set. He sounded great and upbeat! The sound mix was superb, especially on the crowd-pleaser “Brand New Girlfriend!” It would turn out to be the highlight of the day.

The JaneDear Girls did a very energized set, but Danelle Leverett’s banjo couldn’t even be heard. Fortunately, her hyperactivity made up for most of what was missing. She was constantly moving around the stage. But from a fan’s perspective, it was very disappointing to not hear the instrument. I mean, if you’re going to feature an obnoxious instrument, you should absolutely make sure that it’s going to be heard. Susie Brown’s fiddle, however, was right up front and was featured prominently in a segue of “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” into The Orange Blossom Special.” That was probably the fastest I’ve ever heard that song played! All in all, they really tried hard to give a good show, even though the temperature was about 40 degrees with a constant rain blowing in their faces. They finished with a great version of “Wildflower!”  

Next came the duo Steel Magnolia. They didn’t fare so well. The duo, consisting of lead singer Meghan Linsey, who was under the weather, and her fiancé, Joshua Scott Jones, plowed through most of their self-titled debut release. Highlights were “Eggs Over Easy” and “Last Night Again.” It was pretty average fare, but I still think that the lousy mix did not help them.

Finally, the show’s closer came on. This was an incredible opportunity for Detroit country fans to see a major arena artist-for free! And boy was there a crowd! The crowd was large to begin with, but it constantly expanded during the other acts’ sets. Jason Aldean finally arrived about 45 minutes late-even though all of his equipment was already set up onstage. He touched on most of his highlights and sent most everyone home happy-COLD, but happy!      

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Until next time, take care of yourself, and take care of each other!

Peace!

Q 

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