Blues Fest 2010

Arkansas Blues & Heritage Festival celebrated it's 25th anniversary this year and we were there for the celebration! Known as King Biscuit Blues Festival since it's inception, the name had to be changed several years ago. But thanks to a very profitable, successful festival, it's going back to the King Biscuit name!

Dad has been stage managing the main stage for years and years, John has been working the stage crew for 7, and I make my way down there whenever I feel like it. (one of my main deciding factors is if Corrie is going!)



Corrie, Anson Funderburgh and me

                                                  

John and Chad

Kerrice and Corrie

 We had a blast! Music was fantastic, weather was great, and we just enjoyed seeing everyone. Kerrice joined us this year and she made friends with everyone she met!

We saw B.B.King, Dr. John, Taj Mahal, Marcia Ball, Reba Russell, Anson Funderburgh, James Harman, Wolfman Washington and the list goes on.

One of our favorites was Preston Shannan, the first act on Saturday. We were staying out of the sun,

chilling behind the stage, still recovering from Friday...when they started to play. A really solid set...Preston was great on the guitar and backed by a talented band. When they did their version of "Purple Rain", we all just looked at each other...it was really well done. Just a great, great start to our final day at the Blues Fest.

With Preston Shannan

Dad and B.B. King

Exhausted, we drove home on Sunday, talking about all of the fantastic music we heard and realizing how lucky we were.

Ichabods in Colorado

We are pretty involved with Washburn University. John graduated from there and currently works for Washburn, and he was just elected to the Washburn Alumni Board of Directors. For several years now, Washburn's first football game of the season has been against Colorado School of Mines. The game this year was in Golden, CO and we talked about going. Plans solidified when I found out Ray LaMontagne and David Gray were going to play Red Rocks the Monday after the game. I talked John into it and in turn, he talked Javier and Brenda into going with us. We turned it into a fantastic weekend!

Drove to Denver on a Friday, I scheduled a detour at the outlet malls in Castle Rock, everyone bought something at Coach! We made good time and checked into the Sheraton Denver West--we got great rates using Hotwire. That night Washburn Alumni gathered at a sports bar near Cherry Creek for a get together. Our friends Robin & Scott were there and we had a lot of fun visiting and trying new beers. I'd done a little research and read about a burger place in the Cherry Creek area, after hearing some more great things about it, that's where we went for dinner. Cherry Cricket was nearby...food was great and we had a blast hanging out at the teeny bar in the back, talking with the bartender.



Washburn played on Saturday, it was sunny and warm, and we cheered the Ichabods on to victory. Yes, Ichabods. If you need more info on why the Ichabods are the Ichabods, go here. "What's an Ichabod?"
We stopped at a joint right across from our hotel for happy hour...Jose O'Shea's...seriously some of the best margaritas I've ever had. And I love margaritas.





Sunday, we drove to Colorado Springs. We had brunch at the Broadmoor and it was outstanding...gorgeously done, everything you could possibly want. We changed into some casual clothes and took a drive. Patsy's for some saltwater taffy, then checked out Green Mountain Falls, where John and his family vacationed for years. Finally ending up at one of my favorite places, Garden of the Gods. A few hours were spent here...



At the end of the day, we were finally hungry again and I casually mentioned that there was a good German restaurant nearby, Edelweiss. So happy that the gang said that sounded good! Oh my goodness, I was in heaven...gemichste salat, rahmschnitzel, spatzle.

On Monday, we touristed up and got out to see a few things. Breakfast at Snooze in Denver was a very wise decision. So was the Denver Museum of Nature & Science--it was free that day to Colorado residents. We tried to pay but they waved us on through. Then back to Golden to tour the Coors Brewery. Time was running out but we stopped at another place I'd read about, Empanada Express, right there in Golden. Venezuelan empanadas and arepas, some fried yucca and plaintains...all good!

Breakfast nirvana...


Beer(!!)Tour...


We were worried about getting to Red Rocks on time...we had general admission and wanted to make sure we got there to have seats together. I was warned about the trek to the amphitheatre but I truly had no idea. Combine the altitude with my general outofshapeness, and I was wiped out by the time we made it to our seats. Brenda thinks they should take pictures of us and put a sign at the bottom of the steps..."If you look anything like these two women, don't attempt".
It was worth it, the show was great...beautiful setting, gorgeous night.



We packed a lot into that long weekend! I love Colorado and hope we can go back soon.

Martin

We went to Kansas City last weekend to hang out with John's brother Tim and his wife Jennifer. We had tickets to see Martin Sexton in concert at Crosstown Station. I've been listening to Martin Sexton since my days at KSYM 90.1 in San Antonio. My station manager and friend, John O'Rourke, handed me a cd and told me it would be good for my folk show. It was and I fell in love with the sound. I've heard for years that he is fantastic live. And I think he tours often. But in all this time, I've never seen him perform. It's been a mix of timing and timidity. I think when you've got a short list of people you just have to see live...you don't want to be disappointed.
In no way was I disappointed. This was easily one of the best concerts I have ever been to.

We started off the night with a few drinks on Tim & Jennifer's patio. Then moved downtown for some beer & apps. When we headed to Crosstown Station, we found out the concert was sold out. And apparently, Martin got off his bus and gave the fans looking for tickets an impromptu concert. None of us had been to Crosstown Station and it's a great bar for live music. We got pretty close to the stage and settled in for some music. He has an amazing voice and blew us away from the start. When he went into "Helter Skelter", I lost it. We all just had the best time. I can't wait to see him again.

Dar

This past Wednesday, for the fourth time, John and I saw Dar Williams in concert in Lawrence. And it's been 4 years, much too long. We were in the second row at Liberty Hall and it was like seeing an old friend again. Dar's song, "After All", inspired the name of this blog. I can still remember the first time I heard her sing. It was 1996 and I was driving in San Antonio and listening to KSYM when the song "As Cool As I Am" came on. I called my friend who was the dj that afternoon and asked her about the song. Thankfully, John grew to love her music as much as I did.

Stephen Kellog (minus The Sixers) opened for Dar and we liked his music right away. He was a good storyteller too and amused us between songs. I spoke to him after his set and bought two cds.
Dar came on about 9:30pm and Liberty Hall erupted with applause. After a few songs, there was some mic trouble and awful feedback. While this was taken care of, Dar sat on a stool and sang "What Do You Hear in These Sounds?". It was so still and quiet, we didn't want to miss a note. Time flew and as she played her second encore, I got teary. We'd waited four years to see her again and I didn't want it to end.

We walked back to our car and took the long way. What a wonderful night!