Tag Archives: Eric Church

A Cool Week in December

14 Dec

From December 4 to December 10, I had a pretty cool week. No, that is not a weather report. Rather, some cool things happened.

It all started on December 4 when my wife and I had the opportunity to sit on the glass for the Nashville Predators. We, along with some friends, purchased the tickets at a fundraiser. It was an awesome experience. Pregame and intermissions were spent in the Lexus Lounge, where food and drink were flowing. It was also where we could bump fists with the Predators as they made their way to the ice.

During the game, we got a good view of stuff like this.

To make it even better, the Predators defeated the Boston Bruins 5-3.

On December 7, I went with my brother, my nephew and some friends to see the John Wayne exhibit at the Opryland Hotel. We are all fans of the Duke and were able to discuss our fandom amongst his personal memorabilia. It was a great exhibit with his Oscar and a bunch of costumes. Do you know which movies these costumes represent?

We finished the night with whiskey and steaks at a restaurant inside the hotel. We figured that was the perfect way to honor the Duke.

On December 10, my wife and I attended a private concert by Eric Church. We were invited a few weeks earlier and are thrilled that we had this opportunity. We saw him perform at Bridgestone Arena, but this was completely different. On the big stage, he covers himself in sunglasses and a cap. He also performs with a chip on his shoulder. This show did not involve all of that. It was him sitting on a stool with a guitar and telling personal stories about the songs.

It was a great way to end a cool week in December.

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Our Week With Eric Church, Carole King, the Bandit and the Nashville Predators

30 May

It has been an eventful week in the SBI World, and we have spent a lot of time in the city 30 miles to the west. For those not up on local geography, that city is Nashville.

On Monday night, we had tickets for Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals in the National Hockey League. The Nashville Predators have been on a magical run through the playoffs and have taken over the city. Long time Predator fans are not happy with the bandwagon people, but we felt that Game 6 was a must-see event. They clinched the championship, and I got to High Five the country music star who sat in front of us. I have no idea who he was, but my wife was not happy that I got to touch him and she did not.

On Tuesday night, I was back in Nashville for a fundraiser. Cumberland University, where I work, is the home of the Martin Van Buren Papers, and a Nashville attorney hosted an event to assist with that project. He has an amazing collection of historic artifacts and opened his office for tours. People paid to see documents signed by George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Davy Crockett, King George III and various other people. It was interesting to see everything and to hear the stories of how the collection came together.

On Wednesday night, I went with my brother and my nephews to a truly cultural event. We went to the theater to see the 40th Anniversary screening of Smokey and the Bandit, a movie that I have seen a million times.

It was great to see the Bandit, Snowman and Buford T. Justice on the big screen, but it was also great to see people with their t-shirts. As bandit tells Snowman when they get to the warehouse full of Coors beer, it was “redneck heaven.” After it was over, I wanted to get a diablo sandwich and a Dr. Pepper.

On Friday night, it was back to Bridgestone Arena, home of the Predators. However, we were not there for a hockey game. We were there to see Eric Church in concert.

I do not know much about the singer, but we had already seen him at a Kris Kristofferson tribute concert. This one was more rocking and raucous. Eric Church is known for wearing sunglasses, and it was funny to see all of the guys in the crowd wearing sunglasses. I reckon that thought some female would mistake them for the performer.

On Sunday night, we went to the Tennessee Performing Arts Center to see Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. It was a great show about the life of a prolific songwriter who also creating on of the great albums of all time. Through professional success and personal tribulation, she wrote songs that became part of the soundtrack for a generation. Now, we have to see the real person in concert.

At some point, I made the statement that I was not going to go into the city for a while. However, I will it will happen because there is too much cool stuff there to do. This week was just a small sample of that.

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Cuffing Them at the Kristofferson Tribute Show

27 Mar

A couple of weeks ago, we went to Bridgestone Arena for a concert honoring Kris Kristofferson. Numerous stars of Country music were there to sing the songs that he had written and showcase his musical legacy. This was a concert that was anticipated by Kristofferson fans and fans of the people who would be performing. However, I did not anticipate that the mixture of people would turn volatile.

Before the show, I noticed that a lot people were not accustomed to attending concerts at Bridgestone. As we walked down the sidewalk, one man stopped at every door and asked if that is where they enter. When we found our seats, the man next to me kept commenting to his wife about the large number of people in the building. In fact, they had the upper deck covered with drapes, which meant this was one of the venues smaller crowds.Kristofferson

Our seats were on the floor, which meant that it was hard to see what was happening on the stage. Floor seats are awesome when you are close to the stage. They are not that awesome when you are further back. However, there is one thing that is constant. Sitting on the floor means that you are going to spend some time standing up. I know that. My wife knows that. However, the people who do not attend many arena concerts apparently do not know that.

For the most part, people stayed in their seats. After all, Kristofferson songs are not the type of songs that get you dancing in the aisles. However, there were a few times when people stood up. That is when the yelling started.

“DOWN IN FRONT!!”

“PUT YOUR PHONES DOWN!!”

“WE CAN’T SEE!!”

For a while, the yellers got what they wanted. Then, Eric Church hit the stage. This is a guy who younger people love. This is also a guy who young people stand up to see. I am sure some of those young people came to the concert just to see him. When he came out, those young people stood up.

It was not long before the yelling started, but the standers did not sit down. In fact, one of the standers yelled back.

“WHAT DO YOU EXPECT WHEN YOU SIT ON THE FLOOR?!?”

I agreed with her, but she did not understand. They did not know to expect it.

The yelling continued back and forth. Then, an usher walked up to the young lady and talked with her. This is when she made a fatal mistake.

Before continuing the story, I should say that the young lady was sitting 6 rows in front of me at a concert. Yet, I could hear her clearly when she yelled at the usher.

“GET OUT OF MY FACE!!”

Actually, she included a derogatory term that means fornicating. It also begins with the letter F.

Within minutes, there were 6 police officers on the scene. Apparently, they did not like her comments because they were attempting to escort her from the building. She did not comply and ended up being held by her hands and her feet. This was to stop her punching and kicking. Eventually, she was leaning over a rail and being handcuffed.

As she was taken past us, her friend was being handcuffed and begin prepared for her own perp walk. As the officers took the ladies out, people cheered more than they had cheered any of the performers. They had hate in their eyes, and I could have sworn that one woman spat at them.

I have already written about people who constantly stand at sporting events. However, this was different. She was right. When you sit on the floor at an arena show, you should expect to stand up. Should she have screamed obscenities at the usher? No, he was just doing his job. However, I do not think people should have been yelling about people standing up.

I expected to stand up. But, I never expected to see someone get arrested at a tribute concert for Kris Kristofferson.

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