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Hello Everybody !! Thanks for being so patient with me on the lack of blogs recently. We get out on the road and have so many days of work and travel, sometimes I get lazy on updating the website with stories. We are always saying, "Write that down for the road journal !!" and most of the time, we remember to put all of the good stuff in !!
Our last "out-of-towner" was in Salina, KS for The Smoky Hill River Festival. This festival is a special one for us because they treat us so well and it is where I graduated high school. Since the first year (2006) they have taken us in and treated us like royalty. We have a handful of dates every year that really stand out as our favorites and this is absolutely one of them. The Smoky Hill River Festival ( www.riverfestival.com ) is an Arts & Music festival. They display a ton of great visual artists and food vendors, along with amazing music artists and great exhibitions of local flavor. If you ever have the time, please go to Salina and experience this for yourself. You won't be disappointed !!
We traveled into Salina on Friday, June 12th. We had a headlining spot on the main stage on Friday night at 8:30 pm. A few bands played the support slots before us and they really got the energy going. A BIG thank you to our friends in Mingo Fishtrap and also our buddies in Moreland & Arbuckle !! Check these bands out, they are excellent !! We hit the stage with an hour and a half to take the crowd on a journey through the new material from "Chasing Orion". We hit them hard with four new ones right off the bat. We have been building a strong starter set with "Hello, Hello", "Long Lonesome Road", "Jenny Dang" and "Maggie Oh Maggie". This lines up with the first four songs on the new disc. Pretty smart, huh ?? (ha,ha !!)
The crowd was amazing and it didn't take long for them to get into it and come right to the front of the stage and rock with us !! They stayed there the whole time and braved the heat right along with us. YOU GUYS ROCKED !! We probably had a couple thousand total and about 200 up front with us !! It was an amazing site for us. Now, to interject a small thing here. It never fails to amaze us that our fans are so dedicated. It is a moment that lives in your memory forever, when you see people getting into the music and singing along. And they know EVERY WORD to EVERY SONG !! WOW !!!
We blazed through the set and waved goodnight to our fans, and exited the stage. It was 10:00 pm and we had to stop due to a city noise ordinance. Was that going to stop the good people of Salina,KS ??? NO !!! As we stood backstage, the chant went up "Need-fi-re !!" Three syllables at that !! WOO HOO !! It happened for about a minute before Michael went out and started the didge part to "Fields of Bracken". For those of you who know the song, it unfolds in layers. Michael started it and then I went out and started my part, followed by Ed, then Brad, then John. It was a deafening roar as each of us went on stage and they recognized what was happening. It was a defining moment in our careers. We will never forget that as long as we live. We played the song out and then took our final bow and closed the evening on top of the world !! What a night !!
We greeted our loyal fans for autographs and some pictures. It is an amazing feeling having someone ask for your signature because your music has touched them in such a way. I cannot explain it in words. We are so fortunate !! A HUGE thank you to all of the great people involved in helping us out that night. The soundcrew, stage hands, directors, etc. Everyone was top notch and we couldn't do it without you !!
After the show, we went to Russell's restaurant for some good food. As we walked in, a few fans from the show recognized us. SWEET !! We're famous !! We finally went back to the hotel and got some much needed sleep, so we could do it all again the next day.
Saturday morning came along and we headed for the festival again. The set on Saturday was at noon on the smaller stage. We tend to like the stages where we can get closer to the audience. It makes us feel more comfortable. Again, we were fortunate to have a couple of great bands in the slots prior to us. Thanks to the guys in Palominos and once again,Moreland & Arbuckle. These bands are very talented and they are super nice people to top it off !! Make sure to look them up.
As we cranked it up, there was apparently a mass exodus to the stage where we were. All of a sudden, we had a thousand people rockin' with us !! WOW !! Amazing support at this festival !! We had a shorter set, 45 minutes this time. We had a great crowd and the time flew by. We were mobbed by fans after the set and spent some time doing a great interview for a local television station. Speaking of TV, the show from Friday night was recorded live and will be aired on television. I believe a Google search should get some results are far as airtimes and clips. Also, we will put clips up on the sites, as we get them.
On a personal note, I saw some old family friends and school friends that I hadn't seen in years. Thanks to all of you for showing up and taking the time to share the experience with me. It was great to see you all and it made me miss the old days a little !!
A big thank you to all of the people who put this event on. Extra special thanks to Sharon Benson, Lauren Banniger and Dean Kranzler for all of the hard work you put in. We love you guys !! A thank you to all of the great entertainers who shared the stage with us. Thanks for your hospitality. Thanks to my family who put up with me and let me be a rockstar for a weekend !! Also, to all of ours fans, we love you all so much !! We would not be here if it weren't for you. Thanks for listening, coming out to the shows, and continuing to show your dedication. We are so lucky to have such great fans !!
On a side note, a special thanks to Hannah and Debbie for the Sunday morning behind the scenes tour of The Rolling Hills Wildlife Park (www.rollinghillswildlife.com ). We had a blast feeding the aardvark, rhinos and getting to know all of the amazing animals you take care of. You are truly special people to have so much love in your hearts for these beautiful creatures. We love you and can't wait to come back !!
We love visiting Salina,KS and all of the great people there. We travel the whole country doing shows for all walks of life, but it is a special place that stays in your memory as one of the best places in your life, a home away from home of sorts. Life gives us all incredible moments of beauty and it's up to us what we do with them. We are putting this one away for safe keeping, so we can look at it again later, and smile at how special it really was.
WE LOVE YOU ALL !!
See you down the road !!
NeedFire
5:55 PM
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