Backstage With Keith in Vegas

I worried all day that something would go wrong - I wouldn't make it to Vegas from Phoenix, I'd take a nap and oversleep, I'd go to the box office and my name wouldn't really be on the BSE list. I stopped at the box office during the afternoon to see if they had the BSE passes yet - they didn't, so I was anxious until 6:15, when lo and behold they really did have an envelope with my name on it containing instructions and a special blue satin sticky Backstage Experience tag that I was to wear. I was too nervous to eat dinner (but did have a margarita to calm my nerves :). Asked the bartender where the North Suites elevators, where we were to meet, were located and he hadn't a clue. Headed towards what I thought was north in the huge Mandalay Bay Casino and found a security guard to ask. He immediately pointed and said "You're gonna be late to meet and greet!" because I had to enter the arena with the crowd that was already gathering for the concert!:( But of course these events are hard to keep on schedule - everything was running behind schedule and I didn't miss anything. (whew!) It was immediately clear that there were quite a few of us (20-30?) and that we were the second BSE group this evening (I think the radio station BSEs and VIP tickets went first and we had to wait for them to leave before our group could enter.) When it was finally our turn we were lead downstairs by several of Keith's staff and lined up for photos in groups of 9-10. I know some were disappointed at the number in the photo, but I was just amazed and grateful that Keith was doing this for so many fans at every tour stop.

I was in the first group that stood in front of a big Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Thing Heart banner and tried to make a space in front of me that would call to Keith when he arrived. And there he was, in the flesh, beaming and welcoming us - my first thrill of the evening. Unfortunately he headed for the exact middle of our group rather than "my spot", but I guess that makes sense. But he did tell us to cuddle together so we'd all fit in the shot and put his arms around the 2 lucky gals on either side, one of whom was next to me. Well I put my arm up too - right on top of his, giving a gentle stroke to that great left arm (I'll be damned if I wasn't gonna touch some part of Keith Urban!!)- my second thrill of the evening! They took a couple shots - Keith will probably be the only photogenic one in the group. But as we broke our line to make room for the next group of ten, I stepped up to him and said "The concert last night in Phoenix was just fantastic!" He looked at me with a bit of surprise (probably thinking ‘you were in Phoenix and now Vegas??’) but then thanked me, said the audience was just wonderful in Phoenix, and then he gave me a hug!! OMG!! It happened so fast and so unexpectedly that I forgot to smell him (lol), but I was in heaven!

We were lead into the "BSE room". They obviously had taken pains to create some ambience in what was probably a stark cinderblock room in the basement of the arena. The walls were hidden by velvet curtains, the lighting was low and there were several large lit candles and romantic (maybe fringed) lamps placed around the room. Music and Keith images on the big screen TV. The furniture consisted of low wooden cube-like seats for us and a small stage and stool for Keith. Since we were the first 10 to enter the room we sat on the fron cubes - I was right in front of the microphone.

We had to wait a couple minutes for the others to finish their photos. We weren't allowed to take our own photos of Keith, but Keith wasn't there yet and one guy asked that we take a photo of him sitting on Keith's stool on the stage. Quite a few of us did the same :) before the rest of the group arrived. They then showed us a great video - both interesting and informative and incredibly funny as well. Keith and the rest of the band have such great senses of humor. Keith talked about all sorts of things that they had to do in the 3 months before the tour - visiting the arenas, designing the stage, choosing what to show on the video screen , choosing the set list and so forth, but all the while he and the others were cracking jokes and being real goofballs. It was so good I just know they will add it to the fan club site at the end of the tour.

Next Keith came in to sing us a song. I noticed he had what I thought was his new mini-guitar and just blurted out "Is that you new guitar?" which got him going on really funny remarks about the Aussie maker and also about how he initially felt like he had stole the guitar off some little kid because of its size, but that it has great big sound despite its size. He asked what we wanted to hear, several said Stupid Boy, and he did a great and emotional performance (radio-length version). Then he said it was time for a few of those scary, deeply personal and totally inappropriate questions we had all been waiting to ask (lol). The first woman asked why 2 earrings rather than 3 and he said “See what I mean about those questions!” The woman said that the talk is that the 2 earrings represent Nicole's 2 kids and that the third earring will come back when they have a child of their own (where do people get these things??) and Keith looked like he might laugh and said "Whoa, some people think way too much". A guy just complimented Keith saying "I just love you when you play the guitar" (see even guys can be a little flustered) at which point Keith took off his guitar and started to make a move towards the guy, saying something about “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” Hee hee. I asked if he could tell us a little more about the music at the end of Used to the Pain and what those lyrics that we've been straining to hear are. He said he had been playing with that little E-bow instrument and tune and considered it as a separate track, but one day while warming up to record he happened to do it after UTTP and liked it. But he said that ditty does not really have lyrics - that it is another case of playing around with "Vowel sounds" that have no real meaning, just like the words at the end of Somebody LikeYou! A woman asked what he was listening to on his ipod - today he said Dixie Chicks, Reba and Toby Keith! Another asked what he had for dinner (?) and he said whatever lame chicken rice thing the caterer brought. A young girl asked for a birthday autograph (which he personally addressed to her) and then he (and we) sang her happy birthday. He was gracious and sweet and did not seem to be rushing us even though we knew he was on a tight schedule (this went on until the Wreckers were on their last song). He thanked us for coming and said he hoped we would enjoy tonight's show, and then slipped out before a couple of us could give him little gifts we'd brought. (One guy did toss a bib with guitarmonkey on it up on the stage (for a future little Urban), Keith immediately joked that the guy must have seen how he eats.) So even though it was a group meet and greet, it was a great experience with a great guy!! We each were given a little velvet bag with the tour name on it and a Keith Urban 2007 Backstage Experience keychain in it as a souvenir, but you all know what I'll be remembering from this event!