I headed over to the MS Coast Coliseum about an hour early so that I would have time to look around. The wind off the water had picked up, which was good (not so sweltering hot) and bad (it was strong enough so that it was picking up fine sand so I was gently sand-blasted during my walk). Obviously this happens all the time so the sidewalk between the hotel and arena was 6 inches deep in loose have-to-wade-through it sand. So I walked in busy Beach Blvd whenever I could and just stepped up in the sand when traffic barreled by. When I got to the venue there was a rather long, slow line to pass through the doors. I saw the Samsung green screen folks right off and volunteered to be photographed or videoed “with Keith” but they unfortunately reported they were behind in getting their software in gear so weren’t yet ready to go.
So then I inspected the arena. I entered from the rear and immediately noticed there was a long bar staffed by 3 bartenders in the spot where last tour the satellite stage would have been positioned. This year’s quite small round satellite stage in mid-arena; in Biloxi this was between the front floor (which went through Row 30) and the rear floor. Consequently there was not a huge amount of open floor space around the little stage. That may vary with venue I imagine.
The main stage was a surprise given the diagrams in the Ticketmaster seating charts. There are not 2 ramps as most diagrams show. The stage is a semicircle and its entire outer edge is ramped except for the little 5 foot “catwalk” (hardly deserves that title - just a platform for when Keith wants to bring his microphone out closer to the fans) center stage. So Keith can exit the stage almost anywhere around the semicircle. There are actual stairs towards the back of each side of the stage as usual. The far side microphones closest to the risers are now on their own free-standing platforms so Keith has to come down off the stage and climb up to the platform when he wants to sing to the sides of the arena.
As you may have seen from the rehearsal show, there is a looping ‘roller coaster” like track for lights to move on as well as a giant circular video screen on the back wall of the stage. There is also a curlique of similar lighting track above the stage and a giant disco ball suspended from the ceiling about 30 feet out from the stage. Of course we couldn’t initially see the backdrop. Jake Owen’s red-framed equipment was on stage and a beautiful rippling silvery gray curtain hid everything else. IF you could see Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak some of the time I imagine it might look something like this silky, reflective, moving-with-the-air currents curtain.
Jake Owen was just terrific as an opener. Oh so easy on the eyes, very nice moves, big smile, deep resonant voice and all songs that I enjoyed - definitely a keeper! : ) He has a stage presence that is equal to Keith’s - you will love him! He is very interactive and comfortable with the audience. Here is his new The One That Got Away. Altho initially the audience stayed put for his first 2 or 3 songs, when he broke into a more romantic tune two couples up front got up and started to slow dance right in front of the stage. Well that broke the ice and for pretty much the rest of the evening the area surrounding the stage was a free-for-all. Within a matter of minutes Jake had hundreds at his feet and he was grasping hands with as many as he could reach much of the time he was performing. I don’t know what kinds of shows he has done in the past but I imagine he must have been pretty pleased at that response at his very first show of the tour. At one point he sat at the end of the catwalk, legs dangling down, further immersed in the fans and sort of laid down or stretched out to get his head down close enough so a few fans could snap photos with him. I am looking forward to seeing him at future shows! Good choice Keith!!
During the break security briefly chased away the fans surrounding the stage (but that was short-lived). When Keith was about to begin they then switched to a “only people from the first 5 rows can come up to the stage” rule, but they eventually abandoned that as well. Keith of course is very supportive of the fans and multiple times during the evening he scolded security “ Let them come up brother!” At this show some fans even came down from the risers. I was happy to be in my protected but close-to-the-front row rather than out in the teaming masses, but eventually even the rows were invaded as other fans filled in the seats that had been emptied by the standers. Unfortunately that put a rather annoying couple in front of me who frequently blocked my view later in the evening. So the “freedom of enjoyment” Keith encourages has an up-side and a down-side depending on where you are and the behavior of the fans close to you.
The music during the break included mostly classic country and classic rock songs. When the lights dimmed and the crowd was frenzied with excitement, a few more songs were played before the show actually started. The final song (which, if it stays in this position, will become that song that will become classically conditioned to elicit that here-comes the show excitement for a long time to come) was, initially, a surprising choice. It was the Beatles’ A Day in the Life, which, in parts, is rather bleak (“I heard the news today oh no”). But perhaps what drew Keith to this song was the later line “ I love to turn you on..” because it is his goal to excite us for the evening . At that point in the song there is this build up of a musical crescendo and it was this crescendo preceded keith’s entry.
He chose an interesting starting point - he begins, a cappella, with the first line of the chorus of Put You in A Song, pausing to let the audience fill in “I love that girl” and only then does the band break in with the musical intro to PYIAS. Keith has a light-up microphone stand (in case you ever had trouble picking him out on stage - lol). He is full of energy and throughout the evening inserted a lot of “Woo’s” and big bird-like calls for emphasis in the songs. He is sticking with the v-necked dark gray tee that he has performed in lately - the fabric looks silky and comfortable (and I hope to actually feel it soon!). He has a new style of dark jeans - the fabric is slightly shiny like sharkskin - and looks somewhat harder than his old jeans (not quite so form fitting : ( than those old favorites.He is wearing a heavily studded belt with sparkly red ruby like adornments - pretty flashy! Jerry and Brian have switched sides on the stage and Danny is spending occasional time up front (and then Brian drops back).
Altho the arena felt cool when we entered, it was still humid and within 3 songs Keith was dripping wet and remained so the rest of the night. The second song was I Told You So but with a new jazzy beginning. For the next number the band began with a strong drummy cadence that did not initially bring a song to mind (another surprise beginning) during which Keith said “You guys are in a good mood tonight!” and sang a melodis opening yeah-yeah line which evolved into “do you want to sing?” and then the song became Only You Can Love Me This Way in which Keith inserted an extra “baby girl”.
Keith never mentioned if Nic might be there or not, but he did later dedicate Without You to her and did, at other times, include some extra “mama’s” which made me wonder.
Then it was time to talk to the audience a little: “How about a big hand for our good brother Jake Owen! Well, every tour has to have an opening night and this is the opening night So, firstly, before we go any further - thanks to each and every person for coming out tonight! “ Then he greeted each area of the arena and was particularly impressed by the floor’s screams in response saying, “Loud and proud!”
Then up to the right side platform for “You’re Gonna Fly” followed by the little tribute insert of “Bondocks” with the video of Little Big Town on the big screen for the chorus, then Keith joined in for a couple extra “You get a line, I’ll get a pole....” segments.
Long Hot Summer was great and then the always special Stupid Boy. Even though I was wonderfully close (my Christmas presale ticket for Biloxi was 6th row center but there were no rows 1-2 in the center section, the front crowds were so dense that I didn’t always have a good line of sight for a video because of all the heads, arms and upheld cameras.
Then we got a very special lead-in - Keith sang the beginning of McCartney’s Silly Love Songs--- so nice!!! --- and then it turned into Making Memories. Sweet and romantic Keith.
Again I was surprised and baffled when I couldn’t recognize what next song the guys were leading into; it had a strong beat and Keith was leaving the stage, but it definitely wasn’t You Look Good in My Shirt. He made his way down the right aisle, through excited fans, to the small stage and only then - could it be?? yes it was!! - I recognized the song as BLUE JEANS!!! Wow - it has been a long time!! So he did a great job but sadly I could barely see the small stage from upfront and they didn’t put anything on the big screen during Keith’s first 2 songs on the satellite stage. The second song was Once in a Lifetime Love, with a special insert “And another comes along, and her name is Faith Margaret!” and then a big finish with four repetitions of the U2 line “Oh you look so beautiful tonight!”. Only when Keith sat down for You’ll Think of Me did the video cameras give us a view on the big screen. He commented from the small stage “ I gotta tell you - it feels real nice to be back on the road tonight!” His fourth and last song from the back stage was a surprising (because of the location) Days Go By using an angular very modern looking guitar. He returned to stage via the left hand aisle while the guys sang a lot of Whoa-oh-oh’s.
Then came a steamy Georgia Woods with its stunning guitar solo, with some new bits not in the album solo. I was a bit surprised that Til Summer comes was positioned next, since it too has that huge guitar solo, all be it with a very different flavor. As usual that solo really wrings me out - I even had goosebumps on my scalp!! Mercy Keith!
Then an oh-so-fun video on the big screen. We see a sunny day on a pictureesque street, birds chirping, and a sporty black car (the Mustang) pulls up to the curb. Out gets Keith, dressed for a date, carrying a bouquet of flowers and nervously making last minute adjustments to his appearance as he walks up the front walk to his date’s house.
The view is like we are peeking out the front door window watching his approach and ends with him rapping loudly on the front door and off we go to Sweet Thing!! So fun - love those little extras!! Then Keith took a moment to introduce Chris (first this year rather than last).
Then Kiss a Girl with an extra “Its such a simple thing MAMA” Of course Keith got great audience singing during this song (and all night long, for that matter) but he used the singing to lead into, with a little sing-songy twice repeated “Oh we’re in a singing mood tonight” and then “Who’s in a singing mood tonight?” drew a thunderous response. Little did we anticipate that Keith was going to bring 3 people up on stage to sing with him and compete in a sing-off of sorts. He studies the crowd gathered around the stage and (carefully) selected a young girl (maybe 9), a guy, and a little girl (maybe 5). Each in turn was asked to introduce themselves and then asked if they could sing the chorus of Kiss a Girl. The young girl belted it out with amazing ease and presence and Keith was tickled pink. The guy said he didn’t know it so Keith offered to sing with him, saying “You know your chances of winning have slimmed somewhat?” hee hee The little girl was nervous and hesitant but once Keith sang with her she did a good job. Keith had the audience applaud for each in turn and the older girl from Mobile (“Mobile in the house tonight” was Keith’s comment) won. This meant she got to sing another chorus with Keith up at the front microphone while Brian and Jerry each sang with the other two “contestants”.
Without You was backed by the video footage in the big screen with a few special changes in the song and its ending, like folllowing “it got a whole lot bigger” Keith sang “‘Cause then there were two.”
Somebody Like You was preceded by one of Keith’s “tropical bird trills” followed by a more predatory bird-like squawk. : ) It was followed by a new echo-round pitting one side of the arena against the other before the SLY closing. But it is not the show closer this year. It is followed by the Waylon Jennings videoclip that was mentioned in the news. Keith harmonized a bit with Waylon at the very end and then went immediately into Who Wouldn’t Wanna Be Me. The Keith introduced the rest of the band and each had a new “intro” song for us. Jerry did U2’s With or Without You, Danny did Petty’s American Girl, and Brian did AC/DC’s Its a Long Way to the Top If You Wanna Rock and Roll.
Keith then went into the stands during You Look Good in My Shirt, giving away a guitar to a delighted fan. This song is now the last song of the set. The audience response as Keith said his first thank you and the guys waving goodbye was absolutely huge and continued for the several minutes that they stage stayed dark The encore songs were Tonight I Wanna Cry especially poignantly sung and then, after Keith apoligized for playing too long (!) and giving his usual thank yous to all involved, Better Life. After the final bow and waves good bye we (and the band I am sure) left - sated and spent. An intense and wonderful start to the tour in sweaty Biloxi!!
(videos slowly coming - I’ve had inconsistent internet access)
