Viva Las Vegas! Keith Urban & John Mayer @ Tiger Jam

Friday was the last class day of the academic year at my university. Although we still have final exams and grading next week, a weekend trip to Las Vegas to see a special Keith Urban/John Mayer concert was a great way to celebrate the end of the semester!

I had to get up at 4:45 am to make it to my 6:45 flight. Being a nervous sleeper I woke up at 4:30 before the alarm even went off (I’m sure hubby appreciated that). Turns out that was a good thing because Delta had emailed in the middle of the night with a 15 minute earlier flight time change! Wonder how many missed the flight because they don’t check email at the wee hours of the morning? The flight to Vegas was full to the gills; Sin City is still drawing the travelers!

Mandalay Bay was too pricey for me since they bump up rates whenever an event is scheduled (been there, done that last time Keith was here anyway), so I decided to stay at the Pyramid shaped Luxor next door (where the rate for Sunday night was only $50!). My room in the Pyramid looks out over the huge Sphinx that guards the main entrance. It is a bit disconcerting, however, to ride to my 12th floor in elevators that are also traveling sideways (to follow the 60 degree slant of the Pyramid) as they ascend - I felt off-balance even though I hadn’t been drinking. Luxor also earned my thanks with the complementary copy of the oversized Mlife with Keith’s photo on the cover and interview inside.

Vegas is in the 60’s this weekend, so some are complaining it is too cold to lounge by pools, but I think it is just perfect. I had a wonderful seafood lunch at Rick Moonan’s restaurant (one of the chefs I had seen many times on Top Chef Masters), then slept for a couple hours to get ready for a show that wouldn’t even begin until 10:30 pm Central time/8:30 Las Vegas time. I noticed Tiger Woods had taken over the House of Blues in Mandalay Bay for a private pre-show Tiger Jam party (but he forgot my invitation: ). I wonder if John and Keith attended?

A younger singer, Tyler Hilton, opened the show with a lot of energy and emotional expression in his acoustic set. Then we saw a short video of Tiger talking about his charitable foundation which helps prepare and send thousands of ‘underrepresented’ kids to college each year. Then Tiger actually came out on stage to thank us all for coming and supporting Tiger Jam and said that “Seven time Grammy Award winner John Mayer” would be out in just a few minutes. (I had wondered whether John might perform first this time around. At their concert at the Gorge John had seemed rather distraught when he slipped and said something about how great it was to have someone like Keith Urban “opening” for him. Although he immediately corrected his statement (since both Keith & John were headlining that show), I had a feeling John might “open” this year.)

Never looking quite the same, John tonight wore a fedora over his quite long hair all night, layered shirts and somewhat raggedy loose jeans. He played several songs that he identified as brand-new and just a few of his more familiar tunes. He does jam with abandon. His whole body gets into his rhythms and his whole face gets into his lyrics, so he is fun to watch. I was a bit disappointed though when he sang Gravity on his own. I do love him singing that song, but had hoped that Keith would be out to join him on that number like last time. But in fact John did not have Keith join him on any of his songs for some reason. At the very end of his approximately hour long set, John did bring out Keith and they performed Cripple Creek together (a bit of an odd song choice for the two of them, in my mind). It was a fun number, but it wouldn’t have been my pick for their first duet of the evening- especially to this Vegas crowd. Then there was a 15-20 minute break while they moved John’s equipment off stage and Keith’s equipment onstage.

It was a mixed crowd last night. No doubt there were fans of both musicians present but others may have been there primarily to support Tiger Jam and others may have just been Vegas tourists looking for a show. As a result there were some ‘standers’ and some ‘sitters’, some who sang and danced most of the night, and others that looked at us dancers a bit strangely. I was a bit appalled when I heard another woman in the bathroom saying “I think he is that guy who sings about cats and sweaters.” Harumpf.

I was surprised that the upper tier of seats was mostly empty - the Gorge show had drawn such an immense crowd to western Washington but this Vegas show did not appear to be sold out unless some folks bought tickets to support the charity and then didn’t come.

Keith has had his hair cut fairly short (for him). The front is still fairly long but the back no longer touches his collar unless he tilts his head back. It looks like the un-buttoned 3 button tee-shirt we have seen a couple times lately is going to be the shirt for this year’s shows. Of course he looks good in any kind of shirt! Tonight’s was dark blue - has that been the case each time this year?

Keith started out with a rousing (arousing?) performance of Put You in a Song. Then Better Half, which I believe he chose to get the crowd involved in one of his ‘echo rounds’ of singing “oo na na na na’s”. He was successful getting a good response from each area of the arena in turn and encouraged us along the way with “Hell yeah Vegas- sounds good!” and “Sounding pretty bloody good!” and finally cracking up the crowd with his deep baritone “oo na na’s”. He also did some nice jamming on the Better Half melody both before and after the sing-along.

Then three more songs from Get Closer (You’re Gonna Fly, Without You and Long Hot Summer. When Keith sat down on his stool for Without You he apparently got some “I love you’s” shouted from the front floor and commented “A dude just said I love you!” and, as Keith is wont to due, he said “I love you too” back to the guy. He then expanded on this “I’m in love with you brother.... What happens in Vegas.....” lol Without You was beautiful and Long Hot Summer kept the crowd clapping and dancing along.

Keith then paused and said “ I want to say a huge thank you to everybody out there tonight for coming out and being a part of this jam this year. We appreciate your support!” He then continued “ One of the most joyful things is to be able to play again with this guy - John Mayer.” So 30 minutes into Keith’s set John returned to the stage so they could play together some more. They had a great time with Sweet Thing, doing a full 3 minutes of melodic jamming after the lyrics ended. Then a seering hot Til Summer Comes Around where the 2.5 minute guitar solo (well, guitart duet I guess) had the audience screaming their approval. After that Keith garnered another round of applause with a parting “Mr. John Mayer” as John left the stage.

The seat that I got in the Monkeyville presale was pretty good - it was in the last row (row Q) of the lower risers closest to the stage, so I had a great view. I had chatted early in the evening with 2 couples next to me in Q. At one point they had walked down the stairs next to us to take some photos from a closer vantage point and then had stayed standing in that aisle when no one had chased them. It seemed some folks did not return to their seats after the break before Keith’s set (stupid people!), so eventually one of my new row Q friends came up and told me I should come down and take one of the vacated seats in the second row of the risers. So I did “Get Closer” for a few songs: ). Not only that - I was able to move to the first row when Keith came off the stage during his final song, You Look Good in my Shirt and managed to get me a little “vitamin K”, stroking his arm as he returned to stage. Normally that might not have been possible if he had returned playing his guitar, but he gave away the guitar when up in the stands, so had his arms outstetched and waving to his fans during his walk back. Some people think it is good luck to rub the belly of a statue of Buddha. I choose to consider a KU arm rub a good luck sign of a great tour to come!

Sadly, only 52 minutes after coming on stage - at 11:30 sharp - Keith and the guys were taking their final bow and the old exit song Marley’s “One Love” was playing on the speakers. I can’t believe he planned to play only 52 minutes - I think either Tyler, John or the set-up crews must have taken too long and the venue had specified an 11:30 ending time, so Keith lost out. It was a great show, but 52 minutes (9 songs) (not counting Cripple Creek) is even shorter than the Houston Rodeo performance!

As long as I had traveled all that distance, I took advantage of my remaining time in Vegas - seeing the Cirque du Soleil “O” show and visiting the restaurants of a couple more chefs I had seen on the cooking shows. I even went to a very educational museum - type ‘show’ (they call everything shows in Vegas) Bodies - fascinating displays of all are various body parts, both in glass cases and in incredible preserved cadavers. Since I teach biological psychology courses including Neuroanatomy, think I can claim this as a business trip???

Videos to come as soon as I downlod my camera....

Oh What A Night: Keith Urban in Las Vegas!!

Well sometimes you just can’t follow that old “whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” rule! Keith’s show at Mandalay Bay was so special - it certainly needs to be shared!

Las Vegas was hot, hot, hot even before Keith got on stage (about 115 degrees) and the air conditioning most places just didn’t seem to be keeping up. I made the most of my short visit to Sin City, catching a fantastic Cirque de Soleil show called Ka at the MGM Hotel the night I arrived, and the cool Shark Reef at the Mandalay Saturday afternoon. I looked longingly at the arena box office where 2 years ago I picked up a Backstage Pass to meet Keith. But I couldn’t complain - I had gotten a good floor seat in the Monkeyville pre-sale, just 2 rows behind the elite “front” section. I had forgotten that the Mandalay Bay Arena is pretty small -even smaller than the Mohegan Sun I believe. I only counted 20 rows of risers (not even a full alphabet!) and there were only 4 rows of front section seats between me and the end of the right-hand runway so I knew it would be a good night. Happily the air-conditioning in the arena was cranked up so initially a few complained that it was too cold (something that almost never happens in Vegas!), but I knew that situation wouldn’t last long.

The audience was a bit slow to arrive (maybe because of all those bars, restaurants and gambling opportunities on the long walk through the Mandalay Bay) so I felt bad that there were so many empty seats when Keith surprised everyone by coming out to introduce Glen Campbell (even though he did so about 20 minutes after the 7:30 starting time printed on our tickets!). Those seats filled, of course, a little later in the evening, but still I was still peeved about it.

Keith’s introduction was so touching, He came out in his black button down shirt and black jeans and seemed quite serious and nearly emotional while praising this man who had been such an important influence and role model in his career (see my clip on youtube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMEtc_uPpSw ) In fact Keith called him “my greatest influence” at one point.

I haven’t kept up with Glen’s music or career in recent years, but I got the feeling that it had been a while since he had been on stage. He seemed a little bit nervous and out of practice (in terms of his unease with the audience) and made a couple different comments about his age like “I’m happy to be here in Las Vegas - of course a guy my age is happy to be anywhere, if you know what I mean.” I believe he was using a teleprompter down low in front of his microphone to help him with some of the lyrics, so maybe he is feeling his age more than he likes.

Since my fond memories are of Glen, the ballad-singer, I have to admit that his first 3 or 4 songs, which I believe were from recent albums, seemed too loud and somewhat too rock or jazzed up for the Glen I was looking forward to seeing. And I couldn’t say much for the band or their arrangements on these fast tempo tunes. But as soon as he got to his classics all that changed and I loved them all and sang along to all those favorites. But that is not to say that I only enjoyed his oldies. A little later in his set he sang several from his newest release - covers of bands like Green Day and Foo-Fighters - which were just great and really appealed to the younger segment of the audience who may not know songs like Wichita Lineman, Galveston, Rhinestone Cowboy, and Gentle on My Mind. He thrilled us with his guitar work on some numbers but sang others with just his band backing him up. It was wonderful to see him perform again after all this time.

During the break between Glen and Keith the arena was just a-buzz with excitement. A couple times it seemed all of a sudden everyone decided something was about to happen and many stood up, with scattered screams. Many looked to the rear, as if they expected Keith might enter that way. All that attention focused on the rear arena spurred some dancers in the audience to REALLY start dancing to the break music - and that progressed to one of the dancers flashing the crowd! Yes, there were some high spirits last night!

Security, in red or gold suit jackets, was very obvious through Glen’s set. I had mentioned to the couples on either side of me that Keith had generally told security to be pretty laid back once he came out on stage, but I didn’t know if that was going to be the case here at the Mandalay. During the break we noticed folks began to line up at the edge of the stage and catwalk so the gal next to me asked one of the ushers whether she could go up there too. That guard said “No - only the seat-holders in the front section can do that.” Nevertheless, once Keith’s set began another security guard, seeing us looking uncertain about whether we could leave our row and move forward, actually waved us up to the front!! We found spots on the edge of the right runway and stayed there the rest of the night! I hope, in turn, maybe somebody from farther back in the arena moved up to our original seats.

When the big curtain dropped Keith had changed out of his black shirt and pants to a gray on black plaid shirt and some soft comfy looking jeans (you just wanted to touch those soft jeans that fit him so well!). It looked like his hair was freshly trimmed up too.Although his hair sometimes looked dark some of the bright lights later on showed that there are still some blond highlights to it. I swear he has a new wallet chain - it was sparkling like a string of diamonds last night (see the Hit the Ground clip), adding to the glitter he gets from his guitar strap.

After a few songs Keith greeted the audience as usual, and asked us to put our hands together again for the amazing, the legendary Glen Campbell (which we did) and then thanked Glen “for letting us close for him.” Tee hee.

What fun when Keith came down the ramp I stood next to for the ending of Where the Blacktop Ends (see clip) and again when he headed out to the small stage. Boy he is a wily one though - even though I knew he was coming I didn’t catch him (on film or with my lovepat) that second time.

Quite a few signs were present tonight but Keith did not read or noticeably acknowledge any. He played the usual three songs on the small stage, but then played a new (to me) melody as he returned to the mainstage, slightly disheveled from all that loving contact with his fans.

Somehow standing stage edge I feel more obligated to pay a bit of concentrated attention to the other band members when they happen by. I love watching all the guys (and it would be rude to only stare at Keith, no?), but felt my attention torn all evening. I did pat Chris R’s knee and Brian’s, when they played on the ramp, and tried to coax picks (without luck) from each of the guys when they were nearby.

When it came time for introductions Brian surprised us with a new solo - a little Mariah Carey I believe - Open Arms (see clip) - although I thought I heard Keith mutter something about Celine Dion? (maybe he was commenting that Brian may do Celine next?) Once again Keith cutely perched up on an amplifier while introducing Chris M (see clip),

It was wonderful to get an up close view of stage antics and of the songs Keith sang from the stage microphone. I’ve got some really good clips of the passion and intensity he shows in his face during those amazing guitar solos (although there was one gal between me a Keith who I ‘hated’ for 2 reasons - her waving arms kept getting in my shots and those waving arms BOTH sported the LPATWCT wristbands Keith and the guys tossed out at show’s end last tour!) I had mostly a rear view when Keith used the catwalk microphone. Generally I don’t mind that at all, but I did regret not having a front view when Keith brought Glen out for a duet towards the end of the show. He said he wanted “to change things up a bit tonight” and that this night was the only opportunity he had in the entire tour to perform with one of his idols (my word, not his). So I filmed a little of their backs(see clips below) but then turned to the big screen to see their faces and their guitar playing.(I put a little longer clip of this on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/iowalw#play/all/uploads-all/0/mTJg8FiLuAI ) I’m sure someone else will have captured their performance from a better perspective. Wichita Lineman, as a duet, has never sounded so sweet. It was clear that Keith was giving Glen the lead, keeping his own voice and guitar rather subdued. Very, very nice.

There was no venturing offstage during You Look Good in My Shirt Tonight. I’m guessing that they had to save a little time because of the extra duet (and Keith commented that the show was still running past the Mandalay’s 11:00 deadline). But Keith did kind of pit the different areas of the arena against one another in their singing along during that song. He started with the risers to his right, then recruited the risers to his left, who apparently weren’t singing loud enough because he yelled out a “I can’t hear you!” (a la the Sargeant in Gomer Pyle). I was disappointed when my camera flashed “Memory Card Full” at the end of this number with another four songs yet to go :(. Guess I took too many pictures of sharks and Glen!! I especially regret not being able to capture Keith and C-Rod during Better Life. They were out on the catwalk and Chris was playing with his knees quite flexed, as he often does, so his head was lower rather than higher than Keith’s. Keith put his left arm around Chris’s neck and continued to play and sing while Chris was sort of held (affectionately) captive!

From all appearances Keith had as wonderful a time last night as we all did! He did his usual thank yous and thanked us and Glen for such a special, magical night. After a few bows (including a very deep princely bow by Keith to the left risers), handslaps and pick tosses, they were off! And probably off very quickly to L.A. - the crew began taking apart the ramp I had been leaning on before we even had a chance to leave!!

PS Travel, to me, also means trying new things when possible. My new tries this trip:

Friday - Scallop sushi roll

Saturday: Green corn tamales

These clips I put on You Tube:

Keith Introducing Glen

Keith and Glen - Wichita Lineman

Glen Campbell Sings Green Day

Vegas Part 2

I'm sitting in the Vegas airport so don't know how much I will get down before they call my flight. I'm also typing with only 4 hrs of sleep so expect mistakes! I had a great time at last night's show, with a different perspective from the rear floor rather than front risers. Both have their advantages and disadvantages so I am blessed to get to try both. All of you who have back floor seats should know that the Ticketmaster floor plans are pretty much "guesstimates" - I don't think the arena or even Keith's crew knows exactly how this new stage with that extra long catwalk will fit with seating until they actually get there. I had front row section 4 seats which on Ticketmaster looked like essentially front row for the second stage. But in fact the catwalk went maybe 15 rows farther than what ticketmaster showed, so 4A was about 2/3 of the way down the catwalk, right where there is a little fenced area for the sound techs. So know that figuring out the floor plan for these concerts is a new experience for everyone.

I completely missed the Wreckers because of my Backstage Experience and came in during the great music Keith has a DJ doing while they set up the stage after the Wreckers finish. Keith took the time to introduce the guy and talked about him during the show because the DJs family was in the audience, as was guitarist Brad Rice's familyfrom Austin. It is particularly appropriate, I think, that one of the last tracks they play before the band comes on is "You Shook Me All Night Long" (Yes Keith - you did!!). During the last few of the DJ’s tracks you hear an occasional "thud thud" ,which, as it becomes more frequent, becomes recognizable as a heart beat. Over a period of about 15 minutes that heart beat occurs gradually more frequently. At the same time what initially looked like a little spot of light on the big video screen gets slowly bigger and eventually is recognizable as the LPATWCT heart and the heart beat becomes the lead in into Once in a Lifetime Love. Everyone screams and rises to their feet as the arena goes dark and we hear the beginning beats of the song – the show so many have been counting down months to, then weeks to, then days to and finally hours to is finally here!!

Now from rear floor I sometimes had to stand on tippy toes to see real Keith but I could always see “video Keith” on that great screen. The set list was the same as Phoenix I believe, but there were some special differences from the night before.

It appeared that Keith and the guys were just buoyant, riding on the high of the great concert the night before. They were playful all evening - doing head butts, guitar duels, leaping at each other in WWWBM, joking and laughing and having so much fun. Did I tell you they show some great silhouettes of all the guys playing and moving (on the video screen) - during some songs like Shine. God I don't know anyone who moves like Keith. Is that all just his natural graceful prowl or did he practice in front of the mirror? Whatever - I could watch even with no sound on forever! He read some signs! And was drawn to one he described as the biggest sign ever - looked like a bedsheet! It said something about 2 sisters who came all the way to Vegas from Florida. So he invited them up on stage!! Hugged them, brought them to the mike and got their names and home town. They were just shaking from the excitement. He joked that they had stolen the sail off their dad’s sailboat to make the sign and chatted with them about Clearwater (their home town) So chances to go up on stage are still alive!!

He wore multiple Monkeyville bracelets last night (and threw them to the audience along with his LPATWCT heart bracelet at the end) and what looked like a vintage T-shirt but I can't recall what it said. Also a heavily studded good looking belt and either somewhat more low slung jeans or a shorter tee, because all night we were treated to little flashes of side, back and belly when he stretched for something. He was in fine form again - fantastic vocals. One in particular - the closing song Everybody (which has not been my favorite track on the album) moved me to tears. He sang it so expressively and they kept just a head shot on the big video screen so you could see the sincerity in his face. He added in little extra phrases like "Yes even I need somebody." The crowd went crazy again. Apparently he was so tickled with the display of cell phones lights in Phoenix, that he played with that idea in Vegas. He had everyone sit down and get out their cells and then directed a "Wave" of raising up your lit phones that went twice around the entire arena! Crazy fun! And he was just as delighted as a little kid smiling and laughing at what he had created - so happy that he said "God I love all you guys - you are just terrific!!" (The feeling is mutual Keith!!)

One plus of being seated on rear floor was being up close for the catwalk and small stage songs. I was lucky to know something about which songs would be done down at the end of the catwalk. When I heard the beginning chords or saw the guys begin to move, I dashed to the railing to be up front and had some terrific views. He apologizes to the front floor audience for the backside view they get while he is on the small stage but, man, it is not a bad view at all!! Lol

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!