The outdoor area included the Budweiser Beer Garden, plus the Jack Daniels area, and other interactive booths, food vendors, plus an autograph booth sponsored by Best Buy. Doors opened at 12:00 noon, and I got there at 11:30 to be sure to get a close seat. First row seems close, doesn't it? That is what I was able to get, so I was real happy.
There wasn't any schedule posted, so we didn't know who was playing when, but as we waited to get in, Josh Turner was doing his soundcheck on the stage. I'd say there were about 150 seats set up in front of the stage, and while anyone that had a ticket to the indoor show could come to the outdoor portion, they weren't expecting that many. Indoors holds about 9,000 people, so good thing they didn't all show up.
The pre-show music was Johnny Cash, and right on time at 12:30 the local DJ came out and announced MCA Recording artist Josh Turner. Josh came out and sang "Folsom Prison Blues" right off the bat. He thanked everyone for coming out in the hot sun (was about 95 degrees) to see him, and noted that his feet were already frying. He said that Johnny Cash was a huge influence on him and said maybe later he might play another Johnny Cash tune, if that was all right. The crowd roared with approval at that, and Josh then turned to some music from his upcoming album (due out on October 14th Long Black Train.) He mentioned the single was available at the Best Buy booth for $3 or $4, which was a real deal, considering how much it cost to record. The first song he played from his upcoming release was "Jacksonville."
Josh told everyone that he asked if they'd turn on the Air Conditioner, but for some reason it didn't seem to be working. Then, he sang my favorite song from his album, "In My Dreams."
Asking "Are there any good women out there?" he then played "Good Woman Bad," which is also from his album. Then, introduced his band, some of which he just met that day.
Josh mentioned that the single had two sides on it and he played the second side, called "Backwoods Boy." From there, he mentioned Johnny Cash's passing and dedicated the next song to him, "Ring of Fire," asking the audience to help sing on the chorus, which we did.
He ended his set with his current single, "Long Black Train," which had everyone singing along.
I really enjoyed Josh's show, even though it was only 40 minutes long. I hope to see him again someday when he can give a full hour plus. I love his voice, and he's surely easy on the eyes.
Full Song List:
- Folsom Prison Blues
- Jacksonville
- In My Dreams
- Good Woman Bad
- Backwoods Boy
- Ring of Fire
- Long Black Train
View a slideshow of pictures of Josh taken at the show.
