After Blake's set, there was a 20-minute break while the stage was again broken down, instruments moved, various things uncovered, including a large Baby Grand piano up on a platform. Around 9:40 pm, the lights dimmed and Rascal Flatts took the stage. They opened with the song written for the fans, and coincidentally, the name of this tour, "Here's To You." At the end of the song, confetti was shot out of several cannons on the stage and the audience was covered in the paper and streamers.
I took my place up front for the 2nd and 3rd songs and proceeded to take as many pics as I could. Not too easy, as the guys move around a LOT and they were wearing dark colors that makes it hard to focus on them. I do have several pictures, as you can see. The second song was "Love You Out Loud," and the third, their debut single, "Praying for Daylight."
Back to my seat for the night, Jay welcomed everyone to the show, mentioning how they were happy to be back, and then teased us for saving all this cold weather for them. He said they'd sold 7 million records now, and were nominated for the upcoming CMA Group of the Year Award. They wanted to thank all of us for supporting them.
Next song up was "Feels Like Today." The stage has some screens on the back, and part of the video played as the guys sang. There were various other items on the stage that moved around, including signs that said "Dancing," and a giant "R" and a boot with an "F" in it. These both lit up and were raised to the top of the stage. On occasion a giant moon would float across the back screens as well.
One thing new since I had seen Rascal Flatts last is that they spotlight all three guys, not just Gary. They also had a spot for their fiddle player to do a really awesome solo prior to launching into "Mayberry." The crowd sang along on nearly every song, and everyone was deeply moved at the acoustic version of "Skin," and the guys got a standing ovation for several minutes after that performance. Very touching. I love that song, and acoustic, it's even more powerful.
Gary asked "Did Blake fall?" and some people screamed that he did. He seemed pleased to hear it, cuz he said Blake's been playing jokes on them the whole tour. He said, "I wished I could have seen that. I would have come out and sprayed the stage with water myself if I would have known he'd fall." :D