It's hard to describe the excitement of the first night at LP Field (or the Coliseum as most refer to it). For some people it's their very first night of CMA Fest concerts, while others have waited an entire year to experience those hot Nashville nights yet again! Whether you are new to CMA Fest or a seasoned veteran you still feel that same level of excitement when you arrive at the stadium and see all the people and just the sheer size of the place.
Can you imagine the thrill for up and comer Jason Michael Carrol to kick off CMA Fest 2007? Unfortunately, we didn't make it to our seats in time to hear all of his hit single "Alyssa Lies," but we caught the last of it as we walked to our seats. Jason followed that up with his latest single "Livin Our Love Song." I wish he could have sang us a couple more songs, but I'm sure Jason was just thrilled by the opportunity to sing for that many people. He's a talented man and judging from the success of "Alyssa Lies" and the buzz around his second single I have a feeling that this is just the first of many CMA Fest appearances for Jason.
After seeing Trace Adkins this past New Year's Eve, I was really looking forward to seeing him perform again, and Trace certainly didn't disappoint. I loved every minute of the six song set which kicked off with "Honkytonk Badonkadonk" and ended with "Ladies Love Country Boys." It was a jam packed half hour full of up tempo rocking songs like only Trace can do. He only slowed things down once to sing "I Wanna Feel Something," which is a beautiful ballad from his latest CD Dangerous Man. I was definitely impressed with Trace yet again and judging by the response of the crowd, I think a lot of other people were too.
New duo The Wreckers were up next. If I'm being completely honest I missed a good chunk of their set because I left during the break to use the restroom and get a bottle of water. Unfortunately, way too many others had the same idea and I ended up in not one, but two very long lines. I didn't get the best reviews from others that I asked who saw their performance, but I made it back in time to hear their final song, which was their first single "Leave the Pieces." In my opinion, it was more to do with the crowd not getting into the performance than it was The Wreckers doing anything wrong. I think the nights line up was so packed with superstars like Brooks and Dunn, Alan Jackson, and Reba McEntire that the audience had a hard time being patient with a newer artist. There's no denying the talent of these two ladies, so given the chance I think they could be really enjoyable to watch and listen to.
The highlight of the night for me was up next, Mr. Dierks Bentley. If you'll bear with me for a moment or two I am going to tell you why this man is such an amazing entertainer. Some may disagree, but in my opinion, part of being an incredible entertainer is making an obvious effort to be closer to your fans. Dierks made an incredible effort to do such when he climbed down off the stage, walked across the area blocked off for the photo line, moved several rows into the crowd, climbed up on a chair, and stood there to sing a song. The stage is set back quite a ways from the crowd and it's fairly high, which makes it fairly difficult for performers to interact with the fans, but Dierks didn't let that stop him from thrilling the crowd with an up close and personal performance. For me, out of 4 nights of incredible performances, Dierks went above and beyond anyone else to show us what Fan Fair is all about. He kicked things off with "Every Mile a Memory" and ended the 5 song set with his current single "Free And Easy (Down the Road I Go)." I was looking forward to seeing Dierks' performance, and afterwards all I can say is, "thank you Dierks for making your fans feel important."
Dierks kicked things up a notch and Brooks and Dunn kept us rocking with some of their biggest hits such as "Red Dirt Road" and "You Can't Take the Honkytonk (Outta the Girl)." Kix and Ronnie shared their new single "The House We Built" with us, which will be on their upcoming album. At this point in the evening the crowd was really fired up and you could almost feel the disappointment after Brooks and Dunn sang "Play Somethin' Country" and left the stage. The only consolation was that there were still two huge names to follow.
I was a little concerned when I noticed that the quiet and shy Alan Jackson was following the energetic duo of Brooks and Dunn, but you know what? It really worked. I think the obvious contrast was nice, and the crowd seemed to respond well. But then again, we're talking about a legend like Alan Jackson performing for a huge crowd of country fans, of course the crowd responded well. Why I was ever worried is beyond me! Alan kicked things off with "Gone Country" which was the perfect song to remind us what CMA Fest is all about. I think my favorite moment of Alan's set was when he slowed things down for "Remember When." It's always been one of my favorite AJ songs and it was wonderful to hear live. I just found out when I got home that Alan is touring with Brooks and Dunn and they are playing a show nearby. I think I might just have to check that one out!