I attended my first CMA Music Festival in Nashville and, being a long time fan club member, was able to attend the Lonestar Fan Club Party. The party was held at the Sheraton Hotel on June 7, 2006. The doors were supposed to open at 10:30 but they actually got started about 10:45. When we entered the area, the first room had the merchandise table and the area to leave donations for troops in Iraq that Lonestar is supporting. The group is actually known as the Lonestars and are from Texas.
The ballroom was set up with tables with tablecloths, place settings and ready for all the attendees. There was an area with items on display for the silent auction.
Lunch was served at 11:30 and included salad, chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans and a sinfully delicious pecan pie.
After lunch the guys came out and started the live auction at 12:40. Mike auctioned off a shirt and guitar. Richie auctioned off a 2 year collection of hotel keys and a Nano iPod that had all Lonestar's singles on it and also included their next new single "Mountains." Dean auctioned off is racing gloves and racing shoes. Keech auctioned off a tour staff shirt. The final items auctioned off were caricatures of the band, drawn by Keech's wife's father. The caricatures were framed and very professional.
The group recognized members that had done a lot for them and also fans that have been very devoted to Lonestar. One story was about three fans that were traveling to a show and were involved in a car accident where their car actually flipped over and rolled several times. No one was hurt except for a scratch - even though the car was totaled. These fans rented a car and continued on to the concert that evening. Talk about dedicated fans.
The group started playing at 1:40 pm and answered questions between songs. Because of another committment, I had to leave the party at 2:20 while they were still playing. I found out later that the meet and greet part of the party didn't end until about 4:45 when the last autograph was signed.
Songs I Heard:
- Front Porch Looking In
- You're Like Coming Home
- Walkin' In Memphis
- Let's Be Us Again
- What About Now
- Amazed
- No News
- I'm Already There
