I’m also a person who would attend a concert for entertainment. I want to see an incredible performance. I’m about showmanship. I want an experience. Say what you will about her, but Madonna is a performer not a singer in my book. A concert she produces would be worth my time and money. As much as I love a musician unplugging here or there, I do not want to pay well upwards of $75-$100 to watch someone sit on a stool for two hours knocking out acoustic versions of their top hits. I mean, I’m watching them sit on a stool for two hours… Not my cup of tea and a waste of money in my book.  And you can totally forget it if it’s a concert filled with nothing but new music. I paid to hear what I already know, not some experiment you’re running on an unsuspecting crowd to test your creative juices which in a lot of cases pale in comparison to your earlier career successes.

Over the years though, I have made it to a few concerts and when I hear one of the musicians’ songs on the radio, it takes me back to those moments.

Adding to The Music Challenge, songs from all of the concerts I ever attended:

My first concert ever was in the Grand Stands at the Elkhart County Fair. My grandparents listened to Ray Stevens. My mother listened to Ray Stevens. His music played often throughout my house and when he came to the county fair, we were all over that like white on rice. The man and his music are witty, funny, and totally entertaining.

70. Ray Stevens, The Streak (1974)

My first concert with friends was an Audio Adrenaline concert at Epworth Forest in Indiana. Remember them? Youth group teens everywhere flocked to this one. I remember I bought my first concert shirt there. It was orange.

71. Audio Adrenaline, Big House (1993)

Most people know by now that Dave Mathews was originally from South Africa. This is why I think my husband and sister-in-law were such big fans. They went to the Dave Mathews concert at the Lakewood Amphitheater  every year. When Clifford and I started dating, a ticket was bestowed upon me as well. Other than Ants Marching, I had no clue what the hell he was playing. It was all new music and it sounded terrible, not like the Dave Mathews music people had paid to hear played. It was my least favorite concert experience.

72. Dave Mathews Band, Ants Marching (1993)

I was SO psyched to see Art Garfunkel in concert! He played at the SCAD Theater in Savannah. He was wonderful and I am just so happy I can say I saw him live. It was beyond what I thought it would be.

73. Art Garfunkel, Bridge Over Troubled Waters (1970)

SCAD started this free New Alumni concert in Forsyth Park in Savannah the year Clifford was graduating. They chose George Clinton as their inaugural musician. Of all of the concerts I have ever been to, this was the surprise. I LOVED it! I never considered myself a fan of funk, but boy can George Clinton and his peeps Turn. It. Out. I have a whole new appreciation for the genre. Now a funk song is always included  on my top ten jams list.

74. George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, Give Up the Funk (1977)

There is something about this man that draws me to him and his music. He’s been compared to Freddie Mercury, and maybe that’s the hook that always keeps me coming back for more. In 2007, my sister and I took one of our youth group girls to see him in concert at Center Stage (formerly Earthlink Live!) in Atlanta. You want to talk about showmanship? Performance? Yeah, and he’s sexy as hell? Everyone should take time to see Mika in concert at least once in their life.

75. Mika, Relax, Take It Easy (2006)

I’ve already posted about my Styx experience, I think, but essentially my dad had gotten Chelle and I track seats at the Elkhart County Fair to see them. It was fantastic! They were fun and light and just utterly sensational.  Their energy was off the charts! I’d wanted to see Styx in concert for years, and it was sort of neat to be able to see them playing back near my hometown actually.

76. Styx, Come Sail Away (1977)

This was the concert that I won tickets to through the Mark Arum radio show in Atlanta. It was at the Verizon Amphitheater. I took my younger sister and it was such a beautiful night. Loved every minute of it.

77. Boston, More Than A Feeling (1976)

I love road trips. Like with a capital L. They make me happy. Don’t get me wrong, there are definitely moments when I’m ready to get out of the car and simply be done with the whole ordeal. Highways and byways can easily become monotonous solitary trails seemingly leading to nothing more than a great big abyss, but I like the time these trips give me to slow things down, take a step back and just think about things.

Driving from Atlanta to Northern Indiana recently, I was doing just that- thinking. Certain songs are more conducive to internal contemplation and deliberation. There are definitely times when you want to roll down the window, let the wind hit your hair, and put the pedal to the metal while blasting tunes that just totally pump you up. Road trips are not those times for me. Partly because rolling my window down while going 79mph on an interstate doesn’t do my hair any favors (you’ve seen my hair on a good day, right? forget after hazardously wind-swept conditions), but also because they are the times allocated to quiet consideration and meditation. It’s the time for me to put things back in perspective because inevitably something somewhere in my life is horribly out of whack. I realized on this last 1,340 odd mile journey, that Classic Rock is it for me.  It relaxes my mind. Again, it puts things in perspective. It speaks truths and allows me to reflect on what really matters.

This particular list is so expansive, I’ll likely be adding more to it along the way. In the meantime, the following songs are being officially added to The Music Challenge because every single one of them has been invaluable to expanding my mind in some small way during one of my many road trips through the years (in no particular order):

50. The Band, The Weight (1968)

51. Kansas, Carry On Wayward Son (1976)

52. Styx, Renegade (1978)

53. Bob Dylan, Like A Rolling Stone (1965)

54. Journey, Don’t Stop Believin (1981)

55. Steppenwolf, Magic Carpet Ride (1968)

56. Pink Floyd, Comfortably Numb (1979)

57. Ozzy Osbourne, Crazy Train (1980)

58. Eagles, Hotel California (1973)

59. David Bowie, Space Oddity (1969)

60. The Doors, People Are Strange (1967)

61. Elton John, Rocket Man (1972)

62. Blue Oyster Cult, Don’t Fear The Reaper (1976)

63. Buffalo Springfield, For What It’s Worth (1967)

64. Lynyrd Skynyrd, Freebird (1973)

Elkhart County Fair … nothing like it anywhere.

Yeah, I did 4-H. I got the ten year member pin. I usually entered the Drawing category, though I did enter my guinea pig Martha in my first year. I wasn’t very big on the club’s meetings and activities as I got older, nor very keen on selling geraniums, but I’m still proud to have been a part of the organization. I mean, it scored us a parking pass and free admission to one of the coolest events a Podunk town could have.  Oh, and it taught great values and all that jazz, too.

“I Pledge my Head to clearer thinking, my Heart to greater loyalty, my Hands to larger service, and my Health to better living, for my club, my community, my country, and my world.”

The fair has it all. It has the crazy Midway with creepy carneys, dangerous rides, and rigged games. It has that food aisle that smells like fried everything. It has farm animals, dairy barns, harness racing, demolition derbies, exhibit halls, elephant ears, tractor pulls, queen contests, rodeos, concerts and a parade.

As a kid, it’s the place that felt like Disneyland. Cotton candy on a stick, clowns, prizes, kiddie rides and a fun house. As a teen, it’s where you went to hook-up, smoke your cigarettes and flaunt your short shorts.

One summer a friend had invited me to the teen dance night. I thought it was going to be awesome. An actual event for individuals our age, dancing to good music and meeting new people. Instead, it was where I learned grinding was a dance move. I learned how much skin one can show and not get arrested. I also learned how to simulate sex on a dance floor in front of hundreds of other teens. It was probably one of the most disgusting and offensive things I’d ever attended, and that includes a county fair in North Florida. Felt like I needed a shower after both occasions and something to gouge out my eyes to make the icky visuals go away.

Another great memory was eating at the Taco Stand. It was my favorite eatery on the food strip. Immediately following suit, I got in line for the Crazy Dance, one of the newer rides at the time. You sit in a two seater while you’re jerked around from side to side, banging your head against the compartment all while spinning in circles at rather unsafe speeds. That day I’d gotten heat stroke and puked as soon as I exited the ride. But you bet I was back on that horse the very next year. Inappropriate dancing, unsound rusty rides, and puking up tacos are what make the fair so fantastic. You only live once.

One of the coolest things about having such a huge county fair, is that it brought in some pretty big musical talent for its attendees. Some of my favorites were Ray Stevens, CCR, and The Village People … there were probably even bigger country names, but I could care less about those. I think the biggest and best I’d ever attended was actually two summers ago. I hadn’t been to the fair in over ten years. I was home on a brief vacation and my dad got Chelle and I tickets to see Styx. It was unfreakingbelievable. Check it out here and here.

Chelle and me ready for Styx.

Lawrence Gowan

Tommy Shaw

Somehow, no matter how sun burned, dehydrated, sore, tired, and painful the fair is, it’s forgotten the moment they close those admission gates and you can’t wait till the next year. If you have never been to a fair, I suggest you make the trek.

What’s your best fair story? Email me or submit it below.