The JoDee Show

Ok, I'll say it... for the record. I, Calvin, actually attended... A country music concert (gaaaasp!). Ok, get your breathing under control.. find your inhaler... pick yourself up off the floor and back onto your office chair.. put the food back in your mouth and clean the spit off your monitor... YES, I.. spent 2 hours of my Saturday evening listening to country music.. And by golly, I enjoyed it.

So what in the world would posses me to do this? Like most guys pulling an out of character stunt, it was for a woman, the sweetie I am married to. She is a big fan of country music and to further my anniversary surprise I got tickets for the two of us to attend the Jo Dee Messina concert in Lincoln City on Saturday night. Was she surprised? You bet, this coming from me.. her country despising husband. But I went, just happy to be spending time with my wife.

Now this I just have to say: To me, it really doesn't matter what the music genre is, or whether I listen to that genre on a regular basis. To me, it is a memorable experience witnessing someone who really is a master of their craft. Jo Dee Messina, has an amazing voice, she can entertain a crowd, sharing her viewpoint, singing her songs, and entertaining all at the same time. She can play the guitar (yes, thank goodness I got some screaming guitar from both her and her lead guitarist. I LOVE hearing live electric guitar!!!). She can play the drums, and she can play the piano.

I know this is almost a blasphemous thing to say on the week of the American Idol finale, but when I watched her perform songs she wrote AND play all the instruments, she became infinitely more talented in my mind than the "made by marketers" American Idol competitors. THIS was a musician, And she did an outstanding job!

Now, will I get crap from all of my co-workers who may read this and realize I went to a country concert? Yup. But, again, she did an amazing job, and while I didn't know most of the songs, we had a great time and the concert was a great addition to our anniversary weekend.

So, to Jo Dee.. Thanks for a great show, you are a very talented musician! And to my wife.. Happy Anniversary! Thanks for a great weekend!

In case you didn't see them yesterday, there are photos of the show in the trip photo gallery, click here to see them.