Salty Dogs, Nipple Rings and Willie

There's just something about live music played outside. Tonight was the opening night of Riverfest and Willie Nelson was one of the headliners. Would have liked to seen the B-52's who were playing at the same time, but you should never pass up the chance to see Willie. One of the best things about shows and festivals like this is watching people (it's amazing what people will wear in public)and there's not many things in life funnier than watching drunk white people dance. We got there early enough to catch most of a local band The Salty Dogs set. I'd never seen them before, I plan on making up for that. Enjoyed them immensely.



We started out up close to the stage but moved farther away pretty soon because it was hard to stare a people without being noticed. Drunk rednecks don't mind being watched but they don't really like to be stared at (that usually leads to conversations that start out with What the F*** are you looking at and go downhill from there). glad we did, it gave us a better view of the drunk dancing and we might have missed the guy with his Riverfest button hanging from his nipple ring (it was hard to not reach out and yank it). We didn't much care for the girl who followed The Salty Dogs, Brittany Quaranto a 17 yr old Taylor Swift type singer. By then it was starting to get crowded. This led to some of the things that I dislike about venues like this. I don't like people who don't show up until the headliner then try to push and shove and squeeze their way up closer to the stage when there's no room, I also don't like when people have brought lawn chairs to a standing room only type of show, plop the chairs down in prime spots then get mad when people stand in front of them. We had both where we were and things got pretty tense a few times. I also don't like when you're crammed into a crowd like this and someone sings along with every song right into your ear (it's especially bad when done with Willie singing since he sings to his own unique rhythm and beat so it's impossible for them to keep in sync), but the one thing that I absolutely hate is when a guy has a girl sit on his shoulders. Being short makes it hard enough to see over people but when someone does this and it blocks my view it fills me with rage. It makes me want to pick something up and chunk it into the back of her head (which I have done before). I would have done it a couple of times tonight but it was too crowded to bend down and get anything plus judging from my softball experience Tuesday night I wouldn't have come anywhere close to hitting her.

Willie is still going strong at 76 and he put on a good show. And I have to admit there's something strangely moving about standing under the stars with the occasional smell of weed wafting thru the crowd and listening to thousands of drunk and stoned people singing:

Some bright morning when this life is over
I'll fly away
To that home on God's celestial shore
I'll fly away

I'll fly away oh glory
I'll fly away (in the morning)
When I die hallelujah by and by
I'll fly away

All in all a pretty good night.
Tomorrow's another good day of music. I'm planning on seeing Buddy Guy (the greatest guitar player alive) and the amazing Chris Denny. See ya there.