After stopping for dinner before the show, we arrived at the Honeywell Center at about 6:30 so we had to wait about an hour before showtime. In the lobby they had the Gary Allan merchandise stand open so we got in line to see what they had. I ended up getting a gray t-shirt that has a picture of Gary on it and the words Living Hard, the title of his brand new album, underneath it.
After waiting for a little bit, we were able to go into the Ford Theater to find our seats for the show. I must say that I was quite impressed with the venue. It is a very nice place and from the looks of it, there isn't a bad seat in the house. It is also not that big nor is it that small. Overall, its a great place to see a concert.
The show started with singer/songwriter Lee Brice as the opening act. He told us that he had just gotten to the venue. I guess the plane that he flew in on ran late and he got there in just the nick of time. He said that he was battling a cold, if we couldn't tell, and that he would do his best to do his songs. He sang a tune called "Upper-Middle Class White Trash." It was a hilarious song. He said that he had written the song from an experience that a friend had once. The friend, dressed like a typical guy from the south (IE, jeans, hat, etc), went into a fancy store and none of the people working there took him seriously. He pulled out a huge wad of cash and then they waited on him hand and foot. Lee said that reminded him of a scene in "Pretty Woman" and wrote the song. He did a few other songs that I don't remember much of. The last song he performed was the song that he had written that Garth Brooks recorded and that is now a #1 hit. I can't remember the name of the song though.
After the short intermission, it was time for Gary to take the stage. He came out and started the show off with "A Feelin' Like That" from his Greatest Hits CD. That really got the crowd into it and we were off and running.
Here is a list of the songs, in no particular order, that he did (and that I remember):
"A Feelin' Like That"
"Smoke Rings in the Dark"
"Tough All Over"
"Just Got Back From Hell"
"Life Ain't Always Beautiful"
"She So California"
"Watching Airplanes"
A medley that consisted of "Her Man," "Man to Man," "It Would Be You," and some others I don't remember
"Best I Ever Had"
"Drinkin' Dark Whiskey"
"Tough Little Boys"
"Breakdown" (Tom Petty cover, encore)
"The Joker" (Steve Miller Band cover, encore)
"Right Where I Need to Be" (Encore)
There may have been a few songs that I left out but this list is pretty much the jest of it.
Here is a slideshow from the pictures that my mom took. The quality of these shots are not the greatest. We had to turn the flash on the camera off so I think that has a lot to do with it.
Overall it was a great night and I had a great time. Gary does know how to party and I would defiantly go see him in concert again.
'Till next time.
