It started with a simple song.
Our Shelby Art Fair, Sunday experience for 2017. We began with Jimmy Buffett:
“Squalls out on the gulf stream,
Big storms coming soon.
I passed out in my hammock,
God, I slept way past noon.
Stood up and tried to focus,
I hoped I wouldn’t have to look far.
I knew I could use a Bloody Mary,
So I stumbled next door to the bar.“
Everything for us, on this summer Sunday would start out slow, smooth and easy. There was simply no chance that we would rush into anything on this day.
Slow, easy and deliberate.
For it was a very long and worthwhile weekend so far, and we weren’t about to do anything to jeopardize it.
We would began quiet, and peaceful, and would go from there. Deal.
Lots of beautiful sunshine. Lots of happy faces. Friends from the previous day. vendors and well-wishers alike all poked their collective heads out to acknowledge the fact that they were listening.
It began just like that, and soon gathered speed, as you might expect on such a glorious afternoon. The requests began to manifest themselves, to the point that we had more than our first set could even handle, musically.
We played Buffet, and Morrison and Chesney. We played Joel and Williams and Darin. We played country and pop. Oldies and Island. It was so much fun that we didn’t even think about taking a break for a very long time.
However, we needed to take a break. Not from the music, but to gather together people’s requests for the remainder of the show.
It makes folks happy to have us play their favorites at these shows. We get it.
We even had an older lady approach the stage and make a special point to explain to us that the immoral Glen Campbell had died that week; and that she thought that it would be very appropriate of us to play some of his music . . .
We agreed, wholeheartedly. Which, is why we had already played three of his timeless classics, and would play another before we finished.
The people were so polite and respectful, that we were even able to ask them what they wanted to hear, one more time.
Feeling very patriotic, entertaining at one of our greatest homespun traditions: the city art fair; we thought that we would finish our two-day show with some Americana of our own.
We began our “old-timey” medley with “America The Beautiful”, to get everyone’s attention. America morphed into The “Wabash Cannonball” and then, “I Saw The Light!” followed by a bit of, “Swing Low“.
The tempo stalled long enough for Carl and I to urge everyone within earshot to join us in the immortal, “Amazing Grace“, before we ended with “Will The Circle Be Unbroken?”
Cheered rang out at our ending, as the crowd erupted with the last chorus in the books. It was time to clear the stage and make way for Rick, Dayna and Marshall Allen!
Another plus for this event. Hearing Rick and his band is one of the years’ highlights for us. They are simply so smooth and enjoyable, that we can never praise them enough. Just do yourself a favor, and get out to listen. Oh, that Marshall sings so effortlessly!
We enjoyed our weekend at Shelby this year, more than ever in the past, I believe. Maybe it was the pace, maybe it was the time in our summer, or maybe it is just one of our favorites, because it fits us so well.
Doesn’t really matter. Just hope that we return next year to do its all again.
Rb
