On
Sunday, the day before leaving for Michigan, our baby sitter was sent to
the emergency room. I discovered this only 3 hours before she was
scheduled to arrive at our house. Planning to stay home and let Fred go,
I found a sitter at the very last minute. She stayed for 2 days and 2
nights until the next sitter arrived to relieve her for the last night
and day shift. Good friend, huh? Yea, I owe her big time.
Why did I tell you that? I don’t know. It’s all part of the mad rush
that happens sometimes before you leave town on a trip. Maybe I’m
telling you this because by now you all know I don’t ordinarily leave
my kids at all. They’ve had to endure painfully boring events on good
behavior just because I like having them with us. That, and I’m cheap.
But to leave them with someone other than the carefully chosen baby
sitter we’d planned on wasn’t easy. We were leaving them to see a
Dan Fogelberg concert (or two) and two of the three had been sick. It
wasn’t easy. Maybe I’m telling you to illustrate how much I wanted
to see my favorite artist play his guitar and his piano and sing.
Anyway, landing in Detroit on Monday morning with my husband was
hilarious. There were detours upon detours and signs declaring
Detroit’s 300th year celebration. I kept wondering if it had ever been
built at all! City planning does take a while, after all. Dan made
references to the construction and we got the joke, loud and clear. But
seriously, I think they were rebuilding nearly every road in the city.
It was so nice to be away with my husband – and that’s all you’re
going to hear about that
The Meadow Brook Music Festival is outdoors and quite nice. We had great
seats, 8th row, and as we waited for the music to begin I met a few fans
that I’d known online for the past year. That was fun! It’s so nice
to place names with faces, finally. There was a terrific woman who
started by singing her original music for us – Liz Laren, but don’t
quote me on the spelling. She was really, really good – delightful to
watch, too - and I would have liked to hear more of her songs. I don’t
think I’ve seen anyone have such a ball singing and playing for a
crowd than she appeared to. I’d have bought her CD but I didn’t want
to miss Dan’s entrance on stage.
It was really hot. Coming from North Carolina I expected the temperature
to be more forgiving than what I’m used to, but Detroit was hospitable
and made me feel right at sticky home instead. Parched as I was, Fred
got some sugarless lemonade (oh yea, pucker up – straight lemons and
water) in a huge sap bucket style plastic cup that had a big fat pink
straw sticking out the top. I felt like an idiot fitting my mouth over
the thing. It was something Emma would have loved. Meanwhile, I was
sucking and puckering and quenching while Dan took the stage. He started
with Part of the Plan, Fred’s favorite, and that was wonderful. I
don’t know who I watched more that evening, Dan or Fred, because I
loved the effect Dan’s performance had on Fred. There they were, my
two favorite guys in the same place. Lucky me.
I didn’t write down the set list nor did I remember every little
detail. Instead I just enjoyed each moment as it occurred. But the
overall experience was great. It was hot and Dan was fighting a cold but
he played and sang well in spite of all that. He played a lot of
familiar songs on this tour: “Beggar’s Game” which lit up the
piano keys, “Longer” – beautifully, so tenderly performed by Dan,
“Leader Of The Band” - wonderful, “Forefathers”, “Same Old
Lang Syne”, “Go Down Easy”, “Run For The Roses” and he burned
the guitar strings with one of my favorites, “Road Beneath My
Wheels”. They were all nice. They’re all favorites.
Then - he knocked the socks off Fred and I when he sat in his brown
chair, tucked his head down and just played his guitar pieces for us. It
was as though he was off in another world and we were peeking in. That
little part of the concert alone was worth the baby sitting fees, hotels
and travel incidentals of all three concerts combined. How can I explain
it to you? He just played and played and he’s so gooood! I felt like I
was watching a private moment where he was just jamming up there and
doing his thing. It was right, it was so right and came across from the
stage to the audience so well, so magical. Dan just didn’t stop, he
had several pieces that he played and it was very inspirational for me
to see that. Made me want to go home and work really hard and be good at
something, too.
The evening cooled down, perfect for a little outdoor mingling after the
show with other fans. We found Artemis, sat at one of the tables and
downloaded about the show until the venue closed. Fred’s comments
were, emphatically, that Dan’s voice hits the high notes better than
the middle ranges. And that he’s amazed at Dan’s talent and finesse.
The guitar instrumentals were a highlight with both of us though. This
was especially a treat. But the best comment of all was when he stood up
after Dan left the stage and said, simply, “I’ve got to play my
guitar more.”
Dan, that night, inspired at least two people to try harder and to be
better. From the stage when he took away worry, fatigue, and stress, he
gave. And we got it. Thanks, Dan.
Kim
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