Last Thursday, I received an email from a friend in our Sunday school class. It seems that the director of our department had tickets to a concert that she could not use. The tickets were available to anyone who could use them. I called Jen and then called the friend to say that we would love to use the tickets.
The following evening, my parents were gracious enough to watch the children for us and Jen and I headed north. We met some friends for an excellent dinner at Chuy's. Then we headed to the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion for the concert. It has been a few years since we attended a concert at CWMP. I remember having to walk what seemed like miles from the parking area to the venue. This time we followed the signs for parking and parked in a parking garage for an outrageous fee of $15. We took the stairs down to the ground and crossed a street and amazingly were at the gate of the CWMP. That was $15 well spent. From the car to our seats took 10 minutes.
Once inside, we started looking for our seats. CWMP had plenty of helpful people to assist us. We were directed to the center aisle and then pointed toward the stage. So we walked, closer and closer to the stage. We came to another helpful person, she checked our tickets again, and then led us to our seats. WOW! Our seats were sitting on plywood that covers the orchestra pit. We were in the third row, very close to the center. We were close enough to feel the air conditioning that is pumped back stage to keep the artists and their equipment cool. The seats were folding chairs that were padded as well, not bad at all.
The opening act was a band called Addison Road. I had never heard of them, but I ordered their album from Amazon later that night. They were awesome. The lead singer has a great voice. Jen and I tried to guess which band member she was married to, but we were both wrong. In short, he married way over his head, just like I did.
Next up was The Afters. I actually have their debut album, but the first time I listened to it at all was earlier that day. They came out with a lot of energy and sounded great as well. They have a very cool drummer. I asked Jen if I looked that cool when playing the drums on Rock Band. She responded with laughter. She claims that I look a little stiff. Hard to believe.
Natalie Grant was next to the stage. Great voice, but very poor wardrobe choice. It is amazing to me what some people wear. Granted, if I was not practically sitting on stage, it probably would not have mattered. The sack shirt-stretch pants-huge belt combination was in two words, not flattering.
Then it was time for the headliners. The only band that actually had roadies to set up their gear, everyone else did it themselves. MercyMe. I love their music. A friend from Sunday school made me listen to their music a few years ago, and I am forever grateful. They are the reason that I now listen to Christian music again. I have all of their cds and I knew every song that they played. No matter what kind of day I am having, I can listen to their music and feel inspired. God and Christ shine through their music.
On a side note, sitting in the front row was a family of four, mom, dad, and two teenagers, a boy and a girl. I mention them because the dad was a complete spazz. That is the best word that I can use to describe him. He could not sit still, he played the air guitar and the air drums very emphatically. I have to give the teenagers credit, they did not seems horrified by their father. The dad gave a high five to the bassist of The Afters. Jen and I promised each other to have that much fun, but to be a little more restrained.
It was an awesome concert and we are very thankful to our Sunday school director who gave us the tickets. Thank you for the opportunity to enjoy a great night out listening to great live Christian music.
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