Soul2Soul

I'm something of a closet country fan, or rather I was in college. I think the mid-90s were modern country's heyday (I learned that at the Country Music Hall of Fame), so I completely fit the demographic. Last night I had the opportunity to experience a pinnacle of country music: the Tim McGraw / Faith Hill Soul2Soul concert. This isn't something I would have paid to go see, but I am really glad I went. It was the longest concert I have ever been to, starting with the opening act at about 8:20 and the final encore not over until 12:05 a.m. It was late for a school night!

My random thoughts and impressions of the concerts:

1. 
   Knew I was in trouble when I had tears in my eyes for Faith's first song - Wild One. Not only did she have a photo montage of her early days and pictures of her with her daughters, but I think the daddy / daughter lyrics hit me. Gets me every time.
2. 
   The set was fantastic. It was theater in the round, type and the walkways were programmable with different designs. By times the set was completely disco, then rock, then metal, then soul and just a little country. Overall the show had a 70s feel to it, the covers they did were from that era and Faith's hair and outfits were completely Charlie's Angels.
3. 
   I get the impression these two only do as much pop-country as they need to keep their base happy. Tim completely took me by surprise with a cover of Steve Miller's The Joker. He did an okay job of it, too.
4. 
   Very smart marketers, this duo, they know half of their success is being together. A royal family of country, so to speak. They definitely play up the lovey dovey aspect of their relationship. I hope it isn't just for show because they do seem to fit together well. They each had their own set, but they sang quite a few songs together which was special to see. It did seem to be emotional for them.
5. 
   My friend Mandy was convinced Tim was a little over the edge of tipsy. I think, probably yes. He got really into controlling the crowd (motioning when to cheer and when to stop cheering). This was the low point of the night and took way too long. The crowd probably would have gotten more into another old hit song of his. I think he's trying to ditch some of his good image. He made it a point to a play a Hank Williams Jr. song so I suspect he's wanting to vie for the title of bad boy of country music.
6. 
   One of my favorite parts of the show happened when Tim sang his song, Lay Me Down. I wasn't familiar with this song, but it's about a soldier dying and being laid to rest. After the completion of the song, Tim stood in the middle of the stage with a lone spotlight for a good 45 seconds...with his hand over his head in the peace sign. It wasn't an overt political message, but it was there and I was glad to see it.