Thanks for the update, Lynn.  This was very interesting............Sue


Sue Ann

--- On Sun, 2/22/09, mrtigersgal <glennlynn06@...> wrote:

From: mrtigersgal <glennlynn06@...>
Subject: [The Van Dell's] On the Road Again.....for this show
To: thevandells@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, February 22, 2009, 9:02 PM






It's been a long time since I have written a review. I hope I haven't
lost my touch, if I ever had one.

After being sick for 2 days (and still feeling pretty yucky) I was
anxious to head out to see The Van-Dells. I miss more shows than I get
to see these days….not by choice, should anyone ever think that is the
case…but life keeps me from traveling as much as I would like.

I left Hamilton around 1:30pm and it was sprinkling rain. A little
colder than I would prefer but, overall, not too bad. I headed in the
direction given to me by Yahoo! Maps and I was off. It said about 1 hr
& 3 mins. I could live with that. Except….it wasn't as easy as it all
seemed.

About 15 minutes into my drive, it started to snow. A little at first
but then picking up to the point that I had very little visibility!
Then I came to a road block. No signs. No warning. Just a blocked
road. There was no place to go but right. So I did. But since it took
me out into the middle of NO WHERE in the blinding snow….I was a bit
nervous.

Another 15 or 20 anxious minutes into the drive I finally saw a sign
heading me in the right direction. But by the time I was back onto the
road I needed to be on….the directions I got from Yahoo! Were useless.
So I stumbled my way north toward Richmond. Really not sure I was
going in the right direction. I finally saw a sign that said
"Richmond". Thank goodness!!!! So, looking back at my Yahoo!
Directions I found that I needed to turn onto G St. Which sounds
simple enough. However, since ALL the street signs were snow covered,
I couldn't READ any of them!

My very patient husband called to check on me and found I was quite
irritated at the situation. I felt bad for him because he couldn't
help, but I was grumpy!

After turning around….twice… .I finally found G St. and then my turn
that took me to the Civic Hall Performing Arts Center. And there I saw
it….THE VAN-DELLS TRUCK! Always a wonderful sign that I am in the
right place!

I waited for the guys to arrive and then went inside. The snow and ice
was coming down and it made walking across the parking lot a little risky.

After dinner and a long sound check, it was time for a Q & A session
with the guys.

Kelly, Nancy, Jean & I were in the front row when the guys came out to
answer questions from fans. It was a little odd because they were just
standing in front of the stage & since the front row was very close to
the stage, it made for very little room between them & the fans.

The guys did well answering questions about their career and some
about their private lives. Duke just beamed when he talked about his 2
sons, Kasey & Kyle, being a part of the show. It was a short session
and was soon over.

I waited a few minutes for some one to show me where I should sit. I
ended up sitting in the balcony right behind Dick, Sheri, Hershel and
Shirley. It was actually a pretty good view of the stage. And with the
awesome lighting, it looked pretty cool.

Just as the show began, Hershel talked me into coming into the front
row of the balcony with them. Since I am short this didn't work out as
well as I had hoped, for me. The bar was right in my view so I had to
sit forward the whole time to see. I had decided to make the best of
my view and get some cool pictures. But, alas, it was not to be. I got
scolded by the powers that be @ the performing arts center. I was told
not to use my flash. I took some pics with no flash. But my camera
will not focus without a flash. I haven't looked at them yet, but I
don't have very high hopes for any good shots. I tried to get some to
show off the lighting, we will see what happens.

So I changed strategy and decided to take some video from the balcony.
I was a nervous wreck all night, afraid I would be scolded for taking
video! But I got a few songs and I will post them to my My Space
videos. For those of you who are not
familiar….www. myspace.com/ jlynnbowles. Pics and videos are always
posted there.

The show was awesome…isn't it always???? Kasey was up on a drum riser
so we had a good view of him. And of Kyle when he played drums.

It was kind of cool to see the whole stage. Everyone who knows me
knows I like to be up front! (not just at Van-Dells shows but at any
concert). But this was kind of cool. I did miss being able to see the
facial expressions because that is part of the fun at a Van-Dells
show. At the other side of the balcony, on the front row, I could see
Kelly & Nancy waving a cell phone light, as if to say…"We are way up
here!!!" LOL

The crowd was a bit reserved at first. I guess they were trying to get
a feel for what was going on up on the stage. After all, it had been 7
years since The Van-Dells played this venue. But they warmed up pretty
quickly. And it ended up being a good crowd.

When Dick sang his solo, I wondered if he would sing to Sheri since he
couldn't see her. But when it came to the line he sang, "Picked her up
in my '98!" And Sheri screamed! She seemed surprised that he sang to
her, too!

It was a 90 minute show so there was no break.

Soon it was time for Kyle to play drums on "Can't Take My Eyes Off
You". (btw….he looks great, and older, with his new contacts)

And, as always, it was great to see The Brothers Todd on stage
together during "Whole Lotta Shakin'/Great Balls of Fire".

Glenn's tribute to the music of Neil Diamond went over well. As did
"American Trilogy".

Then it was time for "Rock N Roll Is Here To Stay" and it was over.

There was a huge crowd for autographs and a lot of nice comments for
the guys.

I was happy we were staying in Richmond for the night since the
weather was so yucky.

The drive home the next day was not as bad as I had feared and with a
good breakfast from Cracker Barrel to start us off, it was okay.

Now I am home, looked through the photos (which actually DID turn out
better than expected) and looking forward to Linton next month.

Hope to see you there!
















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