Next in her own words, she then took ‘a quick little trip down memory lane’ (at the sound of which I had to chuckle) with a medley of 2014-2016 songs. Mid-song she paused to introduce and feature each member of her super-talented 7 person band. Beginning with last year’s #4 ‘Heartfelt’ she moved quickly into ‘Hole In The Bottle’, ‘Are you ready to put a hole in the bottle with us tonight?’, she called out. With 4 studio albums, 15 singles with 5 #1’s the Opry member/singer/songwriter/musician from Kenny’s hometown showed out to be the perfect choice to support him on the tour. At precisely 7:30 29 year old Kelsea Ballerini opened with a 45 minute / 11 song set. The guitarists (3 of them) would spend the majority of their time in the forefront of the stage along with the star of the show. Five steps up would provide access to the drum level where an aquamarine Gretsch kit was placed stage left while an organ sat stage right. Three hanging rows of lights each side illuminated a set of 8 Marshall amps with palm tree images on the speaker boxes. A full stage length video screen ran left to right with a double triangle overhead lighting rig contained in a stage sized rectangular box. The packed pits couldn’t have held more than 75 individuals each. Showtime would reveal an open concept stage in the shape of a horizontal ‘H’ with small pits or ‘sandbars’ left and right between the open areas of the ‘H’. Upon arrival a black and white No Shoes Nation skull and crossbones image on a large screen initially concealed my view to the stage set up. The arena was set in 270 Standard in contrast to the Well’s usual 180 Standard utilizing 8 additional full sections to accommodate the sold out crowd. My view, not too bad and reasonably priced on the presale was upper bowl, row F, straight on, purposely steering myself clear from the upper corners and their bouncing echos. It was my first time seeing Chesney live and I ready to soak in the experience. With 19 studio albums, 30 million in sales, 70 singles, 30 of them reaching #1, it was obvious that some would be missing but that was a-okay for me. This being Kenny’s 18th major tour the ‘King Of The Road’ has it down with every stop at least a full day away from the next to ensure a quality experience. Hence the call for the ‘I Go Back 2023 Tour’, a 24 date circuit across America beginning in Virginia and ending in Iowa, and South Carolina was exactly halfway between -stop #12. Coming off his 2022 NFL stadium tour the 55 year old singer/songwriter/superstar decided to take his music to fans who exist beyond the major stadium markets. Despite the all day heavy rains with temperatures in the 50’s everything did get hotter when the sun went down! The ‘No Shoes Nation’ filled the house in anticipation of a great evening of country music which promised close to 30 songs on the list.
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