I've already told ya'll why I heart Brad Paisley. And I have already seen Brad in tour this year in Roanoke, which I also wrote about. So, you could naturally assume that I wouldn't have anything new to say after taking my mom to see Brad in Raleigh this past Saturday. But you would be wrong!
Mom's birthday present was a ticket to see Brad perform along with Jerrod Niemann and Blake Shelton. There was pouring rain all weekend, but we had an excellent, clear and cool summer night. Perfect concert weather.
Jerrod Niemann opened the show, as he did at Brad's Roanoke show. And yes, I love Jerrod and certainly never get tired of looking at or even listening to him, but he definitely did the exact same show I saw in Roanoke right down to a joke about his super hero pajamas. It was still great.
Brad Paisley has quite a reputation for playing pranks on tour and last night was no exception. Brad sent a very large man in very small clothes out covered in body paint to try to slow dance with Jerrod.
Next up was Blake Shelton. I've never really had a feeling for Blake one way or another, although I've figured he had to be pretty bad ass to be married to Miranda Lambert. Blake began the show by letting everyone know he'd been drinking since 12, which was sort of obvious. He still managed to put on a good show, which included a melody of Play that Funky Music White Boy, Angel is a Centerfold and Bobby Brown's My Prerogative. He also decided to sing us his oldest song from 2006, Austin. I had completely and totally forgotten that Blake sang that song and how much I love it!
Brad also managed to prank Blake by sending the same large man on stage in a honey bee costume to chase Blake during, what else, Honey Bee?
It was finally time for the main attraction! Brad came out to Mud on the Tires while standing out among the audience and the evening had truly begun! Brad's lyrics are incredibly clever (and mostly self-written) and his singing skills are superb, but where he really flourishes is when he is playing the guitar. I got to hear a few songs that Brad didn't play in Roanoke, including When I Get Where I'm Going, and Alabama. One of the highlights of the evening was Brad singing Don't Drink the Water, a new song with Blake. Blake returned to the stage wearing a long mullet wing and attempting to make out with Brad.
When Misty and I went to Roanoke, Brad came out into the cheap seats to sing and he did that again this time, except this time I was even closer, less than 20 feet away. He was pranked in return with his diving board being replaced with a toilet. Again, Brad thanked us for spending money on him, even in such tough economic times. He wanted everyone to get their money's worth. And we did.
