'You're the first person in town to own this album.'

Editor's note: It's taken me more than two weeks to write about the Pearl Jam concert because it was that good. I kept writing and rewriting drafts and just couldn't get it right. So I asked Brad to do it and I think to say he did it justice is an understatement. So, please enjoy my first-ever guest blog!

Guest Author: Brad Dickerson

It’s impossible for me to approach a review of Pearl Jam’s electrifying April 16, 2016 show in Greenville, S.C., without sharing a little personal history.

Flashback to Oct. 19, 1993, and you’d find this then-13-year-old lad having his mom take him to a local record store in Glasgow, Ky., called, conveniently, Record Rack to make a purchase.

This was a big day; it was the day Pearl Jam’s sophomore effort, “Vs.” was being released. And in my hometown of less than 14,000 people, you had two options when it came to buying music – Wal-Mart or Record Rack.

Back in those days, the big box store’s CD shelves were full of albums from a plethora of country artists or more pop-friendly acts like Mariah Carey, Sting and the like. If you wanted a rocker, Record Rack was your destination.

In the center row, I found about seven copies of “Vs.” This was not a decision that needed a second thought; I was ready to make my purchase.

As I handed the CD to the cashier, he commented that it was the first copy he’d sold all day. Then, he said something that I still remember to this day:

“Congratulations. You’re the first person in Glasgow to own this album.”

For the 13-year-old who had been utterly possessed by their legendary debut album, “Ten,” hearing those words made me feel as though I was at the forefront of Pearl Jam fandom.

Which made what transpired more than 20 years later at Greenville’s Bon Secours Wellness Arena all the more earth-shattering for this lifetime fan of the Seattle stalwarts.'

Eddie Vedder and company opened the raucous show with “Corduroy,” which quickly set the tone for the rocking affair myself and 16,000 other fans were in for. It was followed by “Vs.’” opening track, “Go.” Not missing a beat, they segued into track No. 2, “Animal,” followed immediately by “Daughter.” Suddenly, it hit me; are they about to do what I think they’re going to do? We’ll see what the next song is.

And to my absolute delight, it was “Vs.’” fourth track, “Glorified G,” a rollicking face melter that remains my favorite song in Pearl Jam’s catalog. Plus, it confirmed what I was praying was about to happen; they were going to play the album in its entirety from front to back.

Sure enough, the next eight songs were from “Vs.” in sequential order. I could have called it a night right then and there and said the show was well worth the price of admission.

But this is Pearl Jam we’re talking about here. They weren’t even close to done. In fact, they were just getting started.

Having said that, before I continue with this long-winded review (if you’re still reading, then God bless you), I need to pause and reflect on what a moment this was.

In 25 years, Pearl Jam has only played an entire album live two previous times. That means over the course of thousands of shows, only three audiences have gotten to experience what I had just experienced.

Wow.

It’s just part of the magic of seeing this band live; no two setlists are ever the same.I live for seeing bands in concert. It’s just a passion of mine. And like any audience member, I want to hear the hits.

Unfortunately, for a number of acts, they stick to a tried and true script and rarely alter their batting order. That doesn’t mean the shows are any less fun, but it can make them feel a bit stale. You find yourself yearning for one or two wild cards.

Pearl Jam excels at wild cards. One of their biggest hits is unquestionably “Jeremy.” I’ve seen the band live five times and haven’t heard the song once. But I have heard a stellar cover of Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb” and a tear-generating version of “Future Days” from their most recent effort, 2013’s “Lightning Bolt.”Both made it into the Greenville setlist. No “Jeremy” required.

And when it was time to wrap it up, the band left everything on the stage with their final four numbers: “Better Man,” an arena-wide singalong of “Alive,” the balls-to-the-wall thunder generated by covering The Who’s “Baba O’ Riley” and the perfect last call number, “Yellow Ledbetter.”

After more than three hours and 32 songs, the band gave their final bows and left the stage.

Our audience was hungry for another three hours. The reason why is simple; Pearl Jam encapsulates rock and roll.

They may have burst onto the scene as one of the ambassadors of grunge at the start of the 1990s. However, as the years passed and many of their contemporaries suffered personal heartache or simply faded away, they evolved into what they’d always been at their core – a classic rock band that is one part Zepellin, two parts Springsteen and a dash of Iggy Pop.

And for one thrilling night, they held all of us in the palm of their hand with their unprecedented set list, infectious energy and a sheer determination to be the best at what they do.

For the 13-year-old who still lives deep inside, it was nice to see that my money was well spent that day at Record Rack. For that purchase would make up a large portion of the greatest concert I’ve ever seen.

Let's all focus on this manufactured drama to avoid our real lives

The Real Housewives is my secret shame. Like a bad boyfriend, I've tried many times to dump this franchise of shows about insane women. I've watched every city. Even Miami. (And I don't know that anyone else watches that one, even Andy Cohen.)

So, when I found out about the The Real Housewives of Charlotte: A parody, I knew I had to go and I knew I had to take my friend Jean who is equally obsessed with these bitches.

The show was at the Booth Playhouse, which is a perfect smaller venue for this intimate feeling show. The cast of six (Randy Bowen and five housewives) uses a minimal script, improving for a majority of the show. For each city this national tour hits, they incorporate a ton of local jokes and references. I knew that we were in for a good show when they began with some typical opening credits that found the housewives holding Bojangles chicken boxes to represent the Queen City.

Each of the five housewives borrowed from the personalities of women from all of the cities to create one monster housewife.

There's Ravonka, (Lori McClain) who's terrible accent comes and goes. She claims to be royalty and carries a small dog around in her purse.

Gwen is a convicted felon who used to be former Mayor Patrick Cannon's top adviser. She was also convicted of running a toll booth on I-77 before it was ever approved. Her one-liners, including a joke about making Pat McCrory disappear, stole the show.

Brooke is a straight shooter from the tough streets of Kannapolis. She is an "entrepreneuress" whose latest business venture is butt writing on the seats of ladies' pants. Her greatest idea reads, "If you feel stuck, push harder."

Claudia Louise, who wants to me known as C.L., is the only housewife who is actually married. She gets to show off her husband, who was an unsuspecting audience member Mark. Poor Mark gets dragged into the show but manages to be a great sport all the way until the end of the show.

The final housewife is Desiree who says, "I always stick my neck out for my friends. Maybe that's because I am a neck model."

Jackson Evans did an amazing job portraying the glee and desperation of Andy Cohen. Every time the ladies announced sad news, he did a happy  jig. "We also have a tragedy this season," he gleefully told the audience. "And we're not going to tell you what it is yet, but we're going to tease the hell out of it and make you feel obligated to watch."

I think that's what's so intriguing to me about the housewives franchise. It's totally compelling television, but it's not my drama. There are no consequences for me. It's just fun TV. Sometimes, there is guilt in knowing that these are real people's lives. Or as Randy said, "Let's all focus on this manufactured drama to avoid our real lives."

The parody show, just like the Bravo franchise, is a fun escape from real life.

The best concert I've ever been to....

There are very few artists that I would buy tickets to see the day I return from a seven-day cruise. But when I found out that Garth Brooks would be in Charleston the day I returned to Charleston, I figured this was meant to be.

I feel like one of the best things about adulthood is being able to go to whatever concerts I want. And I certainly have! But there are a handful of artists that are on my concert bucket list that I haven't been able to see just because they haven't been on tour. Seeing Garth Brooks is something I've wanted to do since I was a little girl. So I was overjoyed when Garth announced a tour in 2014. And I waited. And waited. And waited. His show in Greensboro last year sold out in seconds and I'd almost given up. Every other week or so, I'd get an e-mail from him announcing a new tour date and he seemed to be getting further and further away. So, Charleston seemed like a special performance for me.

But I wasn't the only one that wanted to see Garth. He scheduled six shows in three days for Charleston. Thankfully, because I am old and easily tired, Brad and I had tickets to the 7 p.m. early show at the North Charleston Performing Arts Center.

We had great seats and the venue was very small with a capacity for 13,000. This gave the concert a more intimate feel. Before the show started, there was a giant "G" on the stage that rotated. A 60-second countdown came up before the show started and revealed a giant sphere where the drummer sat. Garth started with "Man Against the Machine" and I was a little concerned. I am not here for your new stuff, Garth!

Luckily, after his opening number, Garth seemed to read my mind. "When I go to a show, I want to hear the old stuff!"he yelled. And that's exactly what he did. For the next nearly three hours, I got to hear very one of my favorite Garth songs.

The songs varied in tempo and message, but the audience was enthusiastic about every bit of it. Brad and I both agreed that we'd never been to a louder concert. There were some amazing graphics that produced a rain storm during "The Thunder Rolls." After that song, Trisha Yearwood came out to sing a duet of "In Another's Eyes." Brooks took a well-deserved break while Yearwood sang, songs like, "How Do I Live" and "She's in Love with The Boy." She also had a stadium-style kiss cam and warned audience members to go grab a beer if they were at the concert with someone other than their significant others. I found this particularly amusing as Garth and Trisha didn't exactly have the most clean get together.

For his third act, Garth told us that his favorite song to perform is "Calling Baton Rouge." I've read an interview with him before where he says he always wanted a song that people recognize on the first chord. He definitely accomplished that with "Friends in Low Places"

I can't say enough about how energetic Garth is. I have a DVD of his one-man show in Vegas. It was very low-key. I was kind of expecting the same thing. But he defied my expectations by running around the stage, climbing things and keeping the audience energized. It was definitely the best concert I've ever been to. Even though I was exhausted and was still having the "rocking on a boat" feeling, I am so glad we got to go.

You can change the world when you change your mind

Since the Magic Mike show tickets sold out in, oh, five seconds, I had to find another event for January. There was a great TravelZoo deal on Kinky Boots tickets at Blumenthal Performance Arts Center, so Brad and I were there Jan. 2.

Our seats were W 207 and 208 and I plan on trying to get these seats for every show that I see. They were two seats isolated from everyone else in the orchestra section and they were amazing.

I knew that Kinky Boots was the Tony-award winning Musical of the Year, but I had no idea what the story was about. Based on a true story, Kinky Boots is about Brit Charlie Price who reluctantly returns to his father's shoe failing shoe factory after his father's death. Faced with having to lay off employees, Charlie needs a creative spark to keep the shoe factory alive. He meets Lola, a drag queen, who gives him the idea to create ladies shoes for men.

This is normally the part in the blog where I talk about the individual performances and actors, but unfortunately I left my playbill on my seat during intermission and it was TAKEN! I've asked Liam Neeson to get it back for me. Until then, I can say that we were both very impressed with the quality of the performances. The actors were not only great singers, but amazing dancers as well. I have to give credit to the women AND men who pulled off the expertly crafted choreography in high-heeled boots.

My absolute favorite thing about the show is the true, unfiltered relationship between Charlie and Lola. It was a unique story that tugged at your heart strings without being overly corny. The pair learned how to respect each other and that was fun to watch.

The theme of the show is about being different and accepting other's for who they are. "You can change the world when you change your mind" is the show's theme. It's a good goal for me, to try to be more accepting of others in this new year.