Travis Tritt: The Best Concert of 2007

The best concert of 2007...hmm... that is a tough one. There are so many great bands and artists out there that put their all into their shows and music, that sometimes it is very hard to narrow it down. However, this year is a little different. This year I had gone to see, Poison, Ratt, Rush, Def Leppard, Styx, Travis Tritt, Clint Black, Poverty Neck Hillbillies and Mark Wills. Of all of those wonderful artists, Travis Tritt put on a show that I will never forget.

Saturday July 28^th 2007 at the Pittsburgh Post Gazette Pavilion presented by Y108 and was titled The Hot Country Jam, Travis Tritt was to come on stage at 9pm. I had paid over $160 for good seats, only to have a friend of my boyfriend's win closer seats, so of course we used those and were right in front.

Travis Tritt graced the stage a little before 9pm and the Post Gazette Pavilion was packed. He didn't open with a song, but a speech. There was an announcer that came on advising people to not throw quarters during the song "Here's A Quarter, Call Someone Who Cares". Apparently at a previous concert some people started throwing quarters and hit Travis. So the announcer stated not to throw change, but throwing bills would be acceptable. The announcement was to the point, but kept with the fun of the night. But when Travis came out on the stage, he made his own announcement. He told everyone that every time he goes to a concert, a lot of times they just play the popular stuff, or they never play that song you want to hear, or they just play all new stuff. Well, he happily stated that he was going to play everything in his power that he could play; new, old, and popular, even some of his favorite songs from other artists. And he made it very clear that everyone was going to have a good time and that it was going to be a party. He was very right. It was a blast!

This man is the most exciting, and enthusiastic performer I have ever seen. He performed from 9:00 pm to 11:35pm. His band was complete with steel guitar, violin, mandolin, drums, keyboardist, bass, and acoustic guitar. When Travis came out on stage, he was neatly dressed, he had on a pair of really tight fitting jeans that had the most gorgeous pattern of flowers down the side, and took the time to talk to the crowd and joke with the crowd. Travis proudly talked about his family as well.

He opened with "Put Some Drive In Your Country" and had to wait about five minutes prior to moving onto the next song, because the crowd was thrilled, as well as me! Some other songs he played were; "Country Club", "I'm Gonna Be Somebody", "Anymore", "The Whiskey Ain't Workin", "Bible Belt", "Livin' On Borrowed Time", "Between An Old Memory And Me", "It's A Great Day To Be Alive", "Sign of the Times", "Love Of A Woman", "Put Some Drive in Your Country", "Modern Day Bonnie and Clyde" and "Southern Justice". He was right, he sang all the songs that I wanted to hear and much much more.

I never realized how much this man loved to perform and how much he really loved his job. Every song he sang, you could see and hear the passion and love of his work. And the most important thing is that he had fun doing it! I couldn't imagine how much energy he had, he was dancing up a storm and only stopped for slow songs, or to talk to the crowd, or when he sat down to play a song.

Travis left the stage at 10:50pm, only to be called out for an encore that lasted until 11:35pm. The encore was incredible! Travis sang songs from Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. The crowd was jumping and didn't take much coaxing to get the superstar out again for an amazing encore.

Personally, I have been waiting to see Mr. Travis Tritt perform live for almost 10 years and it was the most awesome, most invigorating, most inspirational experience that I have ever experienced. Seeing someone so passionate for what they love to do really help you take a look at your life and inspire you to push forward in a positive note.

So, the best concert of 2007 is Y108's Hot Country Jam starring Travis Tritt at the Pittsburgh Post Gazette Pavilion.