Bo Show Take Two: Vienna

Friday afternoon Jackie, Deb, Debbie and I left early to head to Vienna. We wanted to make sure that we knew where we were going in the daylight. The traffic was bumper-to-bumper and I tell you what, this country girl doesn't think she could drive in that mess! Jackie's husband was on the phone with her, telling her the best route to take to avoid the worst traffic as he watched a traffic report on his computer. As it was it was creep and stop, creep and stop for a while, then it evened out and we made our way on to Vienna.

We drove around once we got to Wolf Trap, looking for The Barns. Snow was everywhere and we saw Bo's bus and could just picture him out in the snow playing around. He's a Southerner like me; we think snow is wonderful!!

We finally made our way to The Barns and picked up Sue who had driven in by herself. Poor old Deb was car sick and I know she felt as if the trip would never end!! The roads were curvy and we stopped to give Deb a break. She walked up and down a sidewalk breathing in the fresh air and in the meanwhile, asked a person where we could get some dinner.

After riding into town, we decided on this little mom and pop diner. We were all starving (besides Deb, who had toast and Sierra Mist) and had omelettes. Soon it was getting time for the show!

The Barns is a lovely venue. I really like the atmosphere there. People were gathered in the bar, having drinks, snacks and chatting. We stood around a while and then decided to find our seats, which were in the fifth row smack dab in the center. Of course I would love to be on the front row always, but this time it was full of Wolf Trap patrons and it gave Bo a break from our faces! LOL

Last year The Barns allowed NO photography of any sort. So, we all left our cameras back in Baltimore. Well. This year they allowed non-flash photography. But I was happy to just sit back because I KNEW this show would be magical!

The place was about full, including the balcony. The lights dimmed, the announcer asked everyone to turn off cell phones, and Bo was introduced!

Oh, what a sight to behold! Bo always takes my breath away. He is a vision with that beautiful hair, pretty skin, infectious smile, twinkling eyes and then...that incredible voice on top of that pretty package ties it all together. Man. He had on a tee, a brown jacket, some great jeans and boots.

The advantage of not taking pictures is that I get to really concentrate on the music, on each note, and absorb it all fully without any distractions.

He started off the show with his Country song which was received with much hooting, hollering and applause. Long, Long Road was next, followed by the funkalicious Who Knows What. Bo did a lot of bantering and laughing during this show. He was at his best! Good Hearted Woman was up next, a song he said he wrote after the birth of Aidan, his oldest son. He slowed things down with You Take Yourself With You, a personal favorite of mine.

Bart Walker is an amazing asset to Bo's show. His instrumentation is phenomenal, not to mention his awesome voice. I watched him as he sang harmony with Bo. He would back away from his microphone and then sometimes go closer to get louder. The dynamics were perfection.

Bo rocked it on He Got You, threw in the lovely Different Shades of Blue, then kicked it back up with I Love The Road. Oh! And then he sang Lonely, Broke and Wasted. That song is a HIT, I tell you, a HIT! It deserves to be heard and given acclaim. Oh, I hope when Bo's CD is released that this is one that will resonate over the airwaves.

Bo started talking about this group from Georgia who had this rather unattractive lead singer and said "he had him licked!" No kidding. Anyway, he did a rousing rendition of Keep Your Hands To Yourself. What fun! The audience was clapping and swaying and singing along.

The next song Bo said he wrote and it was for all the beautiful ladies he saw on the road. He said he had to leave his family and the fans were an extension of his family. And he said he could say they were beautiful, dammit, he was married, but they were beautiful. Wild Roses, the song that just pierces my heart, echoed through The Barns warming every peep in attendance. He ended the song by singing "I love them Wild Roses". Well, the Wild Roses adore you, Mr. Bice.

Bart and Bo showed out on a funky cool jazzy version of Witness. Bo had people testifying all over the building! One man in the second row that I remember from last year was raising his hand "witnessing" and at one point he was slinging his hat around.

They left the stage and we clapped, stomped and called his name until he returned to sing Cinnamon and Novocaine. Then the last song was Whiskey, Women and Time.

This show was as close to perfect as they come. The crowd was on fire, Bo was on fire, Bart was on fire and it was magical. I wish I could relive it every day!

Since I took no photos, here is the link to a video of Wild Roses, courtesy of sjwbo. Sorry, I couldn't make the embedding code work for me!

WILD ROSES