A few final Craven tidbits
REGINA the page on — the Before 2012 Craven I turn Country a couple Jamboree, of minutes let’s take and glean bits • Brad from a Paisley few my interesting festival can definitely notes: tid-relate inconvenienced with Reginans by who ill-time are railway was finishing traffic. his While encore Paisley Sunday the site night, on a the train railway rolled past that runs area. behind As the the freight mainstage train made its way past the site, it blew its horn — not once,
not twice, but three times. I understand railway safety is extremely important, but the timing for this particular series of blasts was remarkably unfortunate.
• I knew I was at the Jam-two- boree stepping when I saw in a rather couple unique flip flops footwear, and the the woman man in in rubber boots.
• Apparently even being a superstar sometimes isn’t enough to get through the security gates at the Jambo
ree. On Saturday afternoon, Alan Jackson borrowed a pickup and went for a drive
around Craven. Upon his return to the site, Jackson was refused entry because he didn’t have his accredita
tion with him. Now before anyone jumps to the conclusion that the security guard was being somewhat heavyhanded, take into consideration two things: First, who would expect a superstar from Nashville to be driving
a pickup with Saskatchewan plates? And, two, it is quite common for fans to try to crash festivals and concerts
with devious plans. Jackson was able to return to the site after his tour manager brought the proper accredi
tation to the gate. And by the way, the security guard was complimented by his superiors for doing his job. • Southern accents are a hoot — hearing Jackson say “SASK-KATCH-U-WAN” was almost priceless.
• Carly Mckillop of One More Girl put on quite an impressive performance on Friday and I’m not talking about
her singing. Yes, she and her sister Britt did throw down an entertaining set but what made the performance even more exceptional was the fact Carly shone despite being quite ill. The 23-year-old had a bug that almost forced her to miss the show but despite being physically ill minutes before taking the stage, Carly dug deep like a true
professional and did the set. According to a band member that I spoke with after the set, and who will remain anonymous for his own protection, Carly “is stubborn like her dad.” And yes, my source was smiling when he said that.
• I knew I was at the Jamboree when I saw three strangers — two men and one woman — excitedly chatting after realizing each
had a Betty Bop tattoo.
• Despite being plagued by some
technical problems, Deric Ruttan had a great debut at the Jamboree.
A regular visitor to Regina, Ruttan never fails to entertain. I will admit, however, that I was taken aback by his performance of Main St. 1979 on Saturday.
According to Ruttan, the song “is the most autobiographical song I’ve ever written and that makes it hard to sing.” He wasn’t lying — at times during the tune his voice fluctuated as he fought to maintain control of his emotions. It was quite a touching moment.
• Ruttan is a shining example
of how artists should treat their fans. After his show he met with fans at the march booth, signing autographs and posing for pictures for 2½ hours.
Such efforts result in happy fans who are loyal and quick to spread the good word. An artist can’t buy that kind of quality advertising.
• There’s nothing better than
bluegrass music done right and The Roys definitely do it right.
• Neal McCoy continues to be a
fan favourite, whether it’s on the main stage or in the beer gardens. He’s a true entertainer who uses a wicked sense of humour to power his shows forward.
My favourite line of McCoy’s this year was: “How’s things with us? Well, we’re working and the bank’s not foreclosing on nothin’ so we’re all good.”
• I knew I was at the Jamboree
when I saw a 20-something woman wearing a shirt declaring, “Don’t worry Moms, your son is in good hands!”
• Nice people who deserve a
plug: Lenore Evans, Shawn Pierce, Nick Meinema, Erin Harde, Terry Lazarou, Scotty Chamryk, Evan Okrainetz, Mike Dacey, Cheryl Willoughby, Christopher Tessmer, Kim Blevins, Chris Washenfelder, Ricky Kezema, Brenda Indzeoski, Wendy Lazarou, Troy Fleece, Jim Blevins and Perry Dunn.