I'll admit that I didn't really want to go to the concert. The reason I bought the tickets was because it was four days until Christmas and I hadn't gotten Joe a present. I saw the listing on Ticketmaster and called him.
"Sheryl Crow is playing in Detroit?"
"Oh my god, YES. I want to go SO. BAD."
His wish was granted. And my wish for a good concert began.
I didn't have to wish too hard. I should have known that it'd be a good concert. I love all of Ms. Crow's older music--it's her newer, quasi-shoddy, overplayed material that I'm not a fan of.
I knew it'd be a good concert from the second I stepped into the Fox Theater. The marquee alone had me going "oooohOOOOH!" It was ornate, it was elaborate, it was the most gorgeous vicinity I had ever been in. The ambience alone was worth the price of the ticket.
Better news than that was that it was just Sheryl performing. No opening act, just "an evening with Sheryl Crow." At first I was disappointed because I like hearing new talent. That feeling evaporated the second she stepped on the stage. From the first chords of her first song ("Run Baby Run") to the resonating final notes of her final song of the encore ("Safe and Sound"--a favorite of mine), I was enraptured.
After the first song, she said "I'm going to play a lot of my older stuff." I was one of the ones screaming the loudest...from the second balcony. At that point Joe looked over at me.
"What?!?" I was baffled. And a bit hoarse.
"My baby's having a good time! I'm so glad."
The entire concert was amazing. She had an orchestra of eleven string musicians accompanying her, along with the basic rock bands. She knew what to say to rile up the crowd ("I knew Detroit crowds were the best--I LOVE DETROIT!!"), she knew what to sing to get the crowd going ("A Change Will Do You Good" and "If It Makes you Happy" had the entire crowd screaming along), she knew what to sing to lull us into a spell ("Letter To God" and "Where Has all The Love Gone"). By the time she sat at the piano for her final song of the encore, I had gone from a fan to a Fan.
And then she played "Safe and Sound." Since the first time I'd heard that song, it's been an anthem for me; I consider a song for my friends and the ones that I love. Hearing it played like, with the haunting strings and simple piano arrangement, while holding the hand of one of my best friends...
It was one of the best moments of my life.
And now? The setlist (from her officialsite):
RUN BABY RUN
HARD TO MAKE A STAND
MAYBE ANGELS
GOOD IS GOOD
LETTER TO GOD
PERFECT LIE
MY FAVORITE MISTAKE
FIRST CUT
I KNOW WHY
MISSISSIPPI
STRONG ENOUGH
WILDFLOWER
IF IT MAKES YOU HAPPY
IT DON'T HURT
ALWAYS
WHERE HAS ALL THE LOVE
ALL I WANNA DO
A CHANGE (WILL DO YOU GOOD)
encore:
SOAK UP THE SUN
(EVERY DAY IS A) WINDING ROAD
SAFE AND SOUND
Ciao, dahling!
~*Krissy*~