The Nashville Tribute Band Concert

I really tried hard to convince Utah Dad to join me at The Nashville Tribute Band concert. I even promised that we'd go out for steaks before the concert. I was ultimately unsuccessful (even though I quoted the recent article in the Deseret News that talks about how there are more declarations of faith and family in country music). Oh well.

So, I invited my good friend Kerri to join me at the concert. We arrived plenty early and found our seats. This was the first event I have attended at the Sandy Amphitheater and I was very impressed by the venue.

Opening for The Nashville Tribute Band was a young and up and coming new group of siblings called Dyer Highway. We were impressed by their talent even though they are just teenagers.

I haven't known about The Nashville Tribute Band for long. I just recently received a copy of their latest album The Work : A Nashville Tribute to the Missionaries. I've enjoyed the songs on the CD, but I'll tell you what, they put on a great show. I have become a true fan (much to the chagrin of Utah Dad who cringes the second he hears twang. I've been forcing him to listen to the music ever since the concert. Some day I'll get him to embrace the Kentucky blood flowing in his veins).

The Nashville Tribute Band is a group of LDS artists and song writers working successfully in Nashville who started a band to produce music for their faith. The Work is the third album, following the very popular albums Joseph : A Nashville Tribute to the Prophet and Trek : A Nashville Tribute to the Pioneers.

Kerri and I had a great time at the concert. Even as we huddled under blankets during the down pour and thunder storm. The nice thing about Utah summer storms is that they pass quickly. The concert continued in spite of the fact that the audience was drenched. The rain did nothing to soak the enthusiasm of the audience.

Debuting songs from their new album and filling in with beloved crowd favorites, The Nashville Tribute Band entertained the crowd. Special guests joined them to make the concert even more memorable. Hearing Michael McLean play a medley of songs from his Celebrating the Light album and seeing The Jets made Kerri and I reminisce about our younger years. And if you don't happen to know who The Jets are it probably means you are much younger than I am. Billy Dean (who is not LDS, I don't want to start any of "those rumors", but a good friend of the members of The Nashville Tribute Band) joined the party after his own concert in town and delighted the audience with several numbers.

Kerri and I had a fabulous time. The entire concert was entertaining and even inspiring. I'm pretty sure I wiped away tears and not just raindrops when two little sisters sang the emotionally moving song about the pioneers: "Somewhere There's a Mountain". I imagine that Kerri, who will send her son on a mission next year, was affected  by the powerful tribute to LDS missionaries who serve all over the world to share a message of Jesus Christ.

The following pictures from the concert were taken by Russ Dixon.

I am going to have to go out buy the other two albums or download the songs because I fell in love with several songs. The Nashville Tribute Band has just started their tour. They're headed to Idaho and Oregon but will be back in Utah for shows in September. Check out their website for dates.

I received free tickets to the concert in exchange for my honest review. No compensation was received.