We drove 7 hours, ya’ll. From little Oneonta, NY to Bangor, ME. All to stand in the pit and watch my favorite musician–Tyler Childers.

My love for Tyler Childers was solidified when we saw him perform at the inaugural Catbird Music Festival in Bethel Woods, NY. We booked those tickets when we heard Tyler Childers was headlining. On a whim, I applied for press credentials and was granted access. You could read about in my past posts. I fell in love with Tyler as a performer at that show. In fact, I cried when he sang, “In Your Love.” He is just that damn good. And that song just gets me in my feels. My favorite song to watch him perform right now is probably “Rustin’ in the Rain.” He is so expressive and he really showcases it in that song.

When I was able to score pit tickets for a concert in Bangor at a reasonable price, I nagged them. I was unaware just how far Bangor was, but truth be told, it wouldn’t have mattered—it’s Tyler Childers and I’d give my right arm to see his show. And besides, our daughter, who dislikes country, wanted to see him, asserting, “He’s not country, more blue grass and folk…” Fair enough.

We got to the venue about 3 hours before the venue opened. We noticed a line for pit ticket holders had already formed and we jumped in line–we were aiming for close, and we knew we’d have to wait at least a couple hours.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, one of the best things about attending concerts is the cool folks you meet during and before the show. It’s fun to chat about concert experiences and sometimes you see them at other concerts and music festivals. We’ve discovered there are a whole bunch of folks like us who will travel all over to see a show.

Because we got to the venue early we were able to to score a good spot in the pit right on the rail. We were elated!

The first opening act for Tyler was Wayne Graham a band, new to us, from Kentucky that infuses rock, blues and folk in a really cool sound–we enjoyed them and will check them out for sure.

Another special treat just before Tyler got on was S.G. Goodman–I had heard of her but never really dived into her music. After her set, we’ve become fans and likely will seek out concerts to see her. She blends Americana, folk and country rock and her band was amazing. It should be noted that Tyler supports his fellow Kentuckians as both his opening bands were from Kentucky. Kentucky puts out top tier musicians! He brought her back out to do a special rendition of “Way of the Triune God.” During that performance, S.G. urged the audience to vote–to protect democracy and to vote blue.

The anticipation of Tyler after S.G. Goodman was intense and his intro increased that intensity buildup–I recorded for over six minutes hoping to get the band entering–the shortened edit is below.

And as my readers may have already guessed, the show was amazing. The set, the performance, the vibe–all what you’d expect from Tyler Childers–I enjoyed it so much that I was able to truly take it in–I hardly took photos or video–I was in the moment. The best part of the whole experience was watching our daughter–smiling from ear to ear-bobbing to the music. My heart was happy–for our first concert with her–we couldn’t have started with a better artist. I look forward to many more experiences like this.

I’ll end this post with a clip of Tyler Childers singing a snippet of “Rustin’ in the Rain.” You’re welcome.

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About the Author:

Michelle Osterhoudt is a school administrator, mom, wife and former small town newspaper columnist who enjoys going to concerts with her husband. She can be reached at osterhoudtmichelle@yahoo.com