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| Oak Ridge Boys - photo by Jessica Blankenship |
Prior to the show, I joined up with my pal, John Herndon,
who is a sports writer for the Anderson News. His wife was with him and my fiancé' joined
us as we met up with Joe Bonsall. John
conducted an interview that will be appearing closer to the KY State Fair. As soon as it is up, I'll be sure to share a
link. I won't spoil any surprises in
that interview, but I did get to ask one question in regards to the Opry. I plan on making that a separate blog post
soon.
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| John Herndon interviewing Joe Bonsall - photo by Jessica Blankenship |
After we spent some time with Joe, we ended up speaking
with Paul Martin and his wonderful family.
They are from Kentucky and we got to talking about RS Guitarworks, which
is based out of Winchester, Kentucky. A
childhood friend of mine, Monti, works for RS Guitarworks. They have built quite a few guitars for Marty
Stuart, as well as Ben Haggard, the son of Merle Haggard.
The backstage area all of a sudden became a clutter of
excited fans buzzing with talking and laughter.
Duane Allen arrives and goes down the row shaking each and every
hand. The rest of the Oak Ridge Boys
file in and fans cheer and raise up their cameras to take a few quick
snaps. One by one, fans walked up to the
group to get a photo and items signed.
We stood at the back of the line and it was our turn. My fiancé has a beard as well, and of course
he and William Lee Golden discuss beards briefly. It was comical indeed.
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| Hanging out with the Oak Ridge Boys at Renfro Valley |
It was time for us to get to our seats, so we walked
around the backstage area and came out side stage where a sold out crowd sat in
their seats. We took our seats down on
the front row center, in between where Joe Bonsall and Duane Allen would
stand. It wouldn't be long that the
music would start and the band would file out onto the stage.
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| Oak Ridge Boys from our view - photo by Jessica Blankenship |
For two solid hours, country music fans were given a whirl
of a ride of hits of the Oak Ridge Boys.
At the beginning of the show, Joe Bonsall would mention Doug Flynn, the
former Cincinnati Reds player, in the audience.
He also made mention that I was there and John was there, as well as the
cookie man and others. The most touching
moment would be when he said that the show was dedicated in memory of Eric
Hall. Eric was a fellow Kentuckian and
Oak Ridge Boys fan. We had planned on
meeting at this particular show, but he passed away a few weeks ago due to a
car accident in Nashville.
We were also given the treat of hearing Paul Martin's
family, the Martin Family Circus, perform the hit tune, "Happy." Now
let me tell you, this group is full of love and happiness and it shows both on
and off the stage.
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| Martin Family Circus - photo by Jessica Blankenship |
The Oak Ridge Boys sang a wide variety of hit songs,
including a few from their recently released record of hymns. What a blessing that was to hear them sing
the hymnals. Two songs I wish I could
have heard live last night - "Same Ole Me" that they sang with George
Jones, and "Farther Along."
(Pss - hey Joe, add that to the set next Renfro Valley round!) However,
I am SO happy to get to hear "Mama's Table" (written by Jamey
Johnson) and "Little Things."
One funny moment was during "Little Things" and
Paul Martin did an extended steel guitar slide.
Joe Bonsall ended up getting tickled and forgot where he was after
asking Paul to finish off the "longest guitar slide of all guitar
slides." Then Joe talked about that
the show about didn't happen when they found out that there was no fried
chicken as the restaurant across the street was no longer open. Never fail, they were able to get chicken
from the other restaurant. (It is a running
joke that Renfro Valley is the only stage they are completely full from fried
chicken.)
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| Oak Ridge Boys - photo by Jessica Blankenship |
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| William Lee Golden of the Oak Ridge Boys - photo by Jessica Blankenship |
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| Joe Bonsall hitting the high notes - photo by Jessica Blankenship |
Below is the set list of their Renfro Valley show. As always, the Oak Ridge Boys would end their
set with "Elvira" followed up with "Bobby Sue."
As we left, we looked around us of those in the
crowd. Multiple generations stood up on
their feet to give applause and cheer loudly.
It is very rare in the music industry that a musical act could entertain
audiences over decades and with ease.
Their voices are far from giving up as they continue to give it their
all. It is no secret that you get your
money's worth and a lifetime of memories thanks to the Oak Ridge Boys.
Oak Ridge Boys Renfro Valley Entertainment Center Set
List
06/13/2015
Everyday
American Made
Louisiana Red Dirt Highway
Love Song
Crying Again
Ya'll Come Back Saloon
Ozark Mountain Jubilee
Leaving Louisiana in Broad Daylight
Beautiful You
I'll Be True to You
Dream On
Little Things
Roll Tennessee River
Martin Family Circus sings Happy
I Love to Tell the Story
Have a Little Talk with Jesus
Mama's Table
Thank God For Kids
No Matter How High
Dancing the Night Away
Boom, Boom, Boom
Ramblin' Man
Elvira
Bobby Sue
