I took a short hop to the islands on Saturday night. From the minute I sat down to a cheeseburger (in paradise) and a cool Corona at my sister and her husband's pre-Buffett party - I was on my way to the tropics.
It took awhile to get there (First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre) only because there were people coming from not only the Chicago area but many surrounding states and the traffic was being re-routed all over the place - but upon entering the parking lot a whole new world opened up.
Parrotheads to the left, Parrotheads to the right.
The most enormous tailgate party I have ever encountered. Cars decorated with shark fins, entire tiki bar set-ups, guys in grass skirts with coconut bras, and all kinds of parrots! What a crowd!
The concert was absolutely amazing -- we had lawn seats which I think were much nicer than sitting under the canopy in chairs. Thankfully, the weather was very cooperative, but I have a feeling it probably wouldn't have mattered much to most of the soused crowd if a blizzard had been going on.
The stage was set up to resemble the Bama Breeze, a beachside bar, with the aqua blue ocean behind it and a tropical sky which changed colors through the show. Jimmy entered the stage on a bicycle, barefoot and in shorts and t-shirt. The whole show was laid back and key wasted - just the best description I can come up with.
Even if you're not a die-hard Buffett fan, you can't help but have a blast at his concert. And if you are a Buffett fan or even if you just love the ocean - as soon as you begin that long trek back to the parking lot, you will be counting the days till Jimmy's next show!
The Daily Southtown has a review of Saturday's show at the First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre: "Buffett & Co. deliver again"
A big part of a Buffett concert is always the atmosphere, from the gaudy outfits of the fans to the sound of the steel drums and pedal steel guitar to the comely backup singers to the free-flowing libations. But the bare-footed beach bum and his band of cohorts Saturday once again showed that if you strip away all the accoutrements you still have the music. And Saturday, as always, it was like a good tropical drink: cool and satisfying.
1 comment:
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