New ZBB Blog - July 1st '09

[Zac Brown Band]

Well, Shazzam! Howzit goin' music fans? We're out here sacrificing ourselves tooth & limb to bring you our humble show. This weekend was one for the books. Where do I start? Let's try at the beginning.

Our first day comes after a 17 hour bus ride to Manhattan, KS (home of the K-State Wildcats). This wasn't an ordinary gig. We played the Country Stampede. Dierks Bentley headlined the Friday that we played. We had 3 performances for the day: a short acoustic set for some radio winners, a full set on the main stage, & a late night set on one of the many stages surrounding the grounds. Normally a day like this would be mildly stressful, but the 100º+ heat complicated things a little more than normal. Actually, that's an understatement. I almost cried once.

Moving on... our Saturday was spent in Peru, IL (a little 9 hour drive northeast). This day was a familiar pleasure; we got to share the stage with Little Big Town again. We've made a special bond with those cats. The show was delayed by 3+ hours due to rain & lightning. Those fans were utterly crazy to brave those conditions but I gotta give it to 'em... it didn't scare them at all. They were going to see a show, damnit! The show was grandiose but I think the highlight of the evening was held off of the stage: somewhere during the show we found out that "Whatever It Is" went #1! Can you believe it? Our first 2 songs went #1. No pressure from here on (he wrote sarcastically). I guess there's only one direction to go (That's what's great about pessimism... things mostly turn out better than what you predict).

Sunday was a completely different vibe. We had ourselves a "Big & Rich Time" in Norfolk, NE. Not much to report about... that wouldn't get us sued.

On to the Twin Cities area! We played to a sold out theatre at the Mystic Lake Casino. We were here in March, but in the role as opener for Little BIg Town. Look who's all grown up now! They were the best 'seated' crowd that we've ever played for... & there was no alcohol to boot. I guess we put on a pretty good show. You fans are so kind to us & all we want to do is find new ways to make you feel good about plopping down money for a ticket or a record. We're trying, we're trying - & I promise you, we will never quit trying!