Trace Adkins’ “Song and Stories Tour” Hits The Riverside Theater

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Trace Adkins
Song and Stories Tour 2012
Riverside Theater – Milwaukee, WI
3/15/2012
Photos by Paul Weber

Trace Adkins is a country music icon with a shelf of music awards including multiple American Country Music and CMT awards as well as two Grammy nominations circa 2008 for “Best Male Country Vocal Performance” and “Best Country Song” for “You’re Gonna Miss This.”  His newest release is Proud to Be Here, which is his 13^th studio album to date, including his 2 Best Of albums.

Trace is out on tour but doing things differently this time around.  He’s hitting the music theater circuit with his band in a VH1 Storytellers type scene.  The stage is structured for a more intimate night, not just a concert.  Trace took the stage at 8:00 P.M. sharp, sang and told stories for 45 minutes, and then right as the crowd was ready for more, Trace took a (planned) 15 minute break.  He then continued the night with another 45 minute set to conclude the show. For those who have tickets to the show, I must also note there is no opening act, so get there on time.

Even though Trace emphasized that the Song and Stories Tour would be different from any other tour he’s done, he still came prepared with a beautiful stage setup. Just because it’s more of a storyteller’s atmosphere doesn’t mean he skipped out on the production value of the show.  He also brought the full band along for the tour.

The night was a mix of songs from his back catalogue and new songs from Proud to Be Here.  The setlist is mixed for each night as Trace takes to Twitter for song requests and shout-outs to fans during the set.  If you are attending a Song and Stories show, take to Twitter and place your song request the day before the show. One song request came from Linda and Trace noted the song she requested hasn’t been performed live in a long time.  Only two of the musicians in his band have played it before live.  They did go through it several times at soundcheck and the crowd was thrilled when it was discovered the song was “Then They Do.” (Trace on Twitter: http://twitter.com/TraceAdkins)

Trace confessed he was excited to not worry about strutting his stuff on this tour, yet after a deep sigh from the crowd, Trace chuckled and pointed out he was still going to shake it a little bit on stage. He is Trace Adkins after all and doesn’t like to disappoint his fans.

The highlights of the show weren’t just the songs; Trace’s recollection of stories from his life was humorous, the laugh out humorous. One of the best stories of the night was about his cell phone.  Previously he had a flip phone, which the kid at the store said was an “antique.” He now has an iPhone and apparently he’s getting into a bit of trouble now that he can post on Twitter and Facebook directly from his phone.  The “trouble” he was talking about was his post concerning the newest viral craze about the fight against Kony.  Trace is one celebrity that is fascinating to follow on Facebook and Twitter. He speaks his mind and is pretty non-apologetic about his words.

When Trace was approached and thanked for keeping country music “traditional” he laughed as fans know his songs aren’t all traditional.  He followed that with a quick line noting that the next song is going to be “nastier” than the last one.  Which song? “That’s What You Get.”

He prefaced “Semper Fi” with noting the shows he performs for the USO. “Semper Fi” is dedicated to the Marines, but he also says he doesn’t get to perform for them due to their location.  The song received a standing ovation from the crowd.  He then told the story about his neighbor’s son joining the Marines after the song was released.  He followed the serious story up with one of running into that same neighbor’s mailbox.

What’s Trace’s favorite song off the new album? It may be pretty obvious as the title of the album is also the title of his favorite song.  The song appears to be very personal for Trace as a couple of the stories he told last night were about his drunken moments and even hitting his head while out in the woods and it started bleeding. He said he didn’t want to call any of his friends because they’ve bailed out him out so many other times.  He laughed and said that he just wanted to bleed out and die there. All the things he’s been through in his life, he is proud and lucky to be here.

A night full of stories, connecting with his fans, and a great mix of songs made this one of Trace’s must-see shows.  The Song and Stories Tour runs throughout the spring and summer. Tour dates are below.

Photos from Trace’s Song and Stories set at the Riverside Theater:

Trace Adkins on the web:
http://www.traceadkins.com
http://www.myspace.com/traceadkins
http://www.reverbnation.com/traceadkins
http://twitter.com/traceadkins
http://www.youtube.com/traceadkins
https://www.mozes.com/traceadkins/