Terri Hendrix and Lloyd Maines at Courville's

Tonight we saw another terrific show at Courville's. I know what you're thinking. Does Laurie ever eat a disgusting meal in a lousy restaurant or go to a bad concert? Yes, I do. However, unless people are mean to me, you won't read a bad review here. You'll have to find those places on your own.

That being said, I've never had a lousy meal or seen a bad concert at Courville's. Tonight was no exception. The gumbo was hot and delicious and the music was fantastic.

The opening act was Erik Ellington and Spencer Marks of Beaumont. They play around town a lot and you should definitely try to catch their shows.

The main act consisted of Terri Hendrix and Lloyd Maines. The crowd was much smaller than the usual Courville's crowd and all you people who stayed home missed an incredible show. Terri and Lloyd are amazing musicians and Terri has one of the most amazing folk/blues/jazz voices I've ever heard.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Check out the Courville's calendar and go to their concerts. The food is always good, the music is always terrific and nobody is ever mean to you.

Friday Night on Crockett Street

Back in Black - AC/DC Tribute Band - Scout Bar

The Boxmasters - Billy Bob Thornton's band - Dixie Dancehall

Opening for The Boxmasters will be my favorite new local band Simple Logic. Here's my review from a show last month...

"As fantastic as all of that was, the highlight of my week was the discovery of the band I saw tonight. Evidently, they've been around a couple of years, but I had never seen them before. The band is called Simple Logic and the lead singer is the best I've ever seen locally and I've seen lots and lots and lots of incredible local talent in my day.His covers of Maroon 5, John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Eric Clapton, Train, Dishwalla, Matchbox 20 and so many others that I can't even remember were perfection. Then, as if all that weren't enough, to top it all off, he did Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On."

And you thought I couldn't do it

A week or so ago, I did this post and there were doubters (Steve) who thought I wouldn't be able to conquer such an intensive schedule of events. With the exception of "The Rat Pack" which Mary Beth and I never got around to and Mardi Gras and the February alumni gathering which haven't happened, yet, I rocked them all.

All of Dick's bands (Badfaith, Longneck Road, Madison Monroe) were terrific, as usual. Ray Wylie Hubbard was great in the newly remodeled Courville's. Check out the Courville's schedule for upcoming shows.

As fantastic as all of that was, the highlight of my week was the discovery of the band I saw tonight. Evidently, they've been around a couple of years, but I had never seen them before. The band is called Simple Logic and the lead singer is the best I've ever seen locally and I've seen lots and lots and lots of incredible local talent in my day.

His covers of Maroon 5, John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Eric Clapton, Train, Dishwalla, Matchbox 20 and so many others that I can't even remember were perfection. Then, as if all that weren't enough, to top it all off, he did Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On."

Upcoming: Kinky Friedman at Courville's and Simple Logic opening for Billy Bob Thornton's band at Whiskey River. I'll keep you posted.

Also: Thank you, Beaumont, for being non-smoking. Four bars in four nights would not have been nearly as enjoyable drenched in smoke.

Bar/Club/Cafe recommendation: You should check out the Logon Cafe. Good food, nice people, interesting beer and wine selection. Ever had a Hoegardden beer or a Tercos Malbec wine? You can get both at the Logon and I highly recommend the turkey melt.

Kris Kristofferson and Lucky Meeee!

I went to a casino Friday night to see Kris Kristofferson, whom I've been in love with for somewhere around 30 years. I'm sure he feels the same way about me. His words are so beautiful, I cried a couple of times. I cry at movies and Hallmark commercials, but I rarely cry at concerts. It was a beautiful experience.

I would like to give a shout out to the two idiot women who were sitting a couple of rows in front of us who kept standing up and shouting "Kris for President" and singing along with the music way too loud, way off key and way off tempo. Ladies, as hard as it might be for you to believe it, I didn't pay for a ticket to hear YOU sing. So, next concert you go to, do the folks around you a favor and shut the fuck up.

Regarding the gambling, I lost so much money gambling Mother's Day weekend ($185...that's a lot to me...this is a full disclosure blog), that I decided to waste the time I had before going into the concert by playing penny slot machines. I did so well before the concert that I hit the machines again after the concert. By the time I cashed out for the night, I had ended up winning $125. Now, I know that doesn't sound like a lot of money, but if you move a couple of decimals and pretend I was playing dollar machines, that's some good gamblin'.

Nelly!

I just got home from the Nelly concert and it was fantastic! I've never seen or felt so much energy at a concert in my life, from both the stage and the audience. I've never been a fan of rap but now that I've seen it performed live, I understand the attraction. Nelly was electric as was the opening act Lil' Wayne. (That's where he puts the apostrophe. I looked it up.)

There was a lot of crotch grabbing and a sprinkling of *mother f##kers* but most of the crotch grabbing was probably a tactic used to keep their pants from falling off. Nelly was wearing a huge diamond studded belt buckle (bling bling) which seemed to weigh down his already low slung pants. Unfortunately, the pants stayed on. Fortunately, the shirt did not. Both Nelly and Lil' Wayne lost their shirts during their performances and that was worth the price of admission.

I have to work tomorrow and I will be making a stop at Best Buy afterward to buy me some of that rap music. I might even go to the mall and buy me some bling bling.

Whoa, Nelly!

Several months ago, my sister Terry asked me if I wanted to go with her and her 14 year old daughter to see Nelly at Ford Arena. I said, "Sure, why not?" So, Terry purchased tickets for me, her, her hairdresser, her nail tech and my niece. The concert is this Friday and Terry just called to tell me that my niece has (wisely) decided she doesn’t want to go to the concert with four grownups (smart girl) and her ticket will instead be used by our friend Melissa.

The last time I went to a concert with Terry and Melissa, they ended up wrestling on the floor in front of the stage for a drumstick thrown by a Doobie Brother. That is the absolute truth. They were, literally, on the ground wrestling for the drumstick. Several years later, I was at work talking about the drumstick wrestling incident and one of the girls I work with, who had front row seats for the same Doobie Brothers concert, told me they had seen the whole thing and have been talking about those two insane women who fought over a Doobie Brothers drumstick for years.

Something tells me I’m in for an interesting evening.

Mock Fest '77

Beaumont, Texas is having a stadium rock festival called Rock Fest '77 (also called RockFest 77) featuring the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, AC/DC and Led Zeppelin. With the exception of the Led Zeppelin tribute band that will be playing, I have seen all of these guys and they put on fantastic shows. For details, check out this expertly researched article by Wang Chi. You can also go here for details.

Styx Photos

Local photojournalist, Mark Hancock, has some great pictures of the Beaumont Styx concert on his sight.