Saturday night I went to the Amy Grant/Vince Gill Concert with three girlfriends. The last time I was at an Amy Grant concert I was in high school. I thought about how much both our lives (Amy Grant's life and mine) have changed since then. We have both married, had babies, and ditched leather pants. She of course had the whole divorce, marriage wrecker, selling out thing going on ~ I didn't.
Ms. Grant has had a great deal of influence on me over the years. I was only 7 (Kolby's age) or 8 when I first heard Amy Grant sing "The Lord has a Will." She was 16.
I loved her music all through Jr High and High School. My youth minister had a crush on her and I remember watching a reel to reel movie about her life at a Jr High devo. (yes before video tapes and DVD's were so prevalent) I tried to look just like her when she came out in leather and hot pink leopard in my early high school days. Does anyone remember that album cover!?
She had her first daughter Millie when I was 20. Millie is now 15 ~ Ouch! I danced through many a diaper change with Kolby singing the song Amy wrote for Millie, "Baby Baby!" Now I have never been the picture-taking-autograph-getting kind of person, but I consider myself an Amy Grant fan. I loved singing along with her Saturday night partly because it brought back so many memories. Thanks Amy for all the great tunes over the years!
Then there was Vince Gill... To quote my friend Kris, "I bet he was a real pill growing up!" But what a great performer! A bit of a stinker. It seemed weird to hear "It's hard to kiss the lips at night that chew your a** out all day long" sung from the same stage as "My Father's Eyes."
The Vince portion of the show reminded me of my honky-tonking two-stepping summers in San Angelo. I was a good girl, but I will always have a little saw dust in my blood. There is just something about two-steppin' to George Strait across a saw-dust filled floor in west Texas that stays with you. You can take the girl out of west Texas, but you can't take west Texas out of the girl!
The dynamic duo closed with a duet from their Christmas show "Give me Jesus." Fernado Ortega would have been proud! I have been singing the song ever since. I heard a lady in front of me say how wrong she thought it was for Vince to sing something spiritual after "raising hell" all night long. I actually thought it was pretty cool. Something must be wrong with me.
The concert was a trip back in time on many levels. Am I getting old? My friends and I debated this over Starbucks before the show (not after...Yes we are showing our age!) and decided that the "30" years are a time of great introspection. Maybe so... I'm fine with that if it means many more fun concert filled Saturday nights!
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OK I'll admit that I laughed at his song, "Its hard to kiss the lips at night..." I did wonder what the Daughters of Charity nuns who were sitting front a center thought about it! It was also fun to watch the people dancing in the front. I think their average age was 65!
Is the typw on my blog HUGE for everyone or is it just me?
I love AMY! A boyfriend in high school took me to one of her concerts as a birthday present. I even sang (very badly) My Father's Eyes at a church talent show. My dad actually thought it was about him... yeah, he didn't quite get it, but anyway. Thanks for the walk down memory lane. Now I must go see when she heads to Wisconsin.
Grace and Peace,
Kim
***Tee hee. I saw it and I must say I was a bit surprised, but like "ain't" if it's in a quote I think that the powers that be say you can use it. No worries.***
I saw it too!! I've got the dirt on you. Mae and I will save it for just the right time ...
As Grant says, ASS is in the Bible:) But now that my daughter occasionally tries to read this, I decided the ** would work best. I hear this song is up for a grammy!
LOL loved reading this! Yes--Amy is in our blood too. I haven't seen her in a while. Back when she and Gary were married and "The Loft" (as in Songs From the Loft) was going on, I used to go out to their house for great praise and worship.
On a somewhat different note, I can tell you that as much as the divorce hurt Gary and her in all ways imaginable--the church hurt them even more. You can only imagine. It has been very difficult. I applaud her for still having the fortitude and boldness to stand up and sing about Jesus. She could have given in to bitterness. I know you're glad too! :)
One more funny story--Amy and Gary's kids went through our pre-school and kindergarten (as did Alan Jackson and a bunch of other country and Christian singers. It was always so weird to see them at school programs out there with their camcorders). A few years ago I was driving around to the front of the church and saw a friend in the parking lot talking to someone I thought was one of the teachers. I snuck my car up behind them and laid on my horn to give them a good jump. Turns out it wasn't the teacher. It was Amy.
Brandon I too am so glad Amy Grant can still praise Jesus despite what the Christian community tried to do to her during her divorce. Saturday night I couldn't help but think about all the heartache she had been through. Chruches sometimes are so hard on and hard for divorced brothers and sisters! Why is that? Faithfull to Dr Brecheens class, I can stil quote a list of "I hate divorce says the Lord" scriptures. But I doubt the Lord is fond of those of us who have shamed and shunned people going through this terrible thing!
Wow. I bet it was a good concert. I love to hear Vince wail.
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