Concert Review: George Strait, Scotiabank Place, Ottawa, ON, June 13, 2006

Texas troubador George Strait came to Ottawa last night for the first time in over 20 years to almost 14,000 fans who treated him like country music royalty. Playing in the round, George and his band played for 90 minutes delivering hit after hit after hit with a few tracks from his solid new album "Somewhere Down in Texas" sprinkled in for good measure. Oh yeah, he also played "Fulsome Prison Blues" in his encore, probably to satisfy all the poseurs (but if you are at a Strait show, the chances of you being a poseur is probably minimal). The guy is a total pro at what he does and sounds exactly the same live as he does on CD.

I have to say, though, from my third row vantage point, the staging was absolutely ass. For 50% of the show, I couldn't even see the other side of the stage because it was absolutely cluttered with who knows what. I was also too close to see the large video screens above the stage without kinking my neck. This is all not to mention the 6-foot-3 oaf in front on me who felt the need to stand there with his thumbs in his pockets for the entire show. I mean come on, this isn't a frickin' Judas Priest concert and I don't see you making any devil horn signs, so sit the F down.

Thankfully, the aforementioned oaf didn't show up till about halfway through middle act Tracy Lawrence, who I had hardly heard of, probably because he is a little too traditional country for Country Music Television ... more Merle Haggard than Keith Urban. Lots of fiddles, steel guitars and twang, which was in marked contrast to first performer Miranda Lambert, who took the stage to the strains of Pat Benatar's "Hit Me With Your Best Shot". She was very good, but whether or not she'll be able to transcend her novelty status remains to be seen. At least she writes her own stuff, which is more than can be said for the American Idol crowd. I also have to mention that live, she is more on the cute side than the sexpot side, which is not what you'd think after seeing the video for "Kerosene".

Overall rating: 7.25/10