By Joanie Cox
Brad Paisley has given us 17 No. 1 reasons to still find entertainment and fulfillment in contemporary country music. The 38-year-old West Virginia native embarked on his H2O II: Wetter and Wilder World Tour in May and performed at Cruzan Amphitheatre Sept. 10. The American Saturday Night singer, who always flashes images of the American flag throughout his concerts, paid a moving homage to the victims of 9/11 with a video tribute that read: “In honor of those who gave their lives Sept. 11, 2001, we will never forget.”
The crowd erupted into a fierce chant of “U.S.A., U.S.A.” at the show, which was also the eve of the tenth anniversary of the tragic events of 9/11. While I love Paisley’s pithy songwriting skills and enviable knack for working pop culture references into a tune especially on songs such as “Online” and “Celebrity,” Paisley is also an accomplished lead guitarist. His love for guitar started as a young boy when he’d listen to his grandpa play music by Chet Atkins, Merle Travis and Les Paul. By age 12, he had written his first song, “Born On Christmas Day.” He later became a regular entertainer on “Jamboree USA” and opened for The Judds.
He’s still evidently playing the hell out of his Fender Telecaster guitars. While I’ve witnessed many country entertainers use a guitar more like a prop, he’s taking blues leads and riffs frequently throughout the show. In short, this dude can really play. Despite winning dozens of awards and releasing coffee table book, Diary of a Player: How My Musical Heroes Made a Guitar Man Out of Me Nov. 1, Paisley never takes himself too seriously. His shows are pure fun.
During “Celebrity,” a Paisley puppet mascot danced across the stage and he also screened an animated short. Paisley has created short films at previous shows. During this tour, he put together a cute Western-themed cartoon in which he saves Carrie Underwood, Sugarland and Kenny Chesney from horrible fates on a railroad track and in a bar fight. He also collaborated with one of his opening acts, Blake Shelton on “Don’t Drink The Water” and combined an elaborate video and light show to tunes such as “Camouflage,” “Old Alabama,” and “Waitin’ On A Woman.” While Paisley has mastered the art of penning clever drinking songs like most other country artists, I challenge someone in modern country music to write a more poignant song about honoring women more than Paisley can. From “She’s Everything” to “Then,” Paisley is a lyrical Lothario than can lasso the ladies like no other. Yeah, the crying and screaming female fans at his shows make it obvious–they’ve got it bad for Brad.
Must downloads from Paisley:
“When I Get Where I’m Going (featuring Dolly Parton)”
“Love Her Like She’s Leavin’ (featuring Don Henley)
“Toothbrush”
“I’m Still A Guy”
“American Saturday Night”
“This Is Country Music”
“Ticks”
“Welcome To The Future”
“Alcohol”
