60 Before 60 Project: #47 - Go to an Outdoor Concert

I have many friends that just love going to concerts. Up until I began my 60 Before 60 Project, I hadn’t really attended too many. But over the course of this project, I’ve really grown to enjoy hearing and seeing live music. 

To add a new dimension to my concert going experiences, I had the chance to go and see an outdoor concert. The singer that was performing the evening I went was Grammy Award Winner Ne-Yo.  

Ne-Yo gained notoriety in the mid 2000’s for his song writing and singing talents. Chances are you would likely recognize several of his songs that hit the charts - Closer, Miss Independent, Because of You are just some examples. 

The night we went to the concert the weather was perfect. Not too hot and not too cold. 

Now an outdoor concert definitely has a different vibe than an indoor venue. Given there wasn’t any specific seating plan, there seemed to be a constant buzz as people moved around or adjusted their seating locations.  

Once the stage lit up and the concert was about to begin, you could feel the anticipation though. People started to rise to their feet – which also then meant many needed to stand to see the stage as in a flat field, there is no such thing as tiered seating. 

I enjoyed the show but I’m not sure I would do it again.

I enjoyed being outdoors but admit I do appreciate having an assigned seat and knowing you’re going to be able to actually see the stage. 

Maybe it was the artist, maybe it was the venue or maybe I’ve just seen too many concerts this year that I’m not appreciating this type of activity as much as I did in the beginning of my 60 Before 60 journey. At any rate, this was something different and something I had not done in a really, really long time.  

I did find there was one unexpected outcome though.  

As I watched this concert, I couldn’t help but notice that it triggered a flood of memories of my very first outdoor concert that I ever went to. Back in 1979, I saw Supertramp’s Breakfast in America Tour. We had general admission tickets, so we had to pretty much spend the day at the venue queuing for the best spots on the grounds to see the stage. The whole day had such a party atmosphere and when the concert started, I was blown away. The lights, the open sky, the music and the energy of all the people around me. 

I wondered if maybe I was trying to relive this feeling and that’s why this experience was not as exciting as I expected.  

Was I secretly hoping to recapture a feeling of my youth? Maybe. 

My 60 Before 60 Life Lesson: The feelings you experienced of doing something before may not be the same again 

Here's some video clips of my experience;

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