Cross Canadian Ragweed - February 14, 2008

---

On Valentine's Day this past February, I took Martina to see one of my favorite bands - Cross Canadian Ragweed. No, they're not Canadian. That's what I assumed also when I first saw the name. Actually, they're from Oklahoma. They are techincally considered Alternative Country, but a lot of what they do sounds like Rock 'n Roll to me - maybe that's why I like them so much. The band is extremely tight, which is not surprising since they've been playing together for nearly 14 years now. The lead singer, lead guitar player - Cody Canada - is really something to see. I have attached a video that Martina took of the entire first song they sang when they walked on stage at the Cypress Saloon, just outside of Houston on February 14 - called Fightin' For and then 2 other shorter clips.

I had not even thought about bringing a camera, but Martina had a new camera and brought it along. Unfortunately, she did not have much space on her memory stick, so I don't have too many photos or videos from this concert, but have more from the next one I saw on my Birthday...something to look forward to in a future blog...

This show was completely sold out - standing room only. It's bascially a large saloon with a large bar (surprise!) and a stage at the other end. The sides are comprised of large overhead doors that were all open so it was almost like being outside with the breeze blowing through off-and-on. We were standing close to the front and were afraid to leave to get anything to drink for fear we would not be able to thread our way back to the front, but Martina eventually went to get us something to drink and thankfully made it back OK.

There was a short acoustic set by two guys I don't know and then CCR came on stage about 10:45 PM or so and the next time I looked at my watch in the parking lot on the way to the car, it was almost 1:00 AM, and it was a school night, meaning I had to go to work the next day. Fortunately, I had been very disciplined for this reason and just drank club soda, which was actually a deal. They were $1 each with free refills, provided you could get through the crowd to the bar and back.

Anyway, this was a great night out and having Martina there made it a special memory.

If you want to learn more about them or see where they'll be playing next, just go to http://www.crosscanadianragweed.com/

If you get a chance to see them play live, I highliy recommend it. Their live shows are fantastic!

---

Photos

Band Photo
This was the SOLD OUT sign on the web site of the Cypress Saloon prior to the show.

Comments

[jim]

CCR
Somehow commenting on CCR is not the same as commenting on Martina's African ventures. Bettter leave well enough alone!!!