1) Pit stop (one of several...lots of Japanese sized bladders on board?) on the way down. The decked out guys in the parking lot told us two things: we were headed in the right direction and in our street clothes (plus hat for me) Dave and I were under dressed.
2) The venue. Mountains to the front and behind where we sat. A truly amazing place for a concert. We had gorgeous sunny (if not a bit cool) weather.
3) The view in the opposite direction. Nice horse, huh?
4) The Japanese can't do anything half way. That includes attending a country concert, so it is imperative that you don every piece of western wear imaginable (boots, tight jeans, jackets with fringe, bola ties, hats, red leather chaps....) and for the people next to us, it was also necessary to return to the roots of country music and re-inact a day on the Oregon Trail. They ate their chili for lunch out of a nice dutch oven on a tripod.
*I would also just like to add a note about the practially non-existant security to get in to the concert. We carried all sorts of potential weapons up from the car for grilling with, and there was not so much as a bag search. We brought in all of our own alcohol too. As we passed through the entrance, they actually gave out free samples of tea and donuts as well. So civilized!
5). Uchida-san and me enjoying the afternoon. First, note his outfit. He had Levi's and boots on too. Secondly, he was a great organizer/host, everyone had a really good time. We ate copious amounts of grilled meat, which he graciously offered to anyone else who happened to come by and speak English (i.e. some band members, the Lt. Governor of Montana)
6) The uber intimidating dance floor infront of the stage. I should have known better than to think that my Electric Slide skills which have serverd me quite well in the past would cut in Japan. There were at least two organized line dancing teams in matching outfits, and dozens of other people who all looked like they knew exactly what was going on. After a few slow starts, this very nice lady in the pink grabbed my hand, and counted in English for me while she showed me the steps. Look how much fun we're having...well she is relaxed and laughing at me, with good reason while I am concentrating very hard, but having a blast regardless.
7) When I saw the line-up for the day, I had only heard of one of the performers, Mark Chesnutt. And when I thought about it, I couldn't actually think of a song that he sang. He did a few that I recognized, but have now forgotten, because the groups before him really stole the show. The first group was Charlie Nagatani and the Cannonballs (more on Mr. Nagatani in a second). They were followed by Cherryholmes, a family bluegrass band, The Lost Trailers, and Bomshel, pictured below. Find their music if you can, they were all really good and awoke an old desire of mine to learn how to play the fiddle.
8) Dave and I with the man who made the whole thing possible, Mr Charlie Nagatani. I can't claim to know the whole story, but the gist of it is that Charlie first heard country music as a POW during Vietnam (?), loved it and upon his release decided to made it his life's work to promote world peace through country music. Not too shabby. He made my (and I am betting everyone else's) day. Next year is the 20th anniversary of Country Gold.
9) And to close, the best picture of the day. Hardly needs a caption, as it is worth way more than a thousand words.
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