Concert

I am sorry for posting this so late in the evening, but I just got back from a concert in
Davenport, IA. I know that it is not to far from here, but it still took a while to get home.

The concert was put on by Ernie Haase and Signature Sound Quartet. We had a good time. They changed up a number of traditional Southern Gospel songs, but it was still good. They will not ever be one of my favorite groups, but I will go and listen to them again.

I started by trying to find a parking place, but downtown Davenport is not an easy place to find a parking place. It is also a hive of one-way streets. Many of the businesses have private parking only and will have your car towed if you do not have business with them. All of this is exacerbated by the parking meters on the streets. This makes it very difficult to find an acceptable parking place. To further complicate this problem, there was two other very large events that came to town today. One was a bike ride that ended at the Mississippi River, and the other is an annual race that occurs in downtown Davenport.

After I found my self a parking spot, right in front of a dumpster, I called Dad and had him park right behind me. I figured that I could keep anyone else from parking there until they arrived. We then headed into the River Center on our way to the Adler Theater.

We picked up our tickets at the box office and headed into the foyer. The group had their merchandise set up there and quite a few people were milling around these tables. There was also a small concession stand where popcorn was $4, and candy and beverages were $3. While in this area, I met a lady that I know who belongs to one of the 'Holiness' churches in the area.  (I will discourse on them in another post.) After a short time in this room we moved into the theater proper.

When we found our seats we discovered that we were seated next to the Holiness couple that we had seen earlier. We were only in our seats for a few minutes before the concert started.

The concert started off and was fairly rough through the first half. There was a limited amount of audience participation. However, as the concert went on it got better. There were a number of old Cathedrals hits as well as other songs. I did not expect to enjoy it, but the longer it went the more that I enjoyed it. They played a video clip of George Yonce singing, and they provided backup vocals to it. That was interesting. This was followed by a moving song about our nation. At the conclusion of the first half, they sang the Cathedrals song, 'Step into the Water'.

After the intermission, they drew two names to win a $40 package of their merchandise. This included 3 cds, a dvd, and a book with a little of their biography and ifluences in honor of the Cathedral Quartet. I was not one of those chosen.

The second half went much better. They continued to sing a number of old Cathedral hits. I will look at the back of some of the cds so that I can post the songs later. This time the audience caught fire and joined in by clapping their hands, giving standing ovations and, singing along. This lasted until the end of the concert. The last few minutes were well used by their singing a medley of favorites of the Cathedrals that they had not the time to sing in full.

After the concert was over, I purchased the $40 package, and they switched the dvd for a cd (something that it seems is done if you tell them that you do not watch dvds). I also bought a water bottle and had them sign the cover of their little book. My brother and sister-in-law had their pictures taken with the group.

As we left the building, we applauded Kat, my sister-in-law, at my mother's suggestion. This was because Kat had asked for a hand, so she received a hand from all of her family that was present. Needless to say, she did not figure it out immediately. This created a fun moment for all of us who were there.

We went back to the cars and adjourned to my parent's house for some visiting. After a few more laughs, Phillip and Kat went to bed. Mom, Dad, and I stayed up for a longer time enjoying one another's company before we too went to bed.