Somehow June and July ended up being PACKED with concerts. I dragged the boyfriend along for most of them, and we had a ball. We also got to visit some venues we hadn’t been to in a while.

She and Him, House of Blues, June 10

I bought my ticket for She and Him a few days after they went on sale, which turned out to be a great idea– the show sold out well ahead of time, and one of my friend had to find a spare ticket listed online in order to meet me there. The opening band was comprised of two sisters who were unusual but very good. They did a nice job of setting the stage for She and Him. I was able to save a couple seats in the balcony so we had a great view of the stage and didn’t have to worry about being jostled around in the pit. I know I sound old, but I really hate standing for the whole show anymore, especially when it’s a more relaxed band.

Kansas, Styx and Foreigner, Blossom Music Center, June 26

These concerts are absolutely the best when you’re sitting on the lawn at Blossom. I love people watching and seeing how many people are sporting concert t’s from seeing the bands years ago on tour. I had seen Kansas before, but it had been about ten years– they were as good as I remembered, and it was pretty amazing when the whole lawn started singing ‘Dust in the Wind.’ Styx was also terrific, but Foreigner was just ok. I was glad we saw all three instead of just the headliner.

Bret Michaels and Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blossom Music Center, July 8

My friend and I have taken to seeing the remains of Lynyrd Skynryd each year, and she was doubly excited this year since they were touring with Bret Michaels. I’m always up for a Skynryd show, but I thought their tour last summer with Kid Rock and their tour several years ago with Sammy Hagar were both a little more high energy than this one. As is always the case at one of these shows, I was incredibly distracted by what was taking place around our seats– there were Bret look-alikes, piles of guys in costume and much more.

Bon Jovi, Blossom Music Center, July 12

One of my clients really wanted to see Bon Jovi so my colleague and I took her to see the show at Blossom. The place was absolutely packed. We got there just as the open act was ending and grabbed seats in the lawn. As the show started her friend, who works at Blossom, came up with another Blossom employee and asked how our seats were. We were having fun and said fine, and she asked if we might want them to be even better. The guy with her held up passes to go sit half-way to the stage under the amphitheater! We were yelling and thanking them profusely as they led us past security and down closer to the stage. I’ve never bought pavilion seats, and this was definitely a memorable performance and first-time experience.

The Goo Goo Dolls, Time Warner Amphitheater, July 17

We were spending a busy weekend in Marblehead, spending time with friends and family, but made the quick trip over to Cleveland and back to see one of the bands that rocked my junior high years, The Goo Goo Dolls. I bought the tickets when they were on sale and the evening was more than worth it. We had beautiful weather on the way to Cleveland and at the start of the show, but luckily we were in the first lines of standing room because it started to downpour half-way through. The band was fantastic and despite seeing the rain pour down on and around the stage, they kept playing. Hearing Acoustic #3 live made my night.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Blossom Music Center, July 20

One of our last big concerts of the summer was rained out last night. They are supposed to announce the rescheduled date in the coming weeks, but it probably won’t be until August. That doesn’t really hurt my feelings– I just get to extend my concerting months and have another one to look forward to!