Lyle Lovett

Saturday, July12th

Lyle Lovett performing his first song.

I'm about half-way through my summer internship with XRT.I have been to a variety of street festivals and concert venues, encountering a diverse group of people and musicians along the way. One of my favorite places to work this summer has been at Ravinia. Ravinia Festival is the oldest outdoor music festival in the United States, attracting some of the most talented musicians in the country to it's lake shore park. This outdoor venue features a covered pavilion that seats 3,200 for the symphony, dance and other concerts. The surrounding pedicured lawn invites concert-goers to enjoy their summer nights in this private park.Intern Steve( from Kenosha!) and me before the concert started.

This classy and outdoor-fresh-air venue has welcomed some of music's top performers and musicians such as The BoDeans, Sheryl Crow, Los Lonely Boy, Orion Weiss and for tonight's performance: Lyle Lovett and his Large Band.

I was particularly excited about tonight's concert because Lovett is one of the featured artists on Radio Margaritaville. I think the most important thing I have learned about this internship is experiencing live performances. It definitely comes in handy when speaking to fans, listeners and contest winners. I feel it gives me a bit of the upper hand because I have acquired more musical knowledge.

Lyle Lovett, a native of a suburb of Houston, Texas is a singer-songwriter and actor. One may recognize his top-rated single, "Cowboy Man." "she smiled at me and I wondered why, she said I'm looking for a cowboy." Lovett and his Large Band (it's not big, it's large) opened with a powerful tune off of his recent album. His depth of chorus members and instrumentalist--Guy Clark, Jeff White and Sam Bush to name a few---put on a soulful and jazzy-on-the-border-of-blues and folk show.

I stayed for a few songs, ran into one of the XRT DJ's Tom Marker and talked to a few more XRT fans before catching a train ride home. I love the fact that I can attend live performances of popular artists, especially those I'm familiar with!

Tom Marker and me.