More of Day 1 at CMA 2008

After watching the Air Mutts I found the wife at the convention center. She was trying to get pictures of some of her favorite stars. Some of the folks there were waiting hours in the 'hopeful' line in an attempt to get a signature. Thats dedication.

After that it was off to Coyote Ugly. I'm not big into the bar scene but this is a fun place. Beautiful girls tending bar, BMF's keeping the peace, excellent entertainment, and reasonable beer.

Now that the sun was getting lower in the sky we went over to the riverfront stage. The last 20 feet or so of the lawn was now in the shade and made the bands so much more enjoyable than sitting in the sun.

As evening approached we headed across the bridge to LP Field. We ran into the Nashville Metro PD Mounted Police at the peak of the bridge. One of the officers was the same man we talked to last year. Once the wife mentioned that the conversation really got going. Officers Stockdale and Dzirany (along with Storm and Henry) were a blast to talk to. The horses loved the attention. And according to Officer Stockdale, Storm loves the post show fireworks.

The show started promptly at 7:45. Shocking. :-). The National Anthem as well as a F18 flyover was a great way to start. Montgomery Gentry, Kellie Pickler, Taylor Swift, and Sugarland were among the performers along with 'surprise' guest Rascal Flatt. Four hours later it was over. The wife really enjoyed MG and Sugarland. Taylor Swift has excellent stage presence. If she stays out of trouble as she grows up I think she will rule country music.

For someone like me, who isn't a big fan of country music, this was a pretty good show. Most of the artists are great on stage and know how to handle a crowd. We'll see what Friday brings.

After the show we headed back over the bridge and started looking for an open bar with a decent band. Found both at Legends. The beer was cold and the music was good. All of the sudden it was 2:00am and us old people were tired. Time to find the car and the hotel. In that order...