If I had a bank account with a few extra zeros at the end of the balance or a sugar daddy (just kidding… kinda), my financial splurge would be going to see concerts. I don’t drink… smoke… gamble. No, live music is my vice. In my musical daydreams, my concert buddies and I would see our favorite artists whenever they were in Arizona AND we’d see Willie Nelson at the Hollywood Bowl, Bonnie Raitt in Texas, Mayer in Atlanta, and U2… everywhere. But, alas, visions of sugar daddies and extra zeros are not in my future, so I have to be careful what shows I go see and where I spend my concert budget. This is why Ryan Adams playing with The Cardinals in Arizona was so phenomenal; they were in my parent’s backyard (figuratively). We didn’t have to fly to Chicago or drive to Salt Lake City like we had originally considered… we just hopped in the car Friday afternoon and headed home. Most days I dread the drive to Willcox because of the traffic and having to pass through both Phoenix and Tucson to get there. Ryan Adams was totally worth it.

Being the children of the Google generation, Zac had been scouting out the Ryan Adams’ setlists from the shows directly proceeding ours and informed the group late Wednesday night that RA had come out 45 minutes before his set was supposed to begin in Tulsa and played a short acoustic set without his band of unreleased songs from the new album. Naturally, Jeff and I changed our plans at the last minute and left Flagstaff without Jeff’s Gore friends (who had to stay a bit later at work…boo) and headed down the mountain to meet Zac for the show. There was no way Zac, Jeff or I were going to miss such a sneak-peak so after a quick dinner at Chipotle (our traditional concert dinner), we headed to the theatre to secure our spot with a view.

From the moment RA stepped on stage he had our attention. This was no Stevie Wonder or Eric Clapton. He wasn’t a rock star. Instead, he appeared to us as a shy geek who wanted us to believe his name was JJ Bouillabaisse and he was just there as the opener to play three simple songs. Most of the crowd hadn’t arrived and it was beyond intimate. There was nothing grandiose or egotistical about this artist opening for himself… He wasn’t showing off or stroking his own ego. He was gifting us with the chance to hear him unpolished and unproduced. Automatically, I fell in love with his second acoustic offering Go Easy with the lyric…”I will always love you. So go easy on yourself Even before the ‘real’ concert began, we were satisfied and had gotten our money’s worth.

When RA and The Cardinals came out at exactly 8pm within the first three minutes, we knew we were in for a real treat, and after twenty plus songs, we felt spoiled. From the opening notes of Peaceful Valley to the crowd sing-a-long When The Stars Go Blue, Adams put on an amazing show. With a self-effacing manner, it seemed almost unbelievable that there was a sold-out crowd there to hear his tales of heartache and struggle. Seldom without a cigarette dangling from his lips or fingertips and a diet coke in his hand, RA blew us away with The Rescue ft, Games, and Cold Roses. He even played a few of my favorites… Two, Everybody Knows, and Dear John. Even without his voice, guitar, and honest lyrics, RA entertained the crowd with his witty banter as he described life on the road as “Pottery Barn with guitars” and answered fans song requests with “We made meatloaf. You all will just have to eat it.” I have seen quite a few stellar concerts with big names headlining in the past 12 months but very few could even be compared to the show RA put on Friday night. My only complaint… 3 hours wasn’t enough.

The thing about seeing one of your favorite artists in concert for the first time is the better they are the more you want to see them. The more you look at their tour schedule and wonder how easy it would be to buy tickets for the Seattle show or drive to Denver. Music is addicting in that way and the curse of such an phenomenal evening of music is the impatience that comes with waiting for a return visit to Arizona. Here’s to hoping the new album will tide us over.