Sacramento, CA

It looks to be an awesome lineup of concerts this year at the California State Fair. They will all take place at 7:30PM on the Golden1 Stage. All of the concerts will be free with admission to the fair on a first come-first serve basis. However, there are also tickets available should you desire reserved seating. Prices vary depending on who will be performing…

The first concert will take place on opening night–August 17th. Tesla, an early 80’s rock band will be performing. I think this is a pretty appropriate choice as the band orginated in Sacramento in the days when they still called themselves City Kidd. Their music is kind of like Glam metal without the synthesizers, leather pants, and flashy make-up. Touring with huge Glam Metal names like Poison, Def Leppard, and David Lee Roth stuck them into that same category as well–despite their resentment to the classification. These days they’re still recording and touring with the newest member of the band, guitarist Dave Rude. Rude replaced the former guitarist Tommy Skeoch permanently in 2006 when Skeoch’s wife had a baby. Rude also joins them on their newest album Reel to Reel–a covers album which was released in June 2007. As an admitted sales gimmick, they sold it as a double CD album. The first CD came with the purchase. The second recording is advertised as being available for free to concert goers with the price of admission. Tickets.com says that they will be handing out the CD’s at the fair with the purchase of the $45 reserved tickets only. This may not sound expensive (and for a cocnert ticket alone it really isn’t…), however, you must also purchase admission to the fair. General admission to the fair is $10, so realistically you’d be looking at $55.00 per ticket. In the grand scheme of things, that’s still a pretty. Keep in mind though that there are a ton of other performers coming to the venue as well. Many of them are also asking much less for reserved seating.

The August 21st performance of Huey Lewis and the News will be a little bit cheaper at $40.00 for reserved seating. Considering that the San Francisco band has won Grammy awards and even been nominated for an Academy Award this is really a very good price. Hits like If This is It and Jacob’s Ladder made them one of the biggest bands of the 1980’s and early 1990’s. Their nod from the Academy was for The Power of Love which was featured in Back to the Future. They also achieved a degree of fame for a scandal involving the the theme song for Ghostbusters. The group was originally asked to record tracks for the sountrack. When they turned the studio down, Ray Parker Jr. was hired instead. The resulting theme song that we all know and love led to a lawsuit because the band said the song too closely resembled their song I Want a New Drug. They agreed to settle the matter out of court. However, since then Huey Lewis has made statements about the settlement which have led Parker to file his own ongoing lawsuit. In addition to these legal troubles, the band has been busy touring and writing songs that may or may not one day be released. In any case, the sheer drama alone would be worth at least the $10 fair admission price–if only to see if and how it has affected the band’s overall performance.

If you’re willing to pay a little bit more, you can also see Daughtry on August 22nd for $59.00 for reserved seating. Frankly, I think this is a bit outrageous. However, Chris Daughtry has become quite the phenomenon since his stint on American Idol. In addition, he is the newest act to be performing at the State Fair this year. In light of that, I suppose it could be considered worthwhile. Chris Daughtry won instant fame as the fourth runner up during the fifth season of the show. Since then, he has wasted no time in bursting onto the rock music scene. His debut album sold over 1,000,000 copies within five weeks, making it the fastest selling debut rock album of all time. He has a brilliant voice and his single Home is fast becoming one of my favorite songs. In short, while I wouldn’t pay for the advanced tickets in this case, I would still very much reccommend that you go and see him for the nice, cheap $10.00 a ticket. After all, in all likelihood you won’t ever have the opportunity to see him perform for this little again.

Aside from Daughtry, the most popular performer will probably be country music’s mega-group Lonestar. The August 24th performance will have tickets available for $40.00 for reserved seating. Since the release of their first single, Tequila Talkin, the band has had nothing but success and turned out numerous songs that have become immensely popular across various musical genres. This was especially true for their hits Amazed and I’m Already There. Amazed was even covered by rock icon Bonnie Tyler! Sadly, the group’s popularity has begun to decline over the past few years. In fact, lead singer Richie McDonald has even announced that he will be leaving the group at the end of this year to pursue a solo career. This is heartbreaking for the many of us who know that the band won’t be the same without him. For that reason alone, I would highly reccommend that you go and see them before they lose the unique and talented voice that has made them what they are today.

Another performance you won’t want to miss is the August 28th performance of Third Day. It is incredibly rare for a Christian band to appear at a fairgrounds so it is sure to be an undeniable treat. The three-time Grammy Award-winning group has become quite the favorite among Christian music listeners. I’m definitely going to try to go and hear them sing. After all, so many of the songs that we sing in church were first sung by Third Day. My two all-time favorite Christian songs happen to be theirs–God of Wonders and Took My Place. There is just something very raw and honest in their music that puts my more in tune with my own spirituality and I would totally encourage you to go and check them out if you are a Christian. Plus, the reserved tickets are only $20.00 so you really can’t go wrong on this one! =)

Tickets are also only $20.00 for the August 29th performance of KC and the Sunshine Band. They are world famous for their fun (if also a little campy) combination of funk, R&B, and disco. They rose to stardom in the early 1970’s with hits that EVERYONE knows–regardless of whether or not they choose to admit it. Some of the most famous ones include That’s the Way (I Like It), (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty, and Get Down Tonight. I so cannot believe I just typed those titles–and even worse, the songs are now running in a continuous loop in my mind like a bad record. In case you couldn’t tell, I really can’t stand them. Their music is the kind that makes all of us cringe and die a little every time it is played. Yet, we keep on coming back for more and they are subsequently just as popular today as they were 30+ years ago. (For that matter, so are The Commodores who will also be performing their own annoying songs like Brick House on August 31st).

On that note, let’s move on to the August 30th performance which won’t make us shudder so violently–The All-American Rejects. For a mere $35.00 you can get reserved seating to see one of the funnest and most hillarious bands around. My personal favorite is their original single Swing, Swing. It has this amazing vibe to it that is just very fresh and fun. Plus, for some strange reason it really just makes me think of Curious George–and let’s face it, who doesn’t love that adorable little monkey?! I’m also pretty fond of Dirty Little Secret because it is very clever and witty–especially compared to some of the other garbage recording artists have been putting out lately. Anyway, they’re fabulous so I order you to go and see them if you’re going to be going to the fair that day anyway.

From that point on, it’s nothing but good singers and good times at the fair. One of my favorite bands of all time–Chicago–will be performing on September 2nd. Reserved seating is $40.00 per ticket and they are worth every penny too. They are one of the longest running and most sucessful rock bands in the United States. Furthermore, in terms of singles and albums they are second only to The Beach Boys and they WERE the leading singles charting band of the 1970’s. They have powerful songs with moving lyrics and unforgettable melodies. I think the best part about them though is that they have stood the test of time over and over again. Everyone can enjoy their music regardless of where they come from or how old they are. My 21 year-old roommate has You’re the Inspiration as her ringtone on her cell phone. My 45 year-old father knows every word of every song–and made sure that we all did too. My 60 year old grandmother and my 10 year-old brother listen to old records together. Chicago is simply amazing and I will sell my limbs if I have to in order to see them play.

Strangely, they’re not even the act that I am looking forward to the most. That honor goes to Weird Al Yankovic–and yes, I know this makes me just as weird as he is. There’s just something very compelling amid all of the insanity. I love that he has no problem poking fun at other people and at himself because it reminds us that music–and life for that matter–doesn’t have to be serious all of the time. In fact, it reminds us that sometimes it’s much more important to just revel in the silliness of the absurd. I guess, in a way, it reminds us that growing up doesn’t mean we can’t still look at the world through the eyes of a child. As for the songs themselves, each one is better than the last. If I had to pick an all-time favorite (as a matter of life or death) it would have to be Weasel Stomping Day. It is the most ridiculous song that I have ever heard in my entire life but the outrageousness just makes it that much more special. I’m hoping that he’s going to sing it at the fair since I am so going to be there. I’m lucky enough to work for Best Western where we contract fair tickets in exchange for rooms to certain vendors. Thus, I plan to use mine so that I’ll only have to pay $20.00 to see Weird Al in all of his glory. I wouldn’t miss it for the world and neither should you!

Anyway, I think I’ve made it blatantly obvious that this year’s State Fair has a concert for everyone. Furthermore, they’re cheap and the venue is nice and small so that you can see and hear everything much better than you could at a bigger place like Arco Arena. Did I mention they’re cheap? So, you have no excuse not to go and pick at least one or two and have a fabulous time now do you? =)

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