So, we're all feeling a little down about Bucky's illness, and sending get-well-wishes in every way we can. (And some of us are feeling a little peeved at the tour promoters' impossible scheduling, but that rant was posted yesterday, so I'll behave.) While we're hoping he's catching up on some well-deserved rest, why not hop back in time and enjoy some memories from Bucky's first-ever national tour?
Here's his July 5th debut performance in Manchester, as covered by USA Today's Idol Chatter blog, and some nice shots from New Hampshire to go with it, courtesy of a kind poster from MJ's Big Blog. And if you'd like to experience Bucky's very first concerts as downloadable goodies, the talented Ghretta at IDF's links still seem to be working just fine. Finally, if you missed MJ's Manchester photos, you missed a real treat--be sure to check them out...Fast-forward a bit to Hershey, where Colin McEvoy of the Patriot-News gave Bucky's "outstanding voice and charisma" high praise, and a thoughtful fan at IDF posted a truly beautiful photo thread to commemorate the evening.
The next week, the show hit New York with a bang--DeniseBernadette's expert photos from that date are some of the best Idol tour images ever. It was also the week that some stellar recaps came our way; Bucky's "Special Mother" Tracey recounted the road trip she and Bucky's wife Crystal shared at the Fox boards, Beesims wrote the first Bucky-fan recap to grace the front page of MJ's Big Blog, and Jeena's terrific review popped up right here in our comments section.
Cleveland was the first show I got to see for myself, and I had an absolute blast. Bucky was fantastic, as you probably guessed. Here's my incredibly long and rambling review--I could not shut up!--and some very bad pictures I took. You can check out some much better ones at from that night at Rawkhands.
There was a lot of excitement surrounding the Rochester show--Bucky and Ace did a freewheelin' and funny interview at WPXY (many thanks to beesims for the link) that caused a bit of a stir, as did this intriguing press release posted at Idolforums via Bucky Country. We began to officially count down the days until Bucky could tell us and the rest of the world about his recording plans post-Idol. (Is it the 25th yet?)
After that came a few Midwest stops; I got to check out the Pittsburgh show. (My favorite so far--the Idols were incredible, and the crowd was off the hook out there.) Then the tour veered South, and there was a much-anticipated homecoming stop for Bucky, Kellie and Chris, along with the Rocky Rally in Rockingham. This was the best-covered part of the tour to date--there were so many links, recaps, Fox News segments, etc. that weekend that I'll just point you in the direction of Fox8 in Greensboro/High Point--they captured the whole shebang brilliantly. (Enjoy some classic snarky fun with Bucky and Kellie in the video clips...)The Greensboro concert was also captured in a beautiful Smugmug gallery that tuned up several days later--our kudos to the very talented photographer.
Charlotte brought that amazing Coyote Joe's/LMBO afterparty that rocked the Idolsphere--there's a lot to be said for life outside the Idol/Pop-Tarts cage, and Bucky, Elliott and Ace joined Taylor Hicks for one of the most memorable musical excursions this year. Here's a recap by a commenter at MJ's who was there; and there's a link in this comment that goes to a slideshow of photos from the night. Another album of Coyote Joe's shots was posted later that week...looks like a wild time to me.
In Duluth, Georgia, Kellie Pickler became the second Idol to go on official voice rest; Bucky introduced her after "Drift Away", and she waved from the stage. Florida's shows pleased the fans, if not the newspaper reporters. (And Florida itself pleased Bucky and Ace; they reportedly spoke about buying some beachfront property, someday...)
Birmingham was the next appearance of what's semi-snarkily being called (by Taylor Hicks on camera once, even) the "Idol Rat Pack"; LMBO (and later, Taylor, Ace, Elliott and a voice-resting but supportive Bucky) took the stage at Workplay in front of a packed and passionate crowd. There are photos posted all over the place: here's a fun gallery that turned up shortly afterwards, and here's another from Gray Charles via MJ's. There's local news coverage available, too--try this link and check the archives for a live report from Workplay from that night, including a snippet of an interview with Elliott and Bucky.
Another post-Idol clue came that night via Television Without Pity; a poster there reported hearing an interview with Sawyer Brown's Mark Miller in which he mentioned working with Bucky in the near future.
For reasons known only to the tour planners (who aren't talking--but at least they can talk when they want to. Yeah, I'm upset...) the tour abruptly veered northward again--to Nashville and Columbus, where Bucky's vocal strain became apparent to all. By Milwaukee, he could only sing, not speak, and you know the rest from there. (Now you're caught up!)
Let's hope that from here, Bucky's health is back on the upswing, and that he gets all the mending time he needs, even if that means taking it easy, singing softly, or sitting it out for a bit. As much fun as this tour has been for all of us--and as lucrative as it's been for the promoters--the musical futures of these ten talented people are what really matter. (Hey, I'm quite eagerly anticipating buying that "Covington Classics" box set in a decade or two...aren't you? Take care of that beautiful voice, Bucky!)Next stop is Grand Rapids, Michigan tonight. Here's the Ticketmaster link, and I hope you grab a great last-minute seat.
We'll be off Memory Lane and back with more fresh news in the next post...
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