Week 35: Johnny’s gone.

Saturday, 7/25/07: Grange Fair: Johnny Cash Tribute Band.

I hated Johnny Cash when I was 15. It was right about the time when "Dehlia's gone" came out and I couldn't understand why everyone thought this misogynistic jerk was great and why it was such a big deal that he released this horrible song about a dead girl. I was more interested in Primus.

Cut to 5 years later and I realized what a tool I was when I was younger - as if I needed another example of how short-sighted you can be at that age. I love Cash more than I did when I was 20 and I think that my admiration for the man will only grow as time goes on.

Because he is gone and the closest that I will ever come to seeing him preform is through old concert footage, I was really excited to see this tribute show at the fair. By the time that we left the performance, I was kind of sad and disappointed.

Now, don't get me wrong, the guy did a fine job although the whole show seemed like a talking wax museum, mostly because the guy spoke as though he was Johnny giving a "Unplugged" monologue between each song about what was going on in "his" life when he wrote it. The whole thing was kind of like going on a tour of the chocolate factory at Hershey. We stayed through most of it until a "Boy named Sue." When Johnny says "My name is Sue. How do you do?!" You are supposed to feel it in your balls, for lack of a better term. It is supposed to shake you. This guy didn't shake me… but I did yawn a little.

We left right after. I was also a little pissed about a tempo change in Ring of Fire.

That's a long story to just show you a picture of us sitting in the stand. Like every year I am at the fair, I couldn't leave without a peach dumpling and petting a cow.

This is Ryan, Kyle and Troy in the grandstand.




This is a picture of the stage. You can kind of make out Johnny II. I thought he kind of looked like Wayne Newton.




I mentioned before that I came close to getting a chicken this summer. This is what he would have looked like.




This is my crotch:





The best part of the fair in my opinion, besides all the yummy food, is the art show - particularly the kids. This is the best drawing from this year. Last year it was a dinosaur. Kyle Troy and I were going to take up a collection to buy it and I'm sad that we didn't. I don't even have a picture of it. It was THE BEST THING I've ever seen. This is also kick-ass and will have to do.





Here is a picture of the fair from where we parked. I could give you a history lesson on the Grange Fair, but this post is already long and boring. Just enjoy the pretty.




That's it. One of my best memories of this fair is Troy talking to the chickens in chicken-talk. He's lucky they were behind wire because I'm positive this one white rooster would have his face for lunch. No wonder Ralph hated you Troy!!! Kidding. You can't stop my chicken love.