This fan girl goes on tour

I think most fans of live music have a list of bands they must see perform live. I’m fortunate in that I’ve already seen most of my favorite artists perform a time or two, but of course I also keep a running list of those must-see bands that I haven’t yet dropped the money on. I’m hoping to catch U2 this fall. Next time Radiohead comes within driving distance, you better believe I’ll be there. The point of Dave Matthews is the live experience, and I’m hoping to eventually check that off (although the April 20 show in Birmingham has been sold out for quite some time). I’ve also heard Coldplay puts on quite the show.

But my favorite bands are those that I’ll spend the money on time and time again. I saw Nickel Creek something like 10 times before they began their “indefinite hiatus” in 2007, and I’ve seen Chris Thile alone, in duos and with the Punch Brothers several times. Earlier this week I counted up the number of Derek Webb shows I’ve seen (it was a lot!). And over the past three weeks, I caught Ryan Adams and the Cardinals three times.

My favorite bands have a knack for breaking up (or taking a hiatus, as the case may be): Nickel Creek. The Beatles (OK, maybe I can’t count that … they broke up long before I was born!). And now the Cardinals, too. Just before tickets went on sale, on his blog Ryan Adams wrote that the March 20 show in Atlanta would be his last with the band, and that he would be taking a break from music. That finalized my decision: I would attend the Birmingham (March 6), Nashville (March 14) and Atlanta (March 20) shows.

Many musicians play the same set, and even tell the same jokes, every night. And that’s understandable. But artists who change it up every night make the road trip to each show a lot of fun. I experienced three very different Cardinals shows on my fan girl mini-tour, each of them memorable in their own rights.

Now my attention turns to the musicians coming through Birmingham in the coming weeks (and there are a lot of great ones: Maria Taylor, Ray LaMontagne, the Felice Brothers, Wilco, and more … some of whom I’ll be seeing again!). But even though it might put more ideas in my head, I want to know: Who do you love enough to see time and time again?