Is driving over 7 total hours to see a 2-hour concert on a work night worth it?
You already know it 100% was.
Zach Bryan and Charles Wesley Godwin played the State Fair of West Virginia last night and since I just moved up to Virginia with my fiancée, we decided it would be an easy trip across the state for the show and back.
Little did we know it was a full 3 hours and 40 minutes from our apartment, but it didn’t matter. I already had tickets in hand and we were making it happen, cause this is no normal concert… these are two of the absolute best in the business right now.
Fast forward the hours of quite honestly speeding across the state and seeing one of the most vibrant rainbows of all-time, we arrived. Unfortunately, Charles was already on stage, but as we were walking in we got to hear “Jesse,” one of my absolute favorites.
People must have thought a lunatic was on the loose as we sprinted through the various fried food stands and rides to find the entry point to the concert, me screaming “Jesse don’t hear you neither do I!” at the top of my lungs…
But no matter, we had to get in to see the West Virginia native on his home stage.
If you think Charles voice sounds good recorded, you have to hear it live.
The effortless raw power just carries straight through your body and gets in your bones. “Strong” brought down the house and got the people fired up, but just when you thought the crowd couldn’t get better, he started his final song.
The song a Mountaineer is required to sing last at every show in the Mountain State.
To make the moment even better, Mr. Zach Bryan came on stage to join him for “Country Roads” by John Denver and the crowd went bananas.
Listen to the crowd sing along… chills…
As awesome as Charles was, Zach Bryan proved that he’s earned every bit of hype received in the past year.
Pretty much every person sang every word to his songs. From the new ones to the old ones, everyone knew and screamed along.
The look on his face really said it all.
Just a big, goofy, grinning smile.
While the plurality of the songs were from American Heartbreak and Summertime Blues, he was sure to sprinkle in some staples from the past, including “Snow,” which I was really hoping he’d play.
He wasn’t afraid to dig into the “deep cuts” (I don’t know if really any of his songs qualify given everyone knows all of them) from the new projects either, from maybe my favorite from the album “The Good I’ll Do” to “No Cure” and its now iconic line
“I’m livin’ proof that highway boys don’t die”
The man has earned everything coming to him. From the second I first heard his music, I knew I’d never be the same and getting to see him up close and personal last night solidified to me that the man is where he is for a reason.
Long live the Highway Boys…
“Something In The Orange”
