Last night we went to the Porter Center for Performing Arts on the campus of Brevard College. It’s a beautiful facility. Here’s a picture of the entrance outside…

And here’s a photo of the stage inside (I apologize for the poor quality)…

I purchased tickets last month to see Nanci Griffith in person. (We watched her on PBS 20 years ago and bought two of her CD’s, which we still enjoy on an occasional Fair Summer Evening.) The performance started out good. First we heard The Kennedys. They’re great entertainers. Maura’s voice is a lot like Griffith’s, and Pete can really play the guitar…

Then Griffith came on stage with her percussionist. The combination was awesome…

However, about halfway through their set Griffith gave the audience a brief lecture on gay-marriage, and at that point a few people got up and left. On their way out one person yelled something about coming to hear a concert, not a political speech.

Of course Griffith had the mic and quickly won the debate to the resounding applause of about half the audience who had jumped to their feet. The other half sat and looked around as if they weren’t sure what had happened… their fun time had quickly turned into an uncomfortable, divided political forum.

On the bright side I learned a valuable lesson. After we got home my wife suggested that in the future I check the web sites of entertainers before buying $60 tickets. With the wide spectrum of strong political opinions in Western North Carolina that’s a good idea. If I had looked at Griffith’s web site I would have realized that she has a tendency to get political on stage and I would have saved some time and money. Here’s a headline from Griffith’s home page: “In Today’s New York Times – ‘Politics Sung With a Texas Kick’.” Oh well… lesson learned.

From June 8th through August 17th, 2012, Music on Main Street events will be held each Friday night from 7:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. in the parking lot next to the Visitors Center in Hendersonville, North Carolina.

Here’s the schedule of bands with the type of music they perform…

June 8th: Tuxedo Junction band – 1940′s to 1990′s variety – web site; YouTube samples.

June 15th: Wishful Thinkin’ band – beach music and oldies – web site; YouTube samples.

June 22nd: Dashboard Blue band – oldies and rock – web site; YouTube samples.

June 29th: Asheville’s 96.5 House Band – variety – web site.

July 4th: Tom Brown One-Man-Band – patriotic songs – web site.

July 6th: Sound Investment – oldies – web site.

July 13th: Special Edition band – oldies and rock.

July 20th: Deano & the Dreamers band – oldies and rock.

July 27th: Night Crawlers band – classic rock – web site.

August 3rd: The Crew – oldies and rock.

August 10th: The Flying Saucers band – oldies rock – web site.

August 17th: Tuxedo Junction band – see links above.

The Henderson County Visitors Center is located at 201 South Main Street in Hendersonville. Along with Friday night music and dancing, classic car shows will also be held on June 8, 15 and 22; July 6, 13, and 20; and August 3, 10, and 17, 2012. Hopefully we’ll get to attend some of these Friday night events so we can provide reports and photos…