by Debbi | Oct 6, 2008 | Events, Famous Folk, Jukebox
Last night was a memorable Sunday for The Sandbar.
Peter Mayer is the lead guitarist for Jimmy Buffett's Coral Reefers Band, and we were lucky enough to welcome him back to The Sandbar for the third time. Tickets for the show were $25 each, and if you've ever been to The Sandbar, you can guess how small and intimate the show was.
Peach and Ted graciously put Peter and his band up at The Lodge in Baldwin City on Saturday and Sunday night. They arrived in Lawrence Sunday afternoon, and Dave and Pat got to be roadies for the afternoon. The band was set up in front of the windows, in the front area of the bar. It was a little tight, but with only three band members it worked out fine. The concert started a little after 9 p.m. and we expected two 45 minute sets, but they definitely played a lot longer than that.
Towards the end of the final set, the band members moved into the middle of the bar, sat down, and played several acoustic songs with the audience piled around them. Several times he asked the crowd for requests.They even played some songs that his 18-year old fiddler had never played before!
When he started "Chain of Love," he encouraged a conga line, and Peach, Michelle, and Heather obliged in Sandbar style- by dancing on the bar. 
The show was incredible. We had a full house with a diverse crowd of people- lots of our friends and
regulars, but also some folks we didn't know. Peach's brother Patrick even had a high-school friend fly in for the show.
Peter told lots of stories in between songs- a great songwriter is always a great storyteller. He told us about how the band played somewhere in Michigan, and four hundred Parrotheads showed up hoping to hear Jimmy Buffett tunes all night- which is not what Peter Mayer plays. The crowd dwindled all night until they were playing to only a few people. No worries about that happening in Lawrence- everyone was there to hear their songs.
Were you there? Tell us what you thought about the show in the comments.
by Debbi | Aug 10, 2008 | Jukebox
Last weekend, Dave and I were at a family reunion. His sister's husband has a DJ and karaoke business, and he was telling me about a recent wedding reception he worked. The reception was in Andover at the big country club that you can see from the turnpike, and the bride and groom were both KU graduates.
At one point in the night he played O.A.R.'s "Crazy Game of Poker," and the couple excitedly said "That's the song they play at The Sandbar!"
Apparently both the bride and groom were regulars at The Sandbar during their college years. You just never know when or where a Sandbar reference might pop up.
by Debbi | Aug 9, 2008 | Events, Jukebox, Ottawa
This is kind of late notice, but I found out about this event not from the actual employees in Ottawa, but rather from the performer via MySpace.
Frankie Diamond performs all your favorite Neil Diamond songs live, and he sent out a bulletin on MySpace yesterday announcing his show tonight at The Sandbar in Ottawa.
He'll perform from 9 p.m. to midnight, and he'll close the show with his apparently highly anticipated 80's hair band set. I wish I could be there. I not-so-secretly love the 80's hair bands. But alas, a wedding reception calls my name.
If you don't already have plans tonight, check out Frankie at The Sandbar!
by Debbi | Jul 17, 2008 | Events, Jukebox, Ottawa
Join us on Saturday, July 19 for a great show by Mark and the Sharks!
Mark Valentine and his crew will be performing live on the beach in Ottawa. Yes, there is a beach in Ottawa. Bring your lawn chairs and relax under the stars, or kick off your flip flops and dance on the sand volleyball courts while listening to great music.
The show starts at 7 p.m., and there’s no cover! Come enjoy great food, tropical drinks, and live music with The Sandbar.
by Debbi | May 1, 2008 | Events, Jukebox
Jimmy Buffett played two somewhat-close concerts this past week: St. Louis and Dallas. The Sandbar didn’t sponsor a bus trip this time because of the Hearts of Gold Ball, but some Sandbar folks got to go anyway.
They rented a fancy RV and made the drive to Dallas for Saturday’s show. It was a quick trip- they left Friday night and made it back by Sunday evening.
Pat says they had a lot of fun. They jumped into this inflatable pool for a photo-op (you know how we all love photo-ops) before realizing that the owners were flying a Mizzou flag on their camper. They promptly booed the Tiger fans.
And, they even had Erick talked into catching a flight and joining them for the show- but he got stuck in traffic near the speedway (a race was happening that day, at which our lovely Heather was parking cars) and missed his flight.
Next time Buffett is within 8 hours of The Sandbar, we’ll do a bus trip.
by Debbi | Mar 7, 2008 | Jukebox
Exciting news for Sandbar fans!
Jimmy Buffett is finally within close range, and four hours is probably as good as we’re going to get. According to Back to Rockville, a music blog I subscribe to, he’ll be at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in St. Louis with the Coral Reefer Band on Thursday, April 24.
Tickets are on sale Monday, March 10, at 10 a.m. They’re available online through Ticketmaster or LiveNation, or you can call in your order. There’s a limit of six tickets per person.
He’s also playing in Dallas the following Saturday, if you’re up for a longer road trip.
The last time Jimmy played St. Louis, The Sandbar sponsored a bus trip to the show. It was so long ago that I can’t even tell you what year it was, and I have pictures somewhere but they aren’t digital so they aren’t on my computer to share with you. I do remember that it rained hard during the show and we were soaked, but it was fun.
We aren’t doing a bus trip this time, but there are rumors of Sandbar friends or family attending one or the other or both shows.
