NQC 2006: Friday Night

I had some of the worst seats I've ever had for Friday night, but all in all, it wasn't a bad view.

I didn't get there on time to hear the Specks. (on purpose I might add, not my cup o' tea)

Palmetto State did a good job, I thought the new tenor was still sounding a little tentative (understandable). This used to be one of my favorite groups, but they have some work to do to get back to major status. Burman sounded really good though.

The Dixie Echoes were very solid. Their tenor (new to me) sounded great. Randy Shelnut is still one of the great lead singers in SG. This group should go far with this lineup.

Primitives: bathroom break, dinner break, (hey you gotta eat! ) What I could hear from the hall sounded good though. I'm just not a big fan of their style.

Chuck Wagon Gang: Again not a big fan of this style, but they sang all classics and did them well. They were very "listenable". Lulu Roman was a nice guest appearance.

BF & Assurance was one of my highlight groups of the night. They sounded very good and really sang a nice set of songs. Lowlight was the "overboard" intro's of each member.

The Lesters are always good at NQC. This year was no different. Tricia Cisneros is worth the price of admission by herself.

The Kingdom Heirs: I'm a huge KH's fan. Unfortunately, the family behind me didn't feel the same way and talked (loudly) thru the whole set. What I could hear sounded good.

The Hoppers were their usual Hopper selves. What time is it Louisville? Time to retire that song, I'd say. The new Ronnie Hinson song very underwhelmed me, too gimmicky...

Greater Vision was great as usual. Highlight was Gerald's version of O Holy Night.

The Florida Boys. Well, Gene is simply put the best bass singer going today. Josh Garner is also a favorite and they all sounded good. A standard FB's set.

The Dove Brothers really disappointed tonight. Too much talking and not enough singing. Also, song selection was poor, to me. (Sat. night was much better, see my comments here).

Mark Trammel Trio: I keep expecting great things from this team and end up just getting "pretty good". They need a real boost in song selection. Their vocal ability is unmatched in other trios.

The Inspirations: Booth time. Nuff said.

The McKameys: See Inspirations.

The Dixie Melody Boys sounded good in their set. Dan Keeton is doing a fine job at tenor. Their new"ish" lead singer is sounding really good too. Ed still sounds the same as always (that's a good thing in this instance).

Gold City. They are my second "highlight" group of the night. Aaron McCune is really stepping up to the plate at bass. He sounded flat out awesome. The smoothest bass voice of either (fri or sat) night. Jon and Danny complement each other nicely and Steve is one of the 2 or 3 best tenors singing right now. They put on a high quality set that really was unmatched tonight.

The Crabb Family: I really intended to give them a chance tonight, but when they started off with heavy metal, I was one of the folks hitting the exits. Let me tell you, people (young and old) were literally running to get away from that.