Concerts

I’ve written before about the Britt Festival, a great outdoor concert venue located in the quaint and historic town of Jacksonville a mere 15-minute drive from my home here in Southern Oregon. The amphitheater, located on a grassy slope surrounded by Ponderosa pines and oak trees, seats about 2,000 music lovers on a combination of fixed (reserve) seating and lawn. Begun originally as a brief classical music festival, the Britt now encompasses virtually every genre of music in a series of concerts scheduled throughout the summer months.

The setting at the Britt is lovely, but we also like it because the rules are limited and easy to live with. One can bring in any kind of food one likes, and beer and wine (and any non-alcoholic beverages) are also welcome. (No restrictions on glass containers; remember, this is Oregon, after all, so there are plenty of recycling bins placed around the grounds for your empties.) Hard liquor is prohibited, as is smoking, and there is a height limit on lawn chairs (so your neighbors can see the stage over you), but that seems to be about it.

This past Wednesday night my husband and I brought Paul and Julie, our good friends who were visiting from our previous hometown in Washington state, to the Britt to see Styx. Harry dropped me off about an hour before the gates opened so that I could stake out a good spot for our blankets and beach chairs. He and our guests arrived later with four bottles of wine, stemware and a cooler full of dinner and dessert. We began with a light white wine, a selection of cheeses I’d picked up earlier in the week from the Rogue Creamery and crackers and a baguette. During the break between the opening act and Styx’s performance, we broke out the main course: cold grilled French-cut lamb chops that had marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and rosemary; a bulgar, nectarine and watercress salad; and a fruit salad including local berries, nectarines and melon. The four of us managed, over the course of the evening, to also polish off three bottles of Washington Merlot (2001 and 2003 vintages) from a few of our favorite Walla Walla wineries — yum!! Then, after the final encore, we broke out brownies served with blueberries and a Syrah reduction sauce and let the crowd thin out before us. By the time we swallowed the last crumbs and packed up our gear, we were able to stroll right out the gates and down to our car with no delays. Did I mention my husband is a great cook??!

No, I didn’t forget that we came for the music, and Styx was just fantastic. They played for more than 90 minutes straight, including many of their great hits (“Come Sail Away,” “Mr. Robato,” “Suite Madame Blue,” “Grand Illusion” — to name just a few), with an energy that was impressive. Tommy Shaw’s voice still hits those notes in “Lady” clear and true; Lawrence Gowan was highly entertaining as he played his 360-degree rotating keyboard; Todd Sucherman on drums never seemed to take a breather; and Shaw, James Young and Ricky Phillips provided classic, hard-rocking guitar licks that were oh-so satisfying. Chuck Panozzo, one of the original founders of the Chicago band, even joined the group on bass guitar for the last several tunes.

What an amazing evening it was: great food, great wine, great friends and great rock and roll on a beautiful, warm summer night. Life doesn’t get much better than that!

– Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor