Sawyer Brown at the Blue Gate Performing Arts Center in Shipshewana, IN
Shipshewana, IN (December 9, 2023) – With a 40 year career behind them, country pop group Sawyer Brown delivers an evening of hit songs and a few Christmas tunes on their return visit back to Shipshewana.
Inside the 1,500 seat theatre of the Blue Gate Performing Arts Center, the near capacity crowd settles in to enjoy a night of live music and laughter brought to them by the 40 year “Travelin’ Band” known as Sawyer Brown.
The quartet group consists of original members Mark Miller (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Gregg “Hobie” Hubbard (keyboards, background vocals), Joe Smyth (drums), and since 2004, Shayne Hill (lead guitar, background vocals). Adding back line support is Joe Erkman (rhythm and acoustic guitar, mandolin) and Nathan Winkler (bass guitar).
The evening starts off with a video trailer on the main screen showing interviews and clips of the band for a documentary video “Get Me To The Stage On Time” that covers the first 40 years of Sawyer Brown. The snip-it video also includes comments from producer Blake Shelton, Dolly Parton, Dierks Bentley and former Sawyer Brown guitarist Bobby Randall. When the video concludes, the band starts right into the show with their introductory song, “The Boys And Me.” Miller immediately goes into a dance frenzy showing off his fancy footwork as he dances and spins across center stage.
With Christmas just two and a half weeks away, the band adds three Christmas songs into the set with Miller singing “Glory To The King” and the title track off their 1997 Christmas album, “Hallelujah He Is Born.” Hubbard takes his turn with the microphone with “Tennessee Christmas.” The stage is set with a Christmas theme with a light pole striped with lights and two small Christmas trees on stage left and another striped light pole and Santa’s sleigh on stage right.
Returning back to the hits, Miller continues with “Drive Me Wild” and “This Time” before dedicating “Café On The Corner” to the farmers and slowing it down with “The Walk.”
Taking a break in the music, Miller proceeds to mention the video trailer at the beginning of the show and discusses that it is centered around the 40 year anniversary of the band and the celebrations set for next year. The documentary will be released next year along with a new book set for February of 2024. Also a new album, Desperado Troubadours will come out the first week of March on the 8th. He teases the crowd that if they are good, the band will perform a new song from the album later in the show.
Getting back to the music, “(This Thing Called) Wantin’ And Havin’ It All” Miller skits with Hill while sharing the mic with him before leading into “All These Years.” As the crowd cheers, Millers smirks and comments “all the screaming and hollering over a song about adultry. Now, I know what we are dealing with up in here. We going to have to have some church up in here. Welcome to the Mission Temple,” as the band performs “Mission Temple Fireworks Stand.”
Asking the crowd, how many people have not seen the band before, surprisingly many people in attendance raise their hands. Mark responds by thanking them for coming tonight but scolds them next by saying “that the band has been around for 40 years. If this is the first time seeing us…you need to get out more….or, we need to come to Indiana more.” The crowd approves and applauds louder now.
Miller tells the crowd of the band performing and winning on the new 1993 TV competition show, Star Search and joking by telling his kids of Sawyer Brown being the original American Idols. Wanting to take the crowd back to where it all started, he stops and says that he would first like to relive a sentimental moment from them days. He acts as if he is fluffing back his imaginary mullet hair style he wore. As the crowd chuckles in laughter, he looks over to Hill and his full head of hair and tells him, “I hate you.” The crowd laughs harder.
The band plays the first song from the show, “Smokin’ In The Rockies” following with “Leona.” After “Step That Step” and “Betty’s Being Bad” Mark looks at the crowd and remarks “see what you have been missing.”
As Star Search wrapped up, Sawyer Brown received a phone call inviting them to tour and open for Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton on the Islands In The Stream tour. For the opportunity, the band plays Kenny’s song, “The Gambler.”
For being so supportive during the show and as promised early in the evening, the band performs their first single “Under This Ole Hat,” from the new upcoming album. The song is a fast paced look back at the band’s 40 years of being on tour.
In those years, Sawyer Brown has produced 23 studio albums with 51 chart topping singles. Mark Miller has been married for over 33 years and had never written a song to his wife. A few years past, he finally wrote a love song for her that appears on the previous album, Travelin’ Band called “Smokin’ Hot Wife.”
At the end of “The Dirt Road,” the band begins to play the Joe Walsh cover of “Life’s Been Good To Me” when Hubbard takes the microphone from Miller to sing while also dancing and imitating Mark’s own dance moves. The crowd breaks out in applause when Hubbard rips open his long sleeved flannel to show off his t-shirt with a Superman logo on it.
Next, Hill takes command of the vocals on the Steve Miller Band’s cover of “Rock’n Me” while showing off with a few guitar riffs at center stage.
The set concludes with “Six Days On The Road” and “Thank God For You” before the crowd gives the band a standing ovation as they exit off stage.
With the crowd still standing and cheering for more, Sawyer Brown returns to the stage for an encore that includes the Fleetwood Mac cover of “Don’t Stop” and ending with “The Race Is On” and “Some Girls Do.”
The show is another evening of great entertainment set for an all ages attendance with good clean, fun music that appeals to all. The music and showmanship is a true testament to what makes up Sawyer Brown and guarantees to keep them on stage for as long as they are able to perform. As proven here on this night with Christmas coming shortly, there are many other ways for people to spend their Saturday evening, but instead…this crowd chooses to spend it with Sawyer Brown.
Sawyer Brown
Blue Gate Performing Arts Center
Sawyer Brown setlist:
The Boys And Me / Glory To The King / Tennessee Christmas / Hallelujah He Is Born / Drive Me Wild / This Time / Café On The Corner / The Walk / (This Thing Called) Wantin’ And Havin’ It All / Hard To Say / This Night Won’t Last Forever / All These Years / Mission Temple Fireworks Stand / Smokin’ In The Rockies/Leona / Step That Step / Betty’s Bein’ Bad / The Gambler / Under This Ole Hat / Smokin’ Hot Wife / The Dirt Road / Life’s Been Good / Rock’n Me / Six Days On The Road / Thank God For You
Encore: Don’t Stop / The Race Is On / Some Girls Do