Darius Rucker

Jake Owen opened as support for Darius and provided us with a wonderful country infused show of rock music with a tremendous backing band. Banjo, fiddle, guitar with Jake as the ultimate frontman. The whole band just seemed to be there to have fun, playing their hearts out to a very receptive Belfast audience. Wonderful support act who could have headlines just as easily. And then Darius and his band joined us. As genial and warm as ever, Darius' voice has remained as great as ever. With a good mix of his older material, some newer stuff and, of course some Hootie numbers, Darius had the crowd singing, dancing and partying the night away. He even provided an excellent version of Belfast-by, Van Morrison's "Moondance". A great night with 2 wonderful performances.

My husband and I loved the concert. We love live music and we celebrated our 10 yr anniversary with Darius in Eugene Ore. Awesome show. Had the best time and just adore what Darius does out side of touring. Amazing man. Thank you for coming to Eugene Oregon to share your talent and your bands talent with us!!! 💙💙💙 tons of love Darius!!!

We traveled from near Spokane, WA to enjoy this show. We'd never been to the Port, but have been to a few other amphitheaters... The Port was such a pleasant surprise!! The parking, the entry through security, the people - it just couldn't have been nicer! The weather had me a little stressed with hot temps, and storms brewing all around us, but we never even felt a raindrop. And then there was Darius *sigh* He just left it all out on that stage. I could listen to him everyday ;) I'd definitely consider driving back to Pocatello for another concert, too, but if it's Darius, i'll be there for sure!!!!!

I made a sign for him and he looked at me and smiled and pointed. He also told me over the mic that he loved it and wanted a photo with me. Actively searching for more tickets. He has been my favorite since I was a baby and got me through my battle with cancer.

Darius has so much talent! He is a phenomenal artist. That voice just carries me away. It was a beautiful night, Darius even told everyone to turn around and look at that big moon..He even sang No Diggity!! I've been waiting to see him sing that song and he did not disappoint at all. He is perfect!!

Overall the show was GREAT. Really liked Edwin McCain and the versatility he showed. Nice compliment to combine with Hootie. I did not feel that Collective Soul belonged on the same stage, very different vibe. Would also have liked to see more of Darius Solo - and the Blugrass / Acoustic set during the show was the highlight for me.

This concert was a blast! I love the band and love the venue! Had drinks with Darius Rucker and the band in Amsterdam post-concert at the Pancake House near Melkweg on Nov 9, 2014. Met the band out in front of the venue post-concert then Darius at the bar. Darius was extremely gracious and a really good guy. Answered all my tough questions! So was everyone in the band. My take-away from the experience was that everyone in the band had gone through a divorce. One of the gents in the band told me this over drinks at the Pancake House. Now after almost 33 years of marriage, I am about to be too. Tough times build strong minds. I stood on the steps to the right of the stage the entire concert with my work buddies. Someone there put this video on you-tube and I can actually hear myself singing (badly) at the end of Wagon Wheel. https://youtu.be/yTq_vd_Dv3c?si=55Qgda6cwIA0Oo3e I hope Darius and the boys are getting their golf on. Next time they are in town, I can try to hook them up at my club, Rolling Green. Understated -- classic Flynn. Darius knows how to give it back -- a true gent! Please pass this along if you have access to the band. Ron Dirienzi

Overall the show was GREAT. Really liked Edwin McCain and the versatility he showed. Nice compliment to combine with Hootie. I did not feel that Collective Soul belonged on the same stage, very different vibe. Would also have liked to see more of Darius Solo - and the Blugrass / Acoustic set during the show was the highlight for me.

Crackin show, as always... Darius referenced seeing a father n son, with the father in an original classic Hootie t-shirt. I think that was me n my son. I had on my Kootchypop shirt, from seeing him at the Royal Court, Liverpool & the Wetlands, NY... if this email can be passed on, please thank him for signing my Hootie baseball jersey, when he was back in the Manchester with Hootie a few years ago... BW

Saugut… Ich hatte ihn mit seiner Band vorletztes Jahr in Glasgow beim C2C zum ersten Mal gesehen. Heuer hat er noch mal eins draufgesetzt: Hat angeheizt, war wieder sehr kommunikativ und absolut spielfreudig. Mit Unterstützung seiner tollen Band mit Country typischem Banjo, Fiddle… Super Stimmung im ausverkauften Backstage 👍

This show concert was simplest the best performances by the opening act DrewHolocom and headliner Darius Rucker I loved this show from the beginning right too the end.. this was very great because every song was upbeat with high levels of energy It was in my top favorites I even seen at the Greek theater in Los Angeles

The concert was fabulous! Enjoyed the venue, too. I brought my friend who uses a cane, so even with premier parking it was a long walk for her. Appreciated the shuttle, but it only took us to the entrance. Still... We would do it all again to see Darius. Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors were terrific, too!

Darius Rucker: 7/28/23 “Back in February when the show was announced I thought to myself ‘Self that’s a good chunk of change for a gamble on the weather and the possibility of standing on a wet muddy lawn all evening long (i.e. my last experience at William A Floyd Amphitheater in Anderson)’. So I waited —but don’t think I didn’t think about it! The waiting was not to be confused with procrastination as I pulled up an all-clear weather radar at 3 p.m. and secured my seat via. StubHub for $27 (supposedly). It was to be my first time seeing CMA and Grammy winning Grand Old Opry member Darius Rucker LIVE, but not without it’s issues. Arriving at the gate early in typical fashion I realized that my ticket hadn’t transferred, and my phone hadn’t enough reception to log in for a last minute Ticketmaster backup. It was a hot one, my weather app read 94° with a real-feel of 99° and a severe thunderstorm warning. At 6:15 an announcement was made ‘Fans must evacuate to their cars [until] gates will open and activities will resume.’ The wind picked up with lightning to be seen in the distance however there was barely a drop of precipitation FAST-FORWARD… The theme of the evening for me was ‘I get by with a little help from my friends’, I know wrong artist. At 7:15 a friend Kim had offered to transfer an unused ticket to me FREE and after walking up and down the street for reception the transfer finally came in at 8:00. Thank You Kimberly!!! By now the line at the gate had run all the way down to the traffic light and back around up the road past the entrance. I made my way between the center of the multi-directioned lines searching for and finding some friends Scott & Heidi who immediately pulled me as if they were waiting for me. At 8:15 the single file gate opened but the line wasn’t moving, people were having to remove and leave their lawn chair bags at the gate hoping they could find them again at the end of the evening. At 8:45 opener Lindsay Ell took the stage for a 27 minute set which the majority of us in line entirely missed. Luckily having seen her twice in the past it wasn’t that big of a deal. The set sounded similar to those in the past, 2018 and 2021 respectively. Folks I talked to in the venue said she performed a strong set, it’s a mystery how she hasn’t moved past opener in this amount of time. About the time Lindsay’s set ended at 9:12 the amphitheater personal lightened up on their entrance policy and began rapidly pushing the line through with barely a wand wave, and a look at your phone ticket rather than a scan. I was in! Searching for a good spot a friend Sheila spotted me and called me over ‘Sit with us, we chose this place because it’s a high spot’. The place was packed, with the exception of the left side hill and some corners the 12,000 capacity venue was full, bike rack style barriers sectioned off a makeshift pit in the front for an additional wristband fee. On to the Show! The concert itself was part of Rucker’s 2023 twenty-two date ‘Starting Fires Tour’ but billed as a charity event sponsored by ‘Southern Fried Circuit’ and presented by ‘Upcountry Fiber’. All proceeds were allocated to fund local non-profits and dubbed ’An Upscale Get-Down’. Rucker has recorded 7 studio albums as a member of ‘Hootie & the Blowfish’ since it’s formation in 1986 in addition to 7 solo albums yielding 19 charted singles including 9 #1’s. The unspoken anticipation in the air was ‘How many Hootie songs will he perform?!’ At last, precisely at 9:34, the lights went down to a compiled audio recording filled with snippets of other artists songs with the word ‘fire’ in it after which Charleston native Darius Carlos Rucker 57 took the stage for a one hour and forty-two minute / massive 25 song set. Moving right into his #1 ‘Beers And Sunshine’ performed with beer in hand he set the bar for a night of country music. ‘My name is Darius Rucker and this is my band The Carolina Gray Boys right here and if it’s alright with y’all we’re gonna play some country music alright?!’ With the moan of a pedal steel guitar intro he moved right into the 2008 unreleased as a single ‘All I Want’. After a cover of Mellencamp’s ‘Pink Houses’ one could see the sweat begin to drench the black t-shirt he wore with the numbers ‘9:30’ on the front, a reference to the famous club in DC where members of Hootie were known to frequent prior to their formation. It wasn’t the only cover of the evening, in fact ‘Valerie’ and ’No Diggity’ were each part of the encore. A quartet of Rucker solo hits followed, 2023’s #25 ‘Fires Don’t Start Themselves’, the #1’s ‘It Won’t Be Like This For Long’ and ‘For The First Time’ with #4 ‘Radio’ completing a quartet. The moment came for Hootie to come alive, the first of three songs interwoven through the course of the evening was 1994’s ‘Let Her Cry’ getting everyone who wasn’t already standing out of their chairs. With the audience’s full attention Rucker raised a glass, ‘Here’s to Anderson, yeah, you all showed up tonight. I’m ready for football season. I’m leaving it there, it’s a new year fella’s, a new year, a new year… that was messed up.’ Darius toyed with the obviously divided crowd on the subject matter of team choice. After a trio of covers, a rousing ‘I Like It I Love It’ plus ‘Waterfalls’ and ‘Poison’, it was the #1 ‘Come Back Song’, ‘History In The Making’, ‘True Believers’ and yet another #1 ‘If I Told You’ completing the mini-set in tandem. In all red lights illuminating the audience with a rolling cloudscape on the video screen Rucker performed a moving rendition of his first number one ‘Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It’. The song describing a man who has left his former lover telling her that he thinks about what they could have been. Next were band intros, ‘I’ve been in Nashville now for seventeen years and the thing that brings me the best joy when I’m there is that my band has been with me pretty much the same time.’ Rucker went on to introduce the six-man band as each instrument built up adding one to the other in an all out jam, ‘On bass we call him ‘Big Sexy’ John Mason. On drums, our band leader Mr. Jeff Marino. On keyboards from parts unknown Lee Jay Turner. On guitar the Superstar, Mr. Quint Gibson. On slide guitar Mr Sasha Ostrovusky. Singing like an angel and playing every single instrument in the world Mr. Gary Murray.’ Everyone jumped back on their feet to the opening words of Hootie’s ‘Hold My Hand’ and then their #2 ‘Only Wanna Be With You’. The later featured an extended banjo jam with all the lyrics portrayed in a large neon font on the big screen. ‘Hometown Honey’ rounded out the regular set with a four song encore to follow. In addition to the two covers afore mentioned was his 2017 ‘Hands On Me’ Rucker lamenting, ‘[It] should a been a single, should a been’. The moment came for the final song of the evening, you guessed it, ‘Wagon Wheel’, not a soul exited the amphitheater until the final note resounded. It was 11:16! Rucker puts on an amazing performance and I would pay good money any time to see him again in a reserved seated indoor venue setting. Anderson SC fans are the best, everyone maintained a great attitude throughout the evening’s challenges filling the place notwithstanding notably higher ticket prices than it’s comparable Simpsonville Heritage Park. In order to keep the fans coming back and to make money William A Floyd may need to do a reevaluation of their entrance policy so as to not cause half of the audience to miss out on the opener in the future. It’s a reality of Summer that weather delays are going to occur, let’s brainstorm together and problem solve to keep the concert momentum going in Anderson South Carolina!” Review and photo by DAve (Concert #804)

AMAZING! I have been a fan since 1986 yet the crowd seemed to be all in their 20’s! That is so great! They knew all the words with me! Darius Rucker still sounds smooth and strong! The bbq was fire and of course, my city showed out! Thunderstorms waited until the last song. Would definitely do the Smokeout again!

I give Darius & his band five stars! I give the facility one star for the stage. You could neither see the artists & their bands. Such a loss of $672.00 to go the the Globe Light Field to see a concert. It was hard to hear the band & the night was so disappointing. I hope that Darius returns to one of the other venues to do a concert, keeping my fingers crossed!

The show was incredible! Hootie and the Blowfish brought back so many memories and you can tell they have missed playing together. Darius alone is so talented and an awesome entertainer!. My wife and I drove from North Alabama just to see them and it was well worth it. They played for over two hours and gave everyone their monies worth. I hope they do some more shows after seeing the crowds response to them.

Darius and the 2 opening acts sounded good. Loved the concert....wish it would last longer. Really nice venue. Seats were a bit confusing to find, lots of turns. Lots of steps if you are in any of the 200's. Bathrooms were clean. Beers start around $14,50 and a premium drink was $23. Ridiculous.

The Pavillian at Wolf Lake to locals who have lived there for decades might seem absurd at first. The venue is easy in and easy out. The city of Hammond was amazing supporting the festival of the lakes. To be able to see Darius Rucker perform at his best from 15 feet away was simply amazing. The show was superb. His voice was in great form. And you could not have asked for a better night to be out in the fresh air. Thanks to all who put on the show.

Great voice. Great concert. BUT CONCERT ORGANIZERS UPGRADED VIA INSTAGRAM AN ENORMOUS GROUP OF FREE AND GENERAL ADMISSION PEOPLE TO FLOOD THE STANDING ROOM ONLY AREA IN THE VIP SECTION. I HAD THE PLEASURE OF PAYING $100 A TICKET X2 AND THEY GOT IN FREE. IT WAS NOT PLEASANT. WOULD SOME SMART LAWYER PLEASE SUE THESE PEOPLE.

Absolutely fantastic concert. Darius even put in 2 country songs, which I loved. It stormed like crazy but they kept playing. Luckily our seats were covered. Hootie and the Blowfish were awesome. Brings back many memories. I wasn't too familiar with Barenaked Ladies but I loved them, too. Great venue for a concert. Just eat before you get there. It's very expensive.