Jason Aldean Makes a Triumphant Return to Joe’s Bar
As Jason Aldean bound down the stairs and leapt down on the cramped stage of Chicago's famed Joe's Bar on Sunday night (April 29), the crowd instinctively knew that the ACM Awards Entertainer of the Year was primed and ready to cut loose.
"It’s been awhile since we have been able to do this," Aldean yelled to his sold-out crowd as a big smile slipped out from under the brim of his cowboy hat. "This would be a real good time to call in sick to work tomorrow."
Yes, phones lit up, and there was plenty to capture.
There was an electricity in the air for the much-anticipated "Back to the Bar" show, which raised more than $30,000 for Susan G. Komen. But that electricity also stemmed from the fact that it's been more than ten years since Aldean has played on this particular Windy City stage.
Exploding right off the bat with 2012's "Take a Little Ride" and 2016’s "A Little More Summertime," Aldean and his band of brothers (wearing black T-shirts and bad ass attitudes) appeared giddy to be back on one of the small stages that led to so many big ones throughout their career.
"I now need to get some slow ones out of the way,” Aldean told the crowd as he brought the feels with "Rearview Town," "Any Ol’ Barstool," "You Make It Easy," "Tattoos on this Town" and "Drowns the Whiskey," this time minus a certain miss Miranda Lambert.
Watch Jason Aldean Sing "You Make It Easy" at Joe's
Watch Jason Aldean Perform "Fly Over States" at Joe's
From there, the Georgia native delivered rousing versions of "Fly Over States" and “Burnin’ it Down” before coming to the crowd with a request.
“Shots are needed,” Aldean admitted, laughing. “Tequila would be our first choice, but Crown will be a good backup.”
The wheels flew off as Aldean erupted in “Lights Come On,” “My Kinda Party" and “Hicktown” before briefly walking off the stage before fans begged for an encore. “It’s been quite awhile since we played a bar,” Aldean told the pumped-up crowd. “This has always ben one of our go to jams.”
Aldean went on to tear into John Mellencamps's 1983 hit “Pink Houses,” only stopping for a moment as he tried to remember the words of the last part of the song.
Watch Jason Aldean Sing "Pink Houses"
“That went better than expected,” Aldean said before ending the night with “She’s Country.”
"We haven’t played that for years. Thanks for coming out. This was all for a great cause and we raised over $32,000. This has been a blast."
Our thoughts exactly.
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