KANSAS GAL, KANSAS GREETING
             










            Posted on Sat, Apr. 03, 2004



            KANSAS GAL, KANSAS GREETING

            BY PHYLLIS JACOBS GRIEKSPOOR
            The Wichita Eagle

            HOMECOMING
            An adoring crowd shows Martina McBride -- oh, and Alan Jackson -- 
            that they're welcome in Kansas anytime
            hen Martina McBride screamed, "Wichita, I love you!" Wichita 
            screamed back.
            And so did country music fans from all over Kansas and elsewhere as 
            the Country Music Association's Female Vocalist of the Year took the 
            stage ahead of Alan Jackson in a sold-out concert Friday night at 
            the Kansas Coliseum.
            Jackson opened his portion of the show with "Gone Country" and went 
            on to "Don't Even Know Your Name." But he really got the crowd fired 
            up when he sang "Little Bitty" while the video screen picked up 
            young fans in the audience.
            McBride was quick to acknowledge her Kansas roots as she opened her 
            show with "Wild Angels" and "My Baby Loves Me" before taking a break 
            to tell the audience, "It's good to be back home."
            A native of Sharon, McBride said she saw her very first concert in 
            the Kansas Coliseum -- Ozzy Osbourne.
            She also said she is doing just what she always dreamed of doing and 
            wakes up every day to "thank the Lord I get to do this with my 
life."
            Video of McBride, her husband and their two daughters accompanied 
            her performance of "In My Daughter's Eyes," and she left many eyes 
            in the audience wet with a tender rendition of "Concrete Angel."
            Nobody was more excited to be at the Coliseum than Brittany Tolley, 
            12, and her sister, Chelsea, 10.
            Both wore white hats with "KFDI" on the bills. Brittany's jeans were 
            also a KFDI ad, and both girls had cheeks painted with "KFDI" on one 
            side and "101.3" on the other.
            They occupied front-row seats at the concert, thanks to their mom, 
            Jackie, who managed to name 10 of 10 McBride and Jackson songs to 
            win the tickets.
            The girls' parents sat one row behind them, in seats won by their 
            dad, James.
            The girls initially proclaimed themselves all about McBride, but 
            quickly added that Jackson is their favorite "boy singer."
            Bruce and Debi Fouts were also second-row fans, a position they said 
            they gained by waiting a long, long time in the cold and showing 
            their fan-club cards at the box office.
            Mary Knox of Harper said she called her sister, Pat Griffith, the 
            minute she heard McBride and Jackson would be appearing together. 
            Griffith drove from Grand Island, Neb., to attend the concert, and 
            the pair were in line by 6 p.m.
            For some in the audience, a distinctive red badge was their 
            admission to a personal interview with the performers.
            Tom Hood and his wife, Ellen, were guests of his employer, Napa Auto 
            Parts, which is also a sponsor of the tour.
            "I've been excited all day," Ellen Hood said. "I was up at dawn 
            today."
            Stephanie Gomez and Amy Church had seats near the rafters in Section 
            101, but they found themselves enjoying the concert from the front 
            row.
            "We were just standing outside having something to eat, and this guy 
            walked up to us and asked if we were waiting for anybody," Gomez 
            said. "We told him we were just waiting to go in, and he handed us 
            these tickets and said, 'Enjoy the concert from the front row.' 
Wow."


            Reach P.J. Griekspoor at 268-6660 or pgriekspoor@wichitaeagle.com. 







© 2004 The Wichita Eagle and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.kansas.com