Music Evangelist

Last Sunday evening, Keith and I went to a Bob Schneider concert. We couldn't decide if this was the 3rd or 4th time we've seen him in concert; we know we went once in Cincinnati, and then another 2 or 3 times here since we moved up to Cleveland.

Even though we own several of Bob's albums and always go to see him in concert whenever he's coming through, both of my sisters were like, "Bob Who?" And I was a little surprised at myself that I had apparently never tried harder to convert them to Bob Schneider fans.

SIDEBAR
Bob's concerts are amazing. There's bands that I like to see because I love all of their music (Gomez), and every song holds meaning for me because I've listened to them so many times. We all have bands like that, where their concerts are an experience outside of normal life.

For some people, Bob's concerts might be like that. But what is more impressive to me is that, whether you're familiar with his music or not, if you enjoy going to concerts you will LOVE seeing Bob Schneider live. More so than any other performer I've seen, he engages the audience. He tailors the music and between-songs chatting to that particular night, in that particular city, at that particular moment. He makes jokes, takes requests, dances, drinks, and engages the audience the entire time.

Some performers prefer being in the studio, reluctantly dragged onto tour by their agents to drum up fan support. Bob Schneider is not one of those people. You can tell that he feeds off the audience's energy, and his performance is amazing and different every time.

There's not many bands that I've ever been tempted to follow, but Bob is one act that I would love to see, several nights in a row, to see what kind of show he puts on. I think that it would be different, and entertaining, every time.

END SIDEBAR

Right, so. Bob is awesome. And how is it that I had never really mentioned his name or his music to my close family and friends? I don't want to be that person who's constantly pushing everyone around me to like whatever I like at that moment.

But surely, if I like something that I think certain other people would enjoy (not necessarily everyone in the world), then shouldn't I mention it to them? Send a link or make a mix CD? Should I be more of an evangelist for the music that I enjoy, or does that just drive people crazy?