CONCERT REVIEW
Brian Deibert of Reading was out Sunday night enjoying a Christmas present from his daughters.
Nothing against a new tie or a GPS unit, but this one was a little better.
It was a chance to see and hear Tim McGraw, the country-music superstar with "storylines and a voice I really like," as a smiling Deibert put it.
Over in Section 104 at the packed Sovereign Center, meanwhile, Nicole Zug of Marticville and Barb Druck of Airville were there as much for the first main act, Lady Antebellum, as for headliner McGraw.
You don't get a show like this one too often, they agreed.
It was a chance to see chart-topping, established country-music artist McGraw, who wowed the full house with a mix of familiar and newer tunes.
But it also was a chance to see and hear possible future country-music superstars in the three-member Lady Antebellum, who gave a fiery show in their own right.
The star, even though he didn't seem to act like one, was clearly McGraw, who hit the ground running as soon as he got off his motorcycle.
That would be the chopper he rode on the video that introduced his show. The crowd was still whooping it up as the curtains parted and McGraw and his huge band (called "the Dance Hall Doctors") launched into a terrific version of his hit "Real Good Man."
And they kept them coming: "Last Dollar (Fly Away)," with seemingly everyone knowing the refrain; "Where the Green Grass Grows;" and then "Let It Go."
And after the four-song intro, there was maybe the loudest roar of the whole three-hour concert.
The people must have been listening when McGraw, clad in jeans, a dark shirt and a cowboy hat and sporting a thicker-than-normal beard, told the 7,200-seat arena, "There's only one rule: The louder you get, the longer we play!"
McGraw, maneuvering on a T-shaped walkway in front of the stage, singing and high-fiving fans, gave the fans great versions of such familiar songs as "Back When," "Just to See You Smile" and "Down on the Farm."
The 42-year-old McGraw is married to fellow country star Faith Hill and also is a familiar face on the film screen. He had lots of female admirers Sunday, many of them with cameras that were working all through his show.
A multiple-award-winner and multiplatinum artist, McGraw is on the short list of top country performers.
And he showed why Sunday — as a great performer and songwriter. He has a soulful and mournful, if not overly powerful, voice, and his songs connect with everyone, to judge from the variety in the crowd of younger and older people, families and singles.
But on another night, and maybe that night will come soon, Lady Antebellum would have been the headliner.
"Lady A" made the most of its time, giving a rousing 11-song, 50-minute set that followed a short opening act, the Lost Trailers.
"Thank you so much, Pennsylvania … we'll see you next time!" singer Charles Kelley said, and the crowd roared like they're looking forward to it.