The things you do for Lovett

Editor’s note: Susan Springer was one of many who waited in the cold for a shot at Lyle Lovett Starry Nights tickets.

I always thought the people who camped in long lines to buy concert tickets were crazy — until I became one.

It’s Lyle Lovett’s fault. I love his unique mix of music. His strong base of country music mixed with jazz and his witty lyrics are sounds I’ve enjoyed for years but have never heard live. Lovett has not chosen good dates for me when he performed in Bend the last several years. One concert was scheduled near my twins’ due date. But my calendar is free on February 25.

The big dilemma was just how early I needed to be in line last Saturday morning at Leavitt’s to buy the coveted tickets to the Sisters Starry Nights Benefit Concert Series. With approximately 300 seats available at the Sisters High School auditorium and ticket buyers able to purchase a maximum of five tickets, that meant being number 61 could mean you’re out of luck. So I aimed for 5:30 a.m.

When the alarm went off, I had to remind myself how badly I wanted to see this four-time Grammy winner. But soon I was dressed warmly, coffee in hand, driving along the dark, icy roads.

I joined the line in ninth place then moved up to eighth when a woman who had been waiting over an hour realized Michael McDonald was not performing.

My fellow Lovett fans were reading, laughing, snoozing and wondering when the bakery opened. It was 31 degrees but as one person said, “It could be snowing.” So the good-natured fans waited three to four hours for the ticket table to open at 9 a.m.

At the head of the line sat Lynelle and Jason Schaalma who arrived at 4:45 a.m.

“We were going to sleep here but then we thought, this is Sisters!” said Lynelle. She was an experienced line-waiter having once slept three nights in a Wagoneer for Grateful Dead tickets.

“This is the only person I would do this for,” said ticket buyer Michael DeLaRosa.

“I have an excuse — I’m from Texas,” said Bunny Thompson, who’s been following Lovett since the ’80s.

Ken Birkes heard Lovett once before in Bend.

“It was just a magical night — it was really fun,” said Birkes.

Vivian Bousquet enjoyed the first Starry Nights concert nine years ago. She and her friends were inspired to stand in line with high hopes of hearing Lovett sing “Long Tall Texan.”

They were impressed that Lovett, along with Leslie Satcher and Hanna-McEuen, who perform in April, were donating their time to benefit the Sisters Schools Foundation.

My unscientific estimate is that the crowd averaged a bit older than Lovett’s 48 years. But I know that Lovett has attracted the youngest fans.

One of my favorite baby memories is seeing my one-year-old girl tap her toes in time with “That’s Right, You’re Not From Texas.”

At 9:02 a.m. I left Leavitt’s with two second row tickets and look forward to a rare date night with my husband. By 9:50 a.m. all the Lovett tickets were sold.

Tickets are still available for the second concert in the series.

Those hours waiting in line with my fellow fans demonstrated that while Lovett is not from Sisters, Sisters loves him anyway.