Virginia Beach, VA - Outlaw Country Music Festival (the Beginning)
Sept. 17th, 2021
Virginia Beach, VA
Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater
Preface: The first time’s the best they say! After listening to Tyler throughout the COVID pandemic the day arrived where I could finally see him live for the first time. Tyler was a late addition to Willie Nelson’s “Outlaw Music Festival” in Virginia Beach and as soon as I got the e-mail I knew I had to buy tickets. After texting everyone I knew I was able to convince my brother that this was a show not worth missing.
Show Notes: I should preface the show review by saying that at this point in time I’d almost exclusively listened to Tyler’s acoustic and solo stuff and honestly the things I’d heard with the band on YouTube seemed lackluster to me. Within 30 seconds of Tyler Childers and the Food Stamps taking the stage I realized I was probably the biggest idiot in the crowd to have thought that the band was anything short of amazing.
At the time I wasn’t familiar with their setlists enough to know I’d been graced with an amazing setlist. Opening with “Her and the Banks”, a now personal favorite of mine and my girlfriend’s (and the likely first song we’ll dance to once married), was something I’d later realize was an absolute blessing to see in a setlist. Shortly thereafter we got “Creeker”. A couple of songs later was the first time I’d witnessed the band absolutely shredding their instruments to “Tulsa Turnaround”; a song originally by Kenny Rogers and the First Edition. This was the turning point in the show for me personally.
It went from a highly skilled band to a band who was able to somehow take a relatively mellow country song and turn it into an absolute rock jam. Highly skilled was no longer the correct terminology for what I was seeing. It was more aptly called something along the lines of: “An extremely skilled band, cohesive enough to jam for several minutes without missing a beat, and turn a country song into a rock-n-rock jam that country fans were loving, oh and the front man is still Tyler Childers.”
After coming down from that song, we were blessed a couple of songs later with a cover of Kris Kristofferson’s “Help Me Make it Through the Night.” The band had somehow done it again, but this time completely different. Another mellow country song turned into something completely different than the original.
Weepy ballad-ese sounds that were somehow more incorporating more musical depth than the original, all the while keeping the mellow feel of the original within reach.Those changes accompanied with Tyler’s voice made this an instant favorite of mine. Then to end the set with the band they played “Trudy” by the Charlie Daniels Band. Unlike the previous two covers, it seemed the band was playing this one as close to the original as any of the covers they’d played. This shouldn’t imply that the song they were performing was an attempt to sound the exact same as the original, the band certainly jammed out the song more than the original but at heart the original was something that could be considered a country song with a bit of funk; and that would describe the performance by the Food Stamps as well.
To finish the set Tyler did an acoustic version of “Nose on the Grindstone.” At the time this was probably in my top 3 Tyler songs and as a newcomer I was under the impression he likely wouldn’t play solo so it was a great surprise for me to hear this. It was my first introduction to Tyler's unobstructed and raw emotion live. To say I was impressed would be the understatement of the century. I’ll spare you all the details because if you’re reading this you’re already aware of Tyler’s solo talent and likely feel the same way.
Reflecting on this setlist is a mix of feeling great joy that I got to see it all the while feeling sad I didn’t know what I was truly seeing at the time. A few years later I realized how hard it is to find “Help Me Make It Through the Night” in a setlist (I’ve only seen it twice). Accompany that with songs like “Her and the Banks”, “Creeker”, “Born Again”, and “Trudy” and the setlist for the first time I saw Tyler Childers and the Food Stamps was absolutely one for the books.
Venue Notes: In addition to the concert being amazing, so was the venue. This quickly became one of my favorite venues to come and I’ve since been a handful of times.
The entry to the main entrance is lined with trees over the walkway to provide shade and a sense of calmness going into the show. If you didn’t have a ticket it’s certainly a place you could enjoy looking for an extra as or just listening from outside.
The venue is somewhat tucked away in a business district that doesn’t allow for much walkable entertainment, food, or things to do but don’t let that deter you from coming and enjoying a tailgate in the ample sized parking lots right near the venue.
Parking Notes: Speaking of parking, this venue is great at parking and exiting. Every time I’ve been to this venue I literally pull right into a parking spot as quickly as you could imagine for a venue of this size. And, leaving has always been quick and seamless for me.
Also, it should be mentioned the cost to park at this venue is FREE. So, even if it takes you a couple of minutes to leave it was still free to park there.
Travel Notes: Personally for me, Virginia Beach has always been a fun city to visit so I could spend a whole day there before going to a show. I love that their beaches have elevated seawalls that are topped with sidewalks so that you can stroll along the beach without having to get into the sand or if you change your mind it’s as simple as walking to a stairwell and walking a few steps to the sand.
I will say that the location of the venue in the city does make for more traffic upon arrival. It’s not an ideal location to hold that many people at 5pm any day of the week but for all intents and purposes it’s not so bad that you can’t deal with it.
And, honestly aside from the beach being there, my route from North Carolina doesn’t really include anything I’d consider a “must stop” type thing. It's always been a fairly straight shot there and back for me unless I do enjoy the day at the beach and enjoy some local seafood.