I don’t usually go to the concerts in the park held here in Beaver Dam. Yes, they are only a couple blocks away and are free. But, I can think of better ways to spend my Wednesday afternoons.
However, my daughter has really wanted to go to one and I promised I would take her last night to see KG & The Ranger perform. I will admit, they weren’t too bad.
I should start out by saying I’m not really a big fan of the type of music they perform; old fashioned country/western music from the likes of Gene Autry and others. I actually grew up watching shows like that (in re-runs) but usually ignored the cowboy songs. Other than “Happy Trails” I couldn’t tell you any of them.
But, I’m also a big believer in letting my daughter experience new things and make that decision for herself so I did my best to be unbiased when I took her.
First of all, it was very hot out yesterday so I have to say I was impressed this husband and wife team were able to wear those old fashioned western clothes and not pass out from the heat. And, the rope tricks they were doing prior to the concert were entertaining. My daughter was fascinated with the trick they performed that involved the rope circling them while they slow danced. That was kind of cool.
Truth be told, we didn’t stay for the whole show. My daughter wants to go to these concerts but usually gets bored after about 20 minutes. What we did see, however, was interesting though.
The songs themselves weren’t bad. I couldn’t tell you the names of the songs we heard, but I actually did recognize one of them surprisingly (It’s one where they sing “on a horse” and the crowd replies “what a horse”). The music was upbeat and suitable for just about everyone in the family and I found myself humming a couple of them after the concert. My daughter was even clapping along with one of them. I was expecting her to want to go to the playground area to play within a couple of minutes but she did sit much longer than expected.
What really impressed me though was how KG & the Ranger interacted with the crowd. I’ve been to some of these concerts and all the people on stage do is perform. They don’t even acknowledge there’s anyone there.
That wasn’t the case this time around. They shared quite a few personal moments with us; like the fact one was born in Wisconsin while the other was born in Ohio and how KG always wanted to be a cowgirl but couldn’t because she is allergic to cows and horses.
They also had the crowd interacting both with the songs and with some jokes. My daughter, for example, learned a new knock knock joke:
Knock, knock
Who’s there?
Yah
Yah Who?
She loved that one and told it to her mother and grandmother shortly after getting back from the concert. I have a feeling I’ll be hearing that joke over and over again for some time.
Seeing KG & the Ranger didn’t make me want to go out and rent an old Gene Autry movie and my daughter certainly isn’t dressing up as a cowgirl. But, it was definitely a fun way to spend the afternoon. If they are performing at the park again in the future, I think I will take the time to go watch them again. If nothing else, they are definitely worth the (free) admission.

Rating: 7