Country music star performs at IU Auditorium

Country music star Vince Gill and his band brought new and old tunes to a packed IU Auditorium on Wednesday.

Gill performed a mixture of his soft and blue country songs, such as “Pocket Full of Gold” and “The Lucky Diamond Motel.”

The concert was informal and there was no set music list, Gill told the crowd. He took a lot of requests from the audience and played whatever he thought the crowd would enjoy. 

Gill played everything from old to new songs and began his set singing “Don’t Let Love Start Slipping Away.”

In between each song, he explained to fans that many of his songs were written for people such as family members, and he sometimes made up story lines.  

“Song writing is all about having a good imagination,” he said.

If audiences related all of his songs to his real life, he would be married and divorced 30 times already, he joked.

Although a lot of his work is fictional, Gill performed a few songs that he wrote in remembrance of his loved ones. The hit song “Go Rest High on that Mountain” was written for his brother, who died in the early 1990s, Gill said. He also sang in memory of his father and performed a song for his wife and fellow performing artist, Amy Grant.

Although Gill’s blue side of country dominated the auditorium, he filled the room with laughs as he joked around with the audience.

“He’s just one of the guys,” said Doug Booher, IU Auditorium director. “I think that’s what is so appealing to our audience.”

Gill and his band were just there to have a good time, Gill said. They planned to go and get a cheeseburger when they were done with the show, he said.

Gill and his band were able to bring unique sounds to their performance. Gill brought many guitar solos to the stage, including the banjo during “Go Rest High on that Mountain.”

A unique mix of instrumental sounds made for an interesting compilation. Drummer Billy Thomas played the ka hum drums, which brought interesting sounds to the music, Gill said. Pete Wasner played the keyboard and Mike Bub played the bass strings. Gill played a wide selection of guitars and even the banjo.

“This is the gig of the year,” Gill said.