Singing despite the rain: Weather troublesome before Jackson's Rock in the Rock Garden concert

Jackson's second Rock in the Rock Garden concert almost didn't happen Friday night.

One minute singer Bill Booth was unloading equipment; the next, he was trying to protect it from a sudden cloudburst.

"He was nervous because the rain started coming down and he was already set up. We got the master control board back in his car and covered everything else up. In the meantime, we both got all wet," said Shane Anderson, Jackson's parks and recreation director. Anderson had come out the park to set up parking cones and tiki torches and make sure the electricity was ready for the amplifiers.

By 7 p.m. the setting evening sun seemed to have burned away most of the cloud cover. Still, fewer than two dozen people had found their way to Jackson City Park's rock garden clustering their lawn chairs in family groups.

Booth moved smoothly from one pop-rock song to the next, coverings songs from Gordon Lightfoot, George Harrison, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson as well as playing a tribute to Bo Diddley, who died recently.

Two girls, one holding an open umbrella, chased each other up and down a grassy hillside, then the umbrella disappeared and the girls began to dance.

"A few families always come out with kids under 10," Anderson said.

FRED LYNCH ~ flynch@semissourian.com Bill Booth performed on the south side of Hubble Creek at the Rock Garden Friday in the Jackson City Park.

Park board president Carmen Simpher brought her son, Brandon, 12. He brought a bike, a football and a Frisbee so he could play while he listened.

Some in the audience some compared Booth's singing voice to Kristofferson's, with a Cash-like influence.

Jacob Glueck, 26, and Leslie Whelan, 28, both of Cape Girardeau, were "a little worried how the evening would turn out, but came anyway to meet Whelan's mom, who had invited the couple.

"My dad used to play in a band, and sometimes they played outdoor concerts," Whelan said, turning her attention to Booth as he sang. "This is good."

Many quietly focused on the music. Others held soft-spoken casual conversations or greeted friends, often saying what a beautiful evening it had turned out to be.

Jackson park board member Darin Pettit said he was pleased to see the crowd double within an hour and continue to grow.

As darkness grew and fireflies appeared, it seemed Booth had predicted the outcome with the lyrics of one of his early songs, "Don't think twice, it's all right."

Anderson said one lesson from this year is that bands have to be booked by spring. He said the city would promote "7 to 9, third Friday of the month" more aggressively next year.

pmcnichol@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127

Were you there?

Have a comment?

Log on to semissourian.com/today

Rock in the Rock Garden

<embed class='castfire_player' id='cf_60c0a' name='cf_60c0a' width='480' height='310' src='http://p.castfire.com/kCWxU/video/15228/rockinrockgarden_2008-06-20-234637.flv' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' allowFullScreen='true'>