Buying country music tickets with a broker will give you the best chance of seeing your idols in person

Have you ever been the last person to find out about a concert in your area? Country music musicians often come unannounced to many areas, or at least under the radar of heavy publicity and with only so many tickets available, it becomes incredibly difficult to find good tickets at the last minute. That is if you don’t have a good ticket broker. Buying tickets from the ticket booth at an event is a thing of the past and fewer and fewer people are actually doing this. Why? The tickets just sell out so quickly and with ticket scalpers illegally buying bulk tickets and selling them outside an arena; it’s tougher than ever to get good prices. Ticket brokers can help you get the most affordable tickets to the next country music concert in your area, no matter how late you look.

Whether you want to go to the CMA Awards or just a concert down the street from home, a ticket broker can help you get a hold of front row tickets pretty quickly. Brokers have the largest inventory of country music tickets outside of the actual stadiums and most brokers give customers the option of buying their tickets through secure on- line portals, in person or over the telephone. The internet has completely changed the way people buy country music tickets with a broker nowadays because it is just as simple as a few clicks, a little plastic purchase and a printable receipt to get tickets to any concert in the  country.

Buying country music tickets with a broker will help you get tickets to the next Brad Paisley or Dirks Bentley concert. Country music superstars often sell out the quickest but that does not mean you can’t get tickets to their events. Too many people hear a country music concert is sold out, such as a Brad Paisley concert, and they stop looking for tickets. However, if you have a broker you can simply ask them and if they hold concert tickets, they will probably have some to the event you need.

But do you have to buy front row, floor seats? Many people think that just because you use a ticket broker you will have to buy the most expensive floor seats in the arena. Not true. Ticket brokers usually have tickets in all seating arrangements to fit the needs of all customers. Some people want to spend as little as possible just to attend the country music concert. Other people want to get as close to the action as possible so they don’t just hear the music, but so they can pick out the individual guitar strums as the singer is strumming to the words.

Buying country music tickets through a ticket broker is easy, fast and affordable and the next time you think about attending a sold out country music concert, just pick up the phone or head to your nearest internet connection.

American Rock In Its Purest Form - Melissa Etheridge On Stage

Melissa Etheridge has long been known as an artist who produces music that fits the core of what many consider “American Rock and Roll.” Her style combines folk, blues, rock and roll and searing guitar melodies that cut to the soul. Her wide-ranging style has captured the hearts and ears of millions of fans, and Etheridge is returning to the stage in the summer of 2006. A look at her life will at least partially explain how her style came to be.

Early Life

Etheridge was born in Leavenworth, Kansas on May 29, 1961. She almost immediately became involved with music, as she learned to play the guitar at the age of eight and began writing music shortly thereafter. She played in a series of local bands through her teen-age years and was accepted into the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston after high school.

Etheridge stayed at Berklee for only one year, and she dropped out to play in and around Boston for a time before making her way to Southern California in the early 1980’s. She spent her time producing demo tapes, and was discovered by Bill Leopold, who got her steady work at a series of gigs in the Los Angeles area.

Career Highlights

Etheridge’s regular performances at the Executive Suite in Long Beach got her noticed by record companies, and her talent led to a bidding war between A&M, Capitol, EMI, and Warner Bros. Etheridge ultimately decided to sign with Island Records, and she immediately began producing albums.

Her first studio work, entitled Melissa Etheridge, went multi-platinum, and four singles released from this work climbed into the Billboard charts. Her second release, Brave and Crazy, got as high as number 22 on the album charts and had three singles earn spots in the Billboard charts.

Since then, Etheridge has released seven subsequent albums, with two more, Yes I Am in 1993 and Your Little Secret in 1995 going multi-platinum. In all, Etheridge’s albums have sold over 27 million copies worldwide, and her music is as recognizable as any artist in her era.

Personal Causes

Etheridge is only slightly-less known for her personal causes as she is for her music. Perhaps her most famous “cause” was her courageous decision to reveal her homosexuality during President Clinton’s inauguration ceremonies in 1993. Since then, she has been an avid supporter for gay rights, and is as recognizable as any star for this cause in the world.

Etheridge has also performed for countless benefits, including such causes as Hurricane Katrina relief, the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army. Etheridge is widely known for giving her time, money, talents and platform as a star to bring attention to the causes in which she believes, no matter how controversial.

This bravery has only enhanced her standing with her fans and music lovers alike, and it speaks to the nature of her musical style - honest, open, heartfelt and sincere. She will no doubt continue to perform for her causes, and she is sure to bring a crowd wherever she appears.

2006 Washington Nationals Preview

2005 Overview:

Contenders for much of 2005 before finishing .500, Frank Robinson’s Washington Nationals (formerly the Montreal Expos) were the talk of the National League East prior to the all star break. The D.C. community embraced the “Nats” as the team was happy to find a permanent home stadium after splitting much of their games in 2004 between two different stadiums in Montreal and Puerto Rico.  Despite holding onto first place in the National League East through the month of July, Washington fell quickly finishing their 2005 season with an 81-81 record and ended their year 9 games behind the first place Atlanta Braves.


The 2005 starting lineup was led by the newly acquired outfielder Jose Guillen (.283 24 76) and 1st baseman Nick Johnson (.289 15 74). Outfielder’s Brad Wilkerson (.248 11 57) and Preston Wilson (.26110 43) joined catcher Brian Schneider (.268 10 44) to provide the team with the rest of their offense.


Starting pitchers Livan Hernandez (15-10 3.98) and former NY Yankee Esteban Loaiza (12-10 3.77) joined John Patterson (9-7 3.13), Tony Armas (7-7 4.97) and closer Chad Cordero (2-4 1.82 47 saves in 74 games) to stabilize the 2005 pitching staff as the team greatly improved on their losing 67-96 2004 record.


Off Season Moves:

The “Nats” lost Esteban Loaiza to the Oakland Athletics and traded away Brad Wilkerson for Alfonso Soriano (.268 36 104) to help improve their offensive production which was the lowest in baseball in 2005. Washington also traded for San Diego's Brian Lawrence (7-15 4.83) and the signed free agent Ramon Ortiz (9-11 5.36) in order to help bolster their rotation. The Nationals will also have a newcomer at third since Vinny Castilla (.253 12 66) was traded to the Padres in the deal for Lawrence. Veteran Mike Stanton (3-3 4.64) was also added to help strengthen the bullpen as he was signed as a free agent late in the off season.


2006 Analysis:

The loss of Loaiza will hurt the team’s starting pitching. He provided the Nationals with 217 innings in 2005 and the Washington has yet to make any significant moves that will replace those innings. While Washington did acquire two additional starting pitchers there is little chance that either will prove as reliable as Loaiza did last season. Brian Lawrence had a terrible 2005, despite pitching in pitching friendly Petco Park, and Ramon Ortiz was released by Cincinnati Red who became frustrated with his ability to deliver any quality innings. Soriano should prove to be a great pickup, but he will not go quietly into the outfield with José Vidro (.275 7 32) or newly acquired free agent Marlon Anderson (.264 7 19) expected to start the season at 2nd base.


The Nationals’ bullpen was very good last season with Chad Cordero establishing himself as one of the game’s best young closers last year after compiling 47 saves. Stanton should also be a nice addition. The starting pitching is weak but Washington should be expected to score more runs in 2006.