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“Awesome!” “It was great!” “I’m so happy we came!”

These were just a few of the comments overheard at the conclusion
of the Irish Tenors Reunion Concert at the Tulsa Hard Rock on Dec. 8.
We drove about one hundred miles round-trip but would have gladly
driven a lot farther to our first concert. As a charter Tulsa-area fan, I’ve
lived vicariously through all of you for all these years and have truly
appreciated all the reviews, pictures, and ongoing adventures because
family illnesses and responsibilities had prevented me from traveling.

My boyfriend Richard and I had ordered and picked up four red rose
boutineers (one for each tenor plus one for the conductor) with holiday
greenery and the required magnets. We called ahead for delivery
instructions and were told to have them there before 6 p.m. to the box
office manager. We were escorted to the security entrance where we
handed them off to a guard, never to see them again. Afterwards we
inquired as to what happened to them but no one knew, including the
venue manager. We left our telephone number and on Saturday
morning we received an apologetic call with the following message:
“The band’s runner stuck them in a refrigerator and forgot about them!”

Before the doors opened at 7 p.m. we ate chicken fried steak at
Toby’s Keith’s restaurant and played slot machines near “The Joint“
venue entrance. The casino gave $10 of free play with each ticket
if you weren’t already a “Player’s Club” member. Suddenly an elderly
couple stopped by and asked if we would please pass on their
concert tickets because the lady wasn’t feeling well and had to go
home immediately. So we began asking every couple we saw but
everyone had their own tickets. One couple was even calling friends
who lived nearby to ask if they had evening plans or not. Eventually
we found a young couple passing by who didn’t have tickets and
were thrilled to attend!

The venue, which holds around 2500, appeared to be around 2/3’s
full, mostly with folks at least twice or three times the legal age
requirement of 21. The lighting, acoustics, temperature, and seating
were excellent. Our seats were on the front row near the center.

The song list and most other details were the same as in Lori
Herter’s wonderful Palm Desert review. Anthony’s “Ave Maria” was
glorious, and his focus and concentration really showed. Finbar’s
“How Great Thou Art” was a big crowd-pleaser, done with the
appropriate reverence and humility. Ronan’s “My Grandfathers
Emigrant Eyes’ was very touching, with the just the right feeling
and emotion. However the biggest applause and standing ovation
was after “Oh Holy Night”, which was truly majestic.

Anthony made a few faces at Ronan, which appeared to get the
better of him a couple of times. Anthony’s song line “later we’ll do
some gambling” instead of “caroling” got a big laugh. I loved the
three-part harmonies! Sometimes I couldn’t even tell who was
singing which part. The audience really responded whenever
Finbar motioned for them to sing along and really got into it. In
fact some people behind us were a little too loud! In the restroom
at intermission several older ladies were happily buzzing about
Ronan: “I saw him on Regis”, and “I saw him singing at President
Reagan’s funeral”, and “He’s so funny.”

No audio or photography was allowed so I waited until the end
and started snapping away. But unfortunately all of my pictures blurred!

The orchestra, conducted by Eric Stern, was totally awesome.
The only thing that would have made this concert more special
was to have had my three grandchildren there with us, as they
play instruments and are familiar with the Irish Tenors. But the
next best thing was looking all up and down that front row both
ways and seeing the mesmerized looks of delight on every single
face! “Danny Boy” at the end about brought the house down, as
expected.

The Irish Tenors rocked the Tulsa Hard Rock! Holiday greetings
to all for the rest of the tour. And a special wish for good luck to
anyone who sends lapel flowers!

By Kathy Lewis