David Cook rocks Denver...Happy New Year, indeed!

I've never done a recap of a DC show before, so I figured his recent one in Denver would be a good one to start with. Granted, all of his shows are blog-worthy, but this one had a special moment for me. Ever since I first saw David live on June 26th, 2009 at the Ogden Theater, I'd been dying to meet him. Not only was he a seasoned performer and a Rock God, he was also the most personable performer I'd ever seen. The way he interacted with the crowd was so witty, and he seemed to be one of the sweetest people in the world.

When show dates started popping up for his recent pre-album tour, I waited anxiously, and patiently, (for the most part, anyway) hoping and praying that a Denver show would appear. Just  when I thought it was hopeless, it happened. It was announced that David would be returning to Denver on January 7th to play at the Bluebird Theater. For a moment, I felt like I was living in a dream. Was this really happening? Yes, yes it was. I was thrilled. I immediately texted my friends Kira and Shantelle to tell them he was coming, and we HAD to see him! Kira had gone with me to see David and Gavin DeGraw back in 2011, and said she would definitely see him with me next time too, and Shantelle and I had been talking on twitter and trhough texting. I was so excited to finally meet her <3.

The wait resumed until the day the tickets went on sale. I had been debating whether to get VIP this time or not, and naturally, it would have been stupid not to. As the day finally arrived to purchase my ticket, I began to grow more and more anxious, and started picturing everything that could go wrong and cost me my chance to meet David after so many years. Shantelle and I were texting back and forth, and once the clock changed to 10am on November 9th, everything changed. It was do or die. After a few moments of sheer panic (Safari closing out as I went to pay, being on hold with AXS, and eventually being assisted by Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite) I had done it. I had my VIP. I was going to meet. DAVID FREAKING COOK. As reality set in, I cried, I'm not gonna lie. It was an emotional time, knowing that the moment I had waited for for so long was finally coming.

I decided I wanted to get David a gift, but not just any gift. I wanted it to be something he would like, something that he could use, and something he could remember me by. I decided to put my talents to use, and knit him a blanket in the KC Chiefs colors. (Side note: I loom knit, which is much faster and easier than trying to do it the traditional ways). I was originally going to knit five pieces in alternating red and white checkers, but got annoyed halfway through the second piece and decided to start over. I decided to stick with a more simple color block pattern, making only three pieces. After a little less than two months, I had completed the blanket. It ended up being almost 6 feet tall, 5 feet wide, and 1 inch thick. I also bought him a set of Ninja Turtle shot glasses.

The next couple weeks dragged by, and it was finally my turn to see David. I woke up Tuesday morning feeling pretty good, but a bit nervous. The tummy butterflies had started the day I bought my ticket, but they were in full swing. i'm pretty sure they were doing a full acrobatics show in there. lol. The day went by seemingly fast, and before I knew it, Kira had arrived to pick me and my hubby up, and we were on our way! The drive up went fairly quickly, even after a quick stop at Arbys. We had finally arrived! We met up with Shantelle, her hubby Chris, and Rose, and we chatted as we waited for more VIPs to show up. We could hear David and the guys rehearsing inside, which made me more excited to go in and see them. The crowd outside grew larger, and the air grew colder. By the time we were let inside, I was purple thanks to my low blood circulation. We walked into the theater and saw David, Andy, Nick and Monty on the stage, which was surreal. Seeing them in a crowded theater is much different from a smaller group, for sure. I was positioned right in front of David (yay!) and I was trying so hard not to stare. lol. For the soundcheck they did two songs, Laying Me Low and From Here To Zero. They are amazing live. It's one thing to see a youtube video, but another thing entirely to be in the same room. David was so happy and in such good spirits, I knew that meeting him would be the best thing ever.

After they were done with the songs, we were instructed to go upstairs to meet David. Shantelle and I had planned to stick together, since neither of us had met him before, but she got ahead of me. Once i realized I'd be meeting my idol alone. the panic started to set in. Luckily, I had Rose behind me, and Lauren in front of me, so that was comforting. As I neared the top of the stairs, I tried to keep my breathing steady, and also keep from toppling down the stairs. When I reached the top, David was RIGHT THERE, and I literally had about half a second to panic before I got to him. He smiled at me, and I melted into a giant puddle of woman. Being within inches of David Cook was an entirely different experience than any one I have mentioned before. He has such a different energy surrounding him than anyone else, it's nearly impossible to explain to someone who doesn't understand how beautiful and amazing he is. He then noticed how much I had with me, and offered to help me get organized. One I was settled, I got my first hug. He was so warm...I've been describing him to people like he's a big marshmallow teddy bear. If you've hugged him, you know. I handed him the gift bag, letting him know that it was for him, and he smiled and said he'd open it later. I hope he liked his presents and is getting good use out of them. I brought a sign, a calendar, and a picture of David with my friend Christine for him to sign, and set the sign face down on the table. He curiously picked it up to look at it, and recognized it. I had it back in '09, and he had pointed it out. I told him where I had it, and he remembered seeing it, which made my heart stop for a moment. That was CRAZY! I then handed him my calendar, which he gladly signed, and thanked me for buying it. I didn't have the brain capacity to tell him that Dana had gotten it for me, and that she and I ran the This Loud Fandom Facebook page. I wish I would have! When I tried to get Christine's picture out of the envelope, my hands were shaking so bad, I actually lied and said I was cold. Since I was standing next to a man who could melt Antarctica with one smoldering glance, I was definitely not cold. I think he knew. Luckily, he has a gem and pretended like he believed me. He looked at Christine's picture, and remembered meeting her, which I was excited to report back to her. Then, he signed it, and we took a picture together. Then I got another hug, and itwas over. I could have talked with him forever. He's such a sweetheart.

Lauren and her grandma were waiting for me by the other set of stairs, and we walked back down into the theater together. I was on a cloud for the rest of the night, and still am. That was a surreal experience, and it'll take a heck of a lot to top it for sure. I was reunited with Shantelle and Chris, and when Rose got down there too we were all talking and sharing our pics with David. Not too much later, Kira and my hubby showed up, and I shared my experience with them. We waited, and more people started to pile in. Finally, it was showtime!!

I know most of you know the setlist, so I'll keep this part brief. :)

David opened his set with Paper Heart, which is one of my favorite songs off of TLM so I was excited. The moment he walked onstage, I was in awe of him yet again. The way he commands the stage he's performing on puts so many other artists to shame. His presence is truly magical.

The Last Goodbye- Again, this is one of my favorites from TLM. I love the cheekiness of it, and how energetic it is. David always seems to have a good time playing it too.

Carry You- This was the first new one he did that night, and I love it. I loved it before, but hearing it when you're in the same room as David bring's so much more beauty to it. I love the emotion he puts into the songs he writes, and I feel like this new album is going to reveal a whole different side of David that we didn't know exsisted, even while knowing how versatile he is musically.

Heroes/Champagne Supernova- I absolutely love the mashup of these two songs. David eases into CS so well from Heroes, it's like the two songs were meant to be together. Heroes was actually the first song David did at my first show of his back in '09, and I remember tearing up as I watched him on stage. No other artist has had that effect on me. As for Champagne Supernova, it's funny because I actually hated that song before David sang it. I don't know why, but I did. He interprets it so beautifully, though, that I can't help but love it now.

Let Me Fall For You- I was SO excited he did this song. It;s one of my favorite songs of his ever. I love everything about it. It's even better live than it is on TLM.

We Believe- I loved the energy of the crowd during this song, and I love this song period. Dave and the guys rocked it.

Eyes On You- I think this is my favorite new song of David's. I also agree it's the weirdest song he's ever written, but that makes it brilliant. He displays yet another side of himself with this one, and I love it. I love how he urges the crowd to dance during it, and he'll stopp the song if they don't. If you remember someone shouting "White guys don't dance", that was my husband. I can't tell you how proud I am to be married to that man. Seriously.

Wicked Game- Ok, I'm getting goosebumps thinking about this, It was SO amazing, haunting, beautiful, and all I could do while he was singing it was stare at that stage in awe of him. I have also been wanting him to cover Seal's Kiss From A Rose, and I feel like it would have the same effect as Wicked Game.

Fade Into Me/Time Of My Life- I love how he puts these two songs together too. I remember him talking about how when they were writing FIM, and they ended up with the same tune as TOML and Dave was all "no no no", so it's funny how he embraces that now.

Kiss And Tell- I really love this one too. David's lower register is SEXY! Seriously. What a range. This song is sexy too. I really loved the energy of it.

I'm Gonna Love You- This is the most beautiful song he's ever written, next to FHTZ. The emotion in it is so heartfelt, and it obviously comes from a deeper place than most other songs he's written previously.

Secret Garden- This was another beautiful cover. I love how when David covers a song, he interprets it as if he had written it himself. It takes someone special to pull that off, and it goes without saying that this guy is more than special.

Where Do We Go- I loved this one live. It's very easy to get stuck in your head. I love the overall vibe of the song and look forward to being able to put it on my ipod when the album comes out, and the same goes for the other new songs as well.

Come Back To Me- This one is one of my favorite songs to hear live. David sings it beautifuly, and it's one of my favorites from DCTR. This was also the last song before the encore. Dave and the guys left the stage for a moment, then returned a moment later to give us a little more before the night was officially over.

Light On- Another favorite from DCTR. I've always loved this one, and it gets better every time David does it.

Laying Me Low- I think this is another kind of weird one, but I love it so much. It shows...yup, you guessed it...ANOTHER side to David. I love the way it sounds live, but was sad Iwas in too much pain to do the stomp clap when the time came.

After that, it was over. David's shows are life a "Wizard Of Oz" dream. They seem to last forever, but they're over in the blink of an eye. Another thing I've noticed is that no two DC shows are ever alike, and that, in itself, is a rare thing with artists these days.

After a night of meeting my idol, fabulous music, awful jokes (What do you do when you see a spaceman...), and hanging out with amazing people, I was sad to see it end, but will cherish the memories forever.

Until next time...this is (not) the last goodbye!