Best of the Best – Chisholm Country

Gimme Some Real Country: Legend Gene Watson and his Farewell Party Band “raise cane” to packed house at Bosque Arts Center’s Tin Building Theatre

When word got out that legendary Texas Country Music Hall of Fame artist and Grand Ole Opry inductee Gene Watson and his Farewell Party Band were coming to the Bosque Arts Center Saturday, Jan. 21 the BAC kept adding general admission seats to accommodate the demand. Sure, it might be a slow time in the social calendar, but still, it was exceptional to see the Tin Building Theater at the Bosque Arts Center brimming over with so many loyal fans.

After the 2022 Texas Troubadour People’s Choice winner Kris Tiscareno opened the show, the evening proved to be a true “The Best Of The Best” starting off with Watson’s slow song about a cheating couple “Between This Time and the Next Time,” followed by an upbeat “Raising Cane in Texas.” All in all, the audience were treated to a toe-tapping, head-bopping 17-song playlist, that included other hits like “Love in the Hot Afternoon,” “Fourteen Carat Mind,” and “Farewell Party.” And along the way, Watson, along with lead guitarist and band leader Chad Phillips, were a veritable comedy routine, dropping names of the songwriters and performers they worked with over the impressive span of Watson’s 60-year career.