October 28, 2012
Last Saturday, Pat, Philip, and I went to Purdue to visit Ben and to see the live broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion radio show. We met up with Ben and his girlfriend, Amber Ellermann, and we made our way to the Elliott Hall of Music. The place seemed packed, so there must have been around 6000 or more in the audience. It was a very special performance, which included the Old Crow Medicine Show band and the Purdue Varsity Glee Club. The show’s regulars were also featured. For fans of the PHC, it was a classic show, with a little more music than usual, and a little less ‘talk’. Much to Ben’s chagrin, there was no Guy Noir segment. The Lake Wobegon portion was another interesting time as Garrison Keillor painted yet another a vivid picture with his words. We were entertained completely with the presentation. It was quite interesting to ‘watch’ a radio show and see the actors and musicians do what they do.
After a terrific supper at La Scala restaurant in downtown Lafayette, the return home was uneventful. It was a later-than-usual night, but so worth the trip!
You can see and hear clips and videos from the Purdue show of October 27th at the PHC website.
By clicking on the URL below, you can hear the entire broadcast. My favorite moments can be found at
16:00 Old Crow Medicine Show – Levi
35:16 Powdermilk Biscuits
57:00 Hail, Purdue!
58:37 Stars and Stripes Forever
69:10 A mellow song, On Fertile Ground, by music director Richard Doworsky,
73:30 The Glee Club’s version of It Is Well With My Soul
85:11 Well, it’s been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon, my hometown…
98:01 Old Crow Medicine Show, Ways of Man
113:50 End Credits
