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Bandit Brings Big Dog Lights to Toby Keith’s Big Dog Daddy Tour
Bandit Lites has teamed up again with lighting designer Seth Jackson and lighting director Eddie “Bones” Connell to light Toby Keith’s most recent ‘Big Dog Daddy’ tour. The two-time Academy of Country Music ‘Entertainer of the Year’ is touring through late September.
For their fifth tour together, Jackson says that Keith was looking for something different than his shows to-date. “In the past, we had always had some sort of theme to our set: a factory, a bar, outer space, and a game show,” explains Jackson. “This time, Toby wanted a clean, big, light show. We de-emphasized the video element, and ramped up the wattage.”
A key element to the current lighting design was the addition of the new Vari*Lite 3500 washes. Jackson said that he got a call one day from Mark Sissel, of TKO Management. Sissel told Jackson that his friend, Thommy Hall (of Genlyte) seemed to feel that the VL3500s would be online in time for the tour.
“I think all of us were excited to see this thing in action,” Jackson commented. “We had heard so much about its output and power. The result was even better than the hype. The light is a stunner. It just sliced through everything with such clarity and power. It became the backbone of our rig, and when combined with the new Syncrolite MX3k’s (also fresh on the market) we knew we had something fantastic.”
In addition to the VL3500 washes, Jackson rounded out the equipment list with Martin MAC 2000 washes, MAC 300s, Vari*Lite 3000 and 2500 spots, Martin Atomic strobes and scrollers, and PixelRange PixeLines. Lighting was controlled by two Whole Hog Iis and a wing.
Jackson says that lighting Toby Keith is never a challenge due to the unique relationship between Toby Keith, himself and Bandit Lites. “Everyone involved in both organizations are close friends, and Bandit has been with us from the start. Mike Golden, Mark Sissel and I just get on the phone together and work out the deal. If we have issues in the design phase, we can count on Dizzy Gosnell to work it out for us, and once it is in the hands of crew chief, Chuck Hastings and the fantastic lighting crew, we have no worries.”
29th August 2007
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