Kevin Costner and his Band Modern West to Play Strathmore April 5th

I shall never forget the time when I literally ran into the stunning wife of actor/musician/husband/daddy Kevin Costner,  Christine Baumgartner (immediate girl crush ensued) at The Cove in Atlantis in November of 2007 (http://www.pamelaspunch.com/from-the-cove-atlantis-back-to-real-life/).   Not that my friend and I were “stalking” Costner and his band Modern West, who were playing the resort that weekend, but we did see his name on the cabana list and we did deem it necessary to take a walk the long, long, long way, out of the way from our own cabana and water bed in order to well, let’s just say check out the scenery. Hey, it’s the Bahamas. Scenery is all around.  The worst part of the story is (the best is saving the Costner baby’s hat and handing it back to Mama) that after we strolled by the sunning guys, including Costner in his yellow trunks, on the beach, we came to a dead end and there was no way we could nonchalantly pass back by the group without them absolutely knowing, we had spotted them and were walking by.  I don’t even know if we had camera phones back then, but I do know I had my camera out and I totally chickened out.  This was not the band’s first rodeo and these guys were used to screaming fans, so I shouldn’t have felt to odd slinking past.

Kevin Costner and Modern West to play @ Strathmore April 5th

Costner and his band come to the D.C. area here and there; I remember a few years ago they were at the Birchmere in Alexandria.  This time, they return to the region and debut at Maryland’s Strathmore on Thursday, April 5, at 8 p.m.  Seriously, the man needs no introduction, but after doing some research on the “heart throb” (industry term) I learned he’s not your typical movie star/award winning/producer/director/Hollywood turned “So I think I can play guitar and sing thus, start a band” type.  He is quite the opposite.

Says CNN: “Truth be told, Kevin Costner and Modern West does not sound like a movie star’s vanity project. Costner sings about freight trains, dusty avenues and broken dreams…in faded jeans, he commands the stage with the same understated sex appeal he has on the big screen.”

Kevin Costner has always been close to music, learning guitar and piano as a child and singing in church choirs and school productions. He began performing as a musician before his movie career took off, sparked by meeting his future creative partner John Coinman in Los Angeles during an acting workshop. The two began playing and writing music together, forming the band Roving Boy with mutual friend Blair Forward, which experienced modest success just as Costner’s film career took off, leaving little time for their music pursuits. A nostalgic performance in 2005 encouraged the trio to resurrect the band, adding new members Teddy Morgan, Larry Cobb and Park Chisholm to the lineup under the moniker Kevin Costner & Modern West. The band has released four albums, including the 2011 release From Where I Stand.

For more information or to purchase tickets, call (301) 581-5100 or visit www.strathmore.org.

Listen to a sampling of his music at http://kevincostnermodernwest.com/.