August 16, 2019: Bob Dorr (left) performs “Elvis in Paraguay” with three Elvis impersonators who crashed the concert at the MidAmerican Energy Stage at the Iowa State Fairgrounds.
My Iowa State Fair day(s) have typically ended with hypnotist Ron Diamond (except last year) and a shuttle ride around the campgrounds. But this year, when I looked at the schedule, I noticed Iowa music legend Bob Dorr was down for a gig at the end of the night.
I know of Dorr, and that his Blue Band officially wrapped up a 30-year-plus run in 2018 but he appears to be plugging along (when a couple old bandmates appeared, “we call it Deja Blue”). But I had never seen Dorr, and I figured that this would be a good a chance as any.
I was not disappointed.
A rotating group of more than a dozen musicians rocked the free stage for an hour and a half, including a 16-year-old who played about a quarter of a song behind his back(!). And then the Elvis impersonators showed up (top).
Bob Dorr (drum set) plays with some of a 16-person rotating set at the Iowa State Fairgrounds.
It may not have been a concert geared toward the young. But then, the Grandstand that night was someone who is more bro country than not, and I’ll take the talent Dorr and his crew showed off over that.