As we rode with Michelle at the wheel on the way to the Lakeview Amphitheater last night, Kristin reminded us of the upgrade option. She said the table would be greeting the four of us with the chance to trade in our lawn tickets to see Counting Crows and Rob Thomas – or Rob Thomas and Counting Crows, as far as my dear wife Karen and the women were concerned – for seats inside the pavilion.

And Syracuse had been hit, quite thankfully in this summer of thirsty drought, with a drenching downpour around two hours earlier, just when I’d gotten out of work from the library to drive home on a Friday from Liverpool to the city neighborhood of Eastwood.

We pondered. But we still took our bags-in-a-chair with us from the car. Kristin, being the only one of our four who’d actually sat inside, for the Dave Matthews Band, said we could lay them at our feet if we moved on up in the world. Or in, literally.

When we hit the table, we saw the price for to trade in was $15 per, on top of the original $20. I looked skyward and saw a mix of clouds and a bit of sun, a muggy August night if there ever were.

What the heck, Karen declared. We went for it.

Section 202, Row N, four together.

Worth it.

Hover over any gallery photo for a description. Click on an image for an enlarged slide show.

The folks outside looked … Outside.

Inside I felt dry. And closer to the stage than to the video screens.

Yay, us.

Whenever the women asked me who was coming on first of the headliners, I answered Counting Crows.

After interesting and unpublicized opener K. Phillips, under the wing of Counting Crows’ front man Adam Duritz, Rob Thomas took the stage to a big cheer, proving how much I know. Or prepare these days online.

The singer without his Matchbox Twenty mates was pretty dynamic, still. He’s been putting out melodic, interesting pop music for a lot of years solo now. I liked him when I interviewed him for the big daily. Nice guy. I like him now.

The viewing inside for the sunsets was still pretty special, too.

The sun did its thing to the west.

And the technical crew did its thing to the right. Together it looked pretty spectacular to my eye, yes.

Guess which special effects win out for me, though?

Counting Crows came on at last, and Adam Duritz sounded pretty dang strong, opening with Round Here

I thought of how I saw this band at the third Woodstock – my second – up the road at the old Griffiss Air Force Base, baking between the airstrips.

This rock holds up in my heart.

When the band ripped into Mr. JonesI started hopping up and down. A favorite, forever. Then I remembered to pull out my phone to capture some of this for you all. The video is down below.

Here’s a gallery of this and that.

Here’s Rob Thomas performing Mockingbird, caught with my iPhone 6.

Here’s my catch of Counting Crows staring with Round Here.

Here’s my mid-way entry to Mr. Jones, with a panoramic spin included.

men>Are you more of a fan of Rob Thomas or Counting Crows, and why? Which song of each do you favor, and why? Which is your favorite photo, and why?