Bret Michaels Visit to Bristol Brings Smiles and Frowns

BRISTOL, Tenn. – VH1’s “Rock of Love with Bret Michaels” star and lead singer of glam metal band Poison Bret Michaels appeared at the State Line Bar and Grille in Bristol, Tenn., on Sunday night.
He entered through a back door at about 11 p.m. with a smile. He exited the same way and also with a smile. Many a fan of Michaels’ also came and left happy, including Kelli Rogers of Knoxville, Tenn.
“Bret is awesome!” Rogers said.
Not everyone shared Rogers’ elation. Frowns replaced smiles on more than one face by night’s end, particularly on those who had hoped that Michaels would sing, which he did not.
Perhaps the most unhappy of the lot were Annette Estes and Amy Booher, owners of the State Line Bar and Grille.
“We asked Bret in the alley if he would sing a song,” Booher said. “He said his throat was too sore. He said, ‘Man, I can’t. I’ve done four shows in a row. My throat is too sore.’ ”
Neither Estes nor Booher were pleased. Each ticket for the event cost $55, a sum that Estes said would allow State Line to break even if all 300 possible tickets were purchased. Estes said 170 tickets were sold.
“We took an enormous loss tonight,” Booher said.
Pre-show publicity advertised the event as an appearance and did not specify a music performance by Michaels. However, Estes said that she was told before booking Michaels that he performed during “99.9 percent” of such events.
“I guess we’re the 0.1 percent,” Estes said.
The night started with promise.
Wide-eyed anticipation mixed with sweat on the steamy warm night on State Street. Hours and then moments before the rock star’s appearance, fans milled about inside the State Line and outside along the sidewalk.
Blond in a black and blue dress Angela Lee of Bristol, Tenn., stood just outside the State Line minutes before Michaels’ arrival.
“Bret Michaels is the greatest that ever was,” Lee said. “When I was 12, I had his pictures all over my walls. It was Bret Michaels and Motley Crue. Their music is awesome.”
About five minutes later, Michaels entered the club. A straw cowboy hat atop a blue bandana covered his shoulder length blond hair. Accompanied by his hulking 6’8” bodyguard, Michaels navigated a path that led from the far left end of the bar for about 30 feet to stage left.
A waist-high metal security gate separated Michaels from the fans.
Meantime, Michaels’ band Evick played thundering renditions of such classic rock songs as AC/DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long” and Guns N’ Roses’ “Paradise City.” Some fans danced to the music while others took little notice amid their quest to meet Michaels.
Paradise painted the faces of many a fan, most of whom were young and female. One of them was Rogers, who snagged two signatures from Michaels, one on a photograph and another on her.
“Oh, I would love to be on his ‘Rock of Love’ show!” Rogers said, proudly showing her newly Sharpie signed Bret Michaels’ autographed chest. “Woo hoo!”
Hers was not the only chest signed by Michaels. He signed bellies, tickets, photographs, T-shirts, CDs, albums and hats. He also smiled and posed with dozens of fans for photographs. That is, for those able enough to squeeze through the bellies-to-butts crush of a crowd to get close to him.
Just after midnight, Michaels exited from whence he came. Along the path from the stage to the bar, through a door and a small hall that led to an alley behind the State Line.
Michaels took a swig from a Corona that rested on a barrel in the dimly lit alley, posed for more pictures and signed a few more autographs for about 10 folks gathered therein. He was then asked why he didn’t sing. He pointed at his throat.
“My voice was just too sore tonight,” Michaels said, with a sheepish look.
He then climbed into the back seat of an idling black Chevy Tahoe, which backed out onto 7th Street, turned left on State and eased into the night.
Meanwhile, as she had several hours prior, Michaels’ fan Angela Lee stood at the entrance to the State Line. Only this time, she was not smiling.
“I’m [ticked],” Lee said. “We paid $180 to see him. That’s not fair. That’s what we came here exclusively for, to meet him.”
Lee said she was angry with the State Line and not Michaels.
“I blame this establishment,” Lee said. “I’ll love [Michaels] until the day I die.”
An exasperated Estes and Booher fretted afterwards regarding such reactions that pointed blame at the State Line.
“They told us he would do at least one [song] with Evick,” Estes said. “We are just as upset and probably more than the public.”

TOM NETHERLAND is a freelance writer. He can be reached at .