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More than 4,000 Ramstein service and family members were rocked by the band Daughtry, comedian Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias and the Band of the U.S. Air Force Reserve during the Operation Seasons Greetings ― Tour for the Troops 2011 concert Dec. 10 on Ramstein. The concert, held at Hangar 1, rounded out their 13-day, six-country tour across Southwest Asia and Europe.
Daughtry completed the high-intensity concert with popular songs like “It’s Not Over” and “Feels Like Tonight;” he even made made a surprise encore to perform Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell.” “Tonight stood out for me, the crowd was phenomenal — huge … they were loud and participated the whole show,” said Chris Daughtry. “[Ramstein] made us feel very welcome; we feel very fortunate to be able to bring a little bit of home to them and take their minds off of what they do on a daily basis and try to entertain them a little bit.” Starting off the three-hour performance was the Band of the U.S. Air Force Reserve, who pumped up the crowd with their rendition of classic rock song “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey and pop icon Pink’s most recent single, “Raise Your Glass.”
“It’s an absolute pleasure and honor to give the Airmen here a taste of home,” said Senior Master Sgt. Mark Burditt, Band of the U.S. Air Force Reserve acting band manager. “After 30 hours of continuous rehearsal and months or preparation, it’s nice to see the smile on everyone’s faces; it’s gives us a sense of a job well done.”
“These entertainers are just as appreciative of the military as we are of them for coming out,” said Chief Master Sgt. Glen Barnes, chief of advertising for Air Force Reserve Command. “They are truly proud to be here.” Previous to Ramstein, the group made stops in Rota, Spain; Incirlik Air Base, Turkey; Manas AB, Kyrgyzstan and two other areas in Southwest Asia.
Next on stage was Iglesias, who was prepped and ready to go tickle the funny bones of all the Kaiserslautern Military Community’s members.
“We’re pumped up about this show, it’s the last show of many and we’re excited,” said Iglesias. “It’s been a lot of fun, the people have been amazing — they have made it so that we want to come back.
Before the lights came on and crowds began to roar, the 63 Airmen, techies, roadies and performers had to set up the stage from the ground up.
“We need at least six hours to completely set up all 15 pallets of gear and be ready,” said Burditt. We wouldn’t be able to keep up the intense burst through [Southwest Asia] without the help of the volunteers at each base; this trip was really a team effort.”
