John Schneider Takes the Drive In Experience to a Whole New Level

Related Stories

CRS50 with Missy: John Schneider

Since the onset of this Coronavirus pandemic, the music industry has had to get creative in order to keep itself alive. From live streams to social media takeovers, artists have found a way to keep their music in front of audiences. While we can all agree that seeing a live show in person is better, many artists have been forced to play to a camera and have not been able to feed off of the crowd's energy. 

Fortunately for fans, there are some artists that have found a great way to keep live concerts alive. On November 1st, 2020, Center Stage Magazine sent a married couple, Janice and Carey Faulkner, to photograph and observe John Schneider put on a drive-in concert along with the showing of his movie "Christmas Cars" at the Rock N Roll Drive-In located in Chaffee, Mo. 

Having been established in 1955, the Rock N Roll Drive-In was furnished with a unique movie screen in 1962 that consists of 10 slabs of concrete each of which is 8 feet wide set in vertical columns. In addition to the movie screen, a stage was created for Schneider to deliver a live performance to fans, making the drive-in concert experience more exciting for fans rather than paying high dollar amounts to simply watch a concert on the big screen.

In total, there were about 90 to 100 cars parked for the first show of this tour.  When I asked Janice to describe what she saw during the show she explained;  "During the concert, the crowd would honk their horns and flashed their headlights in applause.  At times people were sitting outside their cars in lawn chairs, but when the movie started many retreated to their vehicles since it was getting chilly.  John smiled while on stage and said, "This is FUN!"  Again the crowd went wild.  John made several references about the "new" country music and artists compared to the old and original country greats such as Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, George Jones.  He was hinting that he preferred the old country music but in a very nice way.  The crowd honked and flashed lights for their approval of his comments."  

There were many fun moments for fans such as a well-known fan dressed as "Uncle Jesse" greeting fans as they entered the gates, to P.J. Cross (Paul Michael Starnes) from Christmas Cars attending this special event along with Cody McCarver getting on stage to perform 6 songs as well. Schneider also held a contest for all of the vintage cars that showed up and awarded the "Bo's Choice Award" to a 1937 Buick.

Another observation noted by Janice was John's storytelling. "John talked about his new movie, Stand On It, and told the story about skipping school, jumping a fence, and eventually making an unaccredited appearance on Smokey and the Bandit.  He also told us an entire story about talking with Jackie Gleason."  Janice also shared that the fans in this small town simply did not want the night to end. "I don't think 1 car left until the credits were done rolling.  The crowd seemed to hope it wouldn't end.  No one got in a hurry to leave.  You could feel the small country town enjoying each other's company...even while social distancing.  Perfect evening."  

If you are looking for a good night out with fantastic entertainment, check out Schneider's website for more information on where he can be found next. This is one night you do not want to miss. ~Missy

*Photo Credit: Carey Faulkner