{image1}When the BoDeans took the stage at approximately 9:50 p.m. Friday, you knew it was to be a special night. Every “main stage” show by Kurt and Sammy is something special, but this one just had the feeling of “maybe this is the last time.”

The opening number, “Dreams” made our feeling real and the night seem even more special. This is, after all, as Sammy proclaimed four songs into the set, “Milwaukee’s band” and Milwaukee came out to thank them for nearly 20 years of songs and spirit.

On Friday night, the band had amazing drummer Kenny Aronoff back in the mix, and took the headline gig away from the Wallflowers. Unlike their Pabst Theater show last New Year’s Eve, they kept the number of new tunes to a minimum. They apparently felt, like many in the nearly 80 percent full crowd, that this could be the final Summerfest show. So, it was time for a greatest hits parade.

Of course “Naked,” “Feed the Fire,” “Texas Ride Song,” “Only Love, and “Fadeaway” were on the list, but we also were pleasantly surprised to hear “You don’t get much.” But, sorely missed were “Idaho,” “Angles,” “Paradise” and “Misery.” But you can’t cram every song into two hours.

What the BoDeans did do, though, in their two-hour set was thank their hometown for its intense loyalty with non-stop energy and a non-stop rolling clip of old-school videos and images of the golden BoDeans years of the late '80s and early 1990s. Hey Sammy, what was with the hair!?

Seeing the BoDeans at Summerfest just makes everything in the world seem okay. They belong and they appreciate their place in Fest history. Friday’s performance, with its rousing “Good Things” and party time “Closer to Free," solidified the band’s place in Milwaukee music and Summerfest history.