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“Sidewinder” blows troops away during farewell concert

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Eric Summers Jr.
  • 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST AISA --  The U.S. Air Forces Central Command Band "Sidewinder" sang their final goodbyes to the men and women of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing and partner units during a farewell concert Aug. 26 at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia.

The band kept the crowd buzzing with various genres of music ranging from rock to pop and hip-hop.

"I'm enjoying it..., it's modern and stuff I like to listen to and have on my iPod," said U.S. Navy Seaman Cody Chadwell, Command Task Group 57.1 avionics warfare operator deployed from Whidbey Island Naval Air Station, Wash.

Tech. Sgt. Jill Johnston from the 609th Air Operations Center, deployed from Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., said the show was amazing.

"I saw the YouTube video, which has close to 2 million views, and they did an amazing job so I wanted to see them in person and apparently they are doing their job," Johnston said. "The best part of the show was their energy."

This same energy was passed onto the crowd as members of the band selected spectators to show off their musical skills by helping them play "Sweet Home Alabama." The AFCENT commander and vice commander even performed on stage -- playing guitar and saxophone respectively.

The musical talent of the band helps boost the morale of servicemembers by providing them with a form of entertainment not seen every day in the Area of Responsibility.

"I'm loving it," said Tech. Sgt. Leslie Wagner, 379th Comptroller Squadron , who is deployed from Barksdale Air Force Base, La. "It breaks up the monotony [here], it makes you feel normal and brings everybody together and enjoy life."

The band has traveled to four countries throughout the AOR, breaking the monotony for not just Wagner but for thousands of deployed servicemembers.

"The opportunity to perform [for troops] is unique," said Capt. John Arata, officer-in-charge of "Sidewinder." "A commander will tell you troop morale is one of the biggest things."

The tour was an eye-opener for Arata.

"I got to see up-close the level of excellence that I see in my own career field," Arata said.

He also explained how audiences reacted to the music because the band performed songs that reflected the diversity of each audience.

"We play music from rock, country, pop and hip-hop and try to play it authentically so that people can escape in the music for a minute," he said.

The captain described his most memorable moment of a brief mental vacation for troops when they performed for the 380th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron. The concert took place during a time when most morale events are not scheduled with a goal of providing entertainment for servicemembers who usually miss out on the opportunity.

"During the performance the crowd was circling around us having a great time...and it felt like I was reaching someone," said Arata

He said it was a pleasure to serve alongside the deployed servicemembers in the crowd and that they are rock stars in their job and should keep on rocking.

The band will soon redeploy back to the Missouri National Guard after completing a 45-day rotation.