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Date published: 11/29/2009
BY JAY PRICE McCLATCHY-TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan --There was no rock star, just an actor who likes to play the bass guitar.There were no smoke machines or lasers, just a low-grade sandstorm and the failing light of an Afghan winter afternoon on Tuesday. But for a crowd of 400 Marines, soldiers, sailors, airmen and contractors, Gary Sinise (above) and his Lt. Dan Band might as well have been U2. The crowd roared and snapped photos as the band--named for the character Sinise played in the movie "Forrest Gump"--ripped through a long set of high-energy cover tunes, including "Purple Haze," "Smooth" and "Sweet Home Alabama" in one of the couple of dozen USO shows it plays each year. The dust, the danger, the boredom all were gone for a couple of hours. "They're awesome," said Sgt. Kevin Hamlett, 24, of Durham, N.C. "Everybody here knows every word to every song they're playing, and they're great." The concert helped lift the burden of eight months in Afghanistan, he said. Lt. Dan brought some popular reinforcements: model Leeann Tweeden and actress Kristy Swanson. "We appreciate what you guys do for us, and we don't take your service for granted," Sinise told the hooting crowd. "We're not going to forget you." Sinise said this was the first time that Lt. Dan had been able to play overseas during the taping of his TV show, "CSI: NY." Usually, he said, he can get away only long enough to play weekend shows on U.S. bases. This time, though, he'd been able to get a couple of extra days off and bring the band to Afghanistan for Thanksgiving.
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