Lawrence’s Windsor Medium finds something to Crow about

If hitting it big in the music business has much to do with being in the right place at the right time, then Windsor Medium is having its share of success.

The Lawrence band’s next gig is playing for an audience of about 20,000 opening for pop-rock diva Sheryl Crow. The concert is Saturday at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, with Crow headlining the event and newcomer Michelle Branch performing in between.

Windsor Medium members Jarod Stevenson, left, Kevin Gosa and Matt Cox will open for Sheryl Crow at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater on Saturday.

“It hasn’t hit me,” Jarod Stevenson, the band’s drummer, said of the opportunity to share the crowd with Crow. “It probably won’t until we get there.”

A chance meeting with a marketing director from 96.5 “The Buzz” FM radio station sealed the deal for the show. Matt Cox, singer/songwriter for Windsor Medium, confirmed the introduction led to an incredible opportunity to get the act’s music out there.

“She (a 96.5 FM employee) said we get requested all the time on their local show (and) asked if we’d fit in with a Sheryl Crow-type atmosphere,” Cox recounted a visit with “The Buzz” employee last month during a Cake concert at the River Market in Kansas City. “I, of course, said yes.”

Windsor Medium will play on what’s known as the “second stage,” just next to the main stage. The trio is scheduled to appear at 7:30 p.m.

“It’s a place where up-and-coming bands get to display their talent in front of the masses,” said David True, promotions director for 96.5 “The Buzz.” “It’s a real opportunity, much different than playing the local bar scene.”

According to True, various radio stations will reserve the stage to feature area bands depending on the event. Ryan Patrick Imming, an area artist from Kansas City, Mo., also will perform Saturday night.

Windsor Medium only has been around for one year. The three-piece has already gone through one lineup change. And trying to juggle the members’ work schedules makes it almost impossible to believe that in a day they’ll be sharing Crow’s crowd.

The showWhat: Windsor Medium, Sheryl Crow, Michelle Branch, Ryan Patrick ImmingWhen: 7:30 p.m. SaturdayWhere: Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Bonner SpringsTicket price: $15-$35Ticket information: (913) 721-0001

“It just one of those things that shouldn’t be happening,” Stevenson said. “Given all our circumstances we haven’t done much this summer. So when you come home and your wife tells you to call Matt, you’re opening for Sheryl Crow, I was like, ‘Surely she’s got her information messed up.'”

The Lawrence band is named after the Windsor Burger, Cox’s favorite menu item at Molly McGee’s, 2429 Iowa.

“Yeah, it sounds cheesy … I always order it medium,” Cox said.

The band cooked up its first album, “Give Her Away,” earlier this year and hopes to have a second out by January. Saturday, Windsor Medium will play about seven songs, including the single, “Superstar,” plus two cuts from the new album.

“The lyric content and the overall attitude of the band is an in-your-face, real-life sort of approach. Some of it is poppy and some of it just really rocks,” Cox explained.

When describing the opportunity to deliver its tunes to such a wide audience, Kevin Gosa exclaimed, “It’s awesome.”

The bassist and newest member has known both Cox and Stevenson for several years. All three have an extensive musical background, playing with various groups in the past.

Together as Windsor Medium, Saturday will mark the ensemble’s biggest gig yet. It’s a colossal career move with another opportunity for chance meetings, another opportunity at being in the right place at the right time.

“The managers (of Crow and Branch) may come check out the band, which they frequently do. It’s kind of like a scouting thing,” Cox said, setting his sights toward the future. “The possibilities of networking with the management there, I mean, there are endless possibilities.”