George Strait Delivers Country Like Music of Old and Best of the New
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S T R A I T T A L K George Strait Delivers Country Like Music Of Old And Best Of The New By Rick Mitchell - Houston Chronicle standard “Milk Cow Blues” with his recent less version of “Sweet Home Alabama?” Houston, Texas hit “Carrying Your Love With Me,” the During the breaks between sets on the point was made: It’s not about Young mainstage, up-and-coming acts Jesse If anyone had any lingering doubts, Country, or New Country, or Hot Country, Dayton, Big House and Shane Stockton George Strait has laid them to rest. In the or any other catchy real country, thank you performed on a second stage outside the world of mainstream country music, he’s very much. stadium. These acts offered a rough and still the man. Although he’s balanced traditional and ready contrast to the radio-safe sounds At a time when country music is experi- contemporary influences throughout his inside. encing flat sales and declining radio listen- career, Strait has never forgotten this basic Jesse Dayton kicked off the day’s music ership, Strait’s touring country music festi- truth. The same can’t be said for some of shortly after noon with a set that combined val with fellow stars Tim McGraw, John the other acts on the bill. rock energy and volume with hardcore Michael Montgomery, Faith Hill, Lee Ann In general, the women fared better than country soul. A native of Beaumont, Womack, Lila McCann and Asleep at the men. Womack was the most successful Dayton is signed to Houston’s Justice Wheel has been setting attendance records new country artist of 1997. Like Strait, she Records. His second album, “Wayward across the country. balances traditional and contemporary Soul,” is due out in August pending the The tour, which played to more than 1 influences, but her heart is clearly with the completion of partnership negotiations million people in 18 stops this spring, fin- former. between Justice and a major label. ished up in Houston under a blue clear sky Hill’s set was a revelation. Her albums Big House, a band from Bakersfield, Sunday before a crowd of more than are well-produced pop-country that only California, that released its second album 50,000 people at Rice Stadium. hint at the soulful power of her voice. The on MCA Nashville last week, performed Backed by his peerless Ace In The Hole sight of the singer, who is seven months two sets of bluesy country-rock. Lead Band, Strait closed the show with a superb pregnant, belting out a bloozy, rockin’ver- vocalist Monty Byrom recalled the Eagles’ set that lasted an hour and forty minutes sion of Rod Stewart and the Faces’“Stay Don Henley on the band’s current single, including encores. His arrival was preceded With Me” was priceless. the bittersweet balled “Faith,” while gui- by a 15-minute barrage of commercials on Hill reappeared during McGraw’s set to tarists David Neuhauser and Chuck Seaton the video screen at the side of the stage sing the duet “It’s Your Love.” The couple supplied taut rhythms and sizzling leads on highlighting the tour’s numerous corporate are married, and McGraw sang his hit “I the chugging country-rockers “Cold sponsors. Like It, I Love It” while holding their 1- Outside” and “You Ain’t Lonely Yet.” Strait is the strongest commercially viable year-old daughter. In the second set, the band stretched out a link between country’s glorious past in It was a poignant moment that can’t dis- slow blues that featured harmonica player honky-tonk and western-swing and its guise the fact that the song is country-disco Sonny California and Brian Thomas from watered-down pop-county present. pablum, as are too man of McGraw’s other Dayton’s band sitting in on pedal steel gui- As if trying to remind the youthful audi- hits. While he may be a Renegade, as he tar. Big House is not a traditional country ence what actual country music is supposed declares in one of his songs, he’s got a fac- band, but the traditional vs. contemporary to sound like, he opened his set with Bob tory-approved brand stamped on his hide. debate sometimes misses the bigger ques- Wills’“Take Me Back To Tulsa” and con- But the weakest link in the day’s chain tion: It is real music? tinued to balance his own hits with classic was Montgomery, who continues to squan- Dayton and Big House are both for-real covers by Wills, Merle Haggard, Conway der his early potential with such sappy dri- talents, and if the house of country music Twitty and others. vel as the current song “Love Workin’On isn’t big enough to accommodate them, When he followed the western-swing You.” And do we really need another end- maybe it’s time to build a new house. S T R A I T T A L K Daylong Country Fest Draws Legions By Michael Mehle - Rocky noon performances from honky-tonk stalwarts Auction Incident)” and “Sweet Home Mountain News, Denver, CO Asleep at the Wheel and top newcomers Lila Alabama.” Stadium shows routinely are big productions McCann and Lee Ann Womack. A year after Fellow hat-pack leader McGraw employed that match the egos of the stars on stage, such giving birth to her’s and McGraw’s first child the same sort of formula, but had a better start as the high-tech, top-dollar extravaganzas cap- and three months from delivering their second, (“Indian Outlaw”), and ending (“I Like It, I tained by U2’s Bono and the Rolling Stones’ Hill showed a touch of R&B and rock’n’roll Love It”). He also shared the evening’s most Mick Jagger. with rousing songs such as “You Can’t Lose emotional moment when wife Hill joined him Little wonder, then, that George Strait head- Sleep” and “Wild One.” Then she blew her set on stage for the heartachingly tender “It’s Your lined his own festival Sunday at Mile High open with a cover of Rod Stewart and the Love.” Stadium with a stage that had lost of lights but Face’s “Stay With Me.” You could see lightbulbs flashing like fireflies little else. As plain-spoken as he is popular, the Montgomery couldn’t keep the momentum, as all over the stadium as th couple met at the shy Texan opted to wow the crowd with his his set was weighed down by his weepy piano center of the stage and swayed arm-in-arm classic country sound rather than any extracur- ballads and didn’t hit high gear until the ener- while the crowd carried the chorus. ricular props or pyrotechnics. getic ending of “Sold (The Grundy County Of course, he did have his stellar Ace in the Hole ensemble, which played “Down In The Heart Of Texas” as Strait ambled onto stage wearing a red shirt, creased Wranglers and a Hot Times At Carter Finley big, bashful grin. For the next 90 minutes, the 46-year-old By Jack Bernhardt - Raleigh, NC ence, which sang enthusiastically on such singer and his band stuck to classic country, The hottest country show of the year hit radio favorites as “Don’t Take The Girl” and loaded with all the twang allowed by law. His town on the hottest day of the year, as the “I Like It, I Love It.” But the biggest moment style shifted throughout the evening, ranging George Strait Country Music Festival played came when McGraw was accompanied on from Western swing to honky-tonk to blues to to a festive crowd Saturday at Carter-Finley stage by his wife, Faith Hill, who is pregnant ballads. There was nothing overly fancy about Stadium. with their second child. Hill and McGraw the show, but Strait’s genuine touch was The 9-1/2 hour extravaganza began at 1 p.m. seemed to glow with affection as they joined enough to send couples out into the aisles to with the Western swing band Asleep at the on their hit duet, “It’s Your Love.” slow dance to such tender ballads as “I Can Wheel, and ended about 10:30 with superstar Finally, at 8:40, it was the big man’s turn. Still Make Cheyenne.” headliner George Strait. In between, fans Backed by his superb eight-piece Ace in the Most of the fans (though not all) even stuck enjoyed a parade of artists, representing state- Hole Band, Strait delivered a 27-song, 100- with Strait as the night grew colder and the of-the-art country music: teen sensation Lila minute set as inspired and artful as any coun- rain fell harder. After all, some came from as McCann, traditionalist Lee Ann Womack, try performance to hit the Triangle in recent far away as South Dakota and Wyoming and country-pop stylist Faith Hill, balladeer John memory. His playlist ranged throughout his waited eight hours or longer for the singer to Michael Montgomery and country-rocker Tim 17-year career and included such fan favorites cap the all-day fest that’s traveling to 18 U.S. McGraw. as “The Chair,” “Amarillo By Morning,” cities this summer. With temperatures in the low 90s, and even “Cross My Heart,” “I Can Still Make It’s tempting to tag Strait’s fete as a hotter at stage level on the field, fans sought Cheyenne” and “The Cowboy Rides Away.” Lollapalooza with 10 gallon hats, but that relief in the covered concourse or outside the He also showcased songs from his latest CD, would be slighting Sunday’s event: stadium at “Straitland,” a combination amuse- “One Step At ATime,” with Robert Earl Lollapalooza never attracted 50,000 people, ment park, food court and headquarters for Keen’s “Maria,” the rockabilly bopper, “We and its appeal wanted to the point of needing a the concert’s corporate sponsors.