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Entertainment

Hats off to Country Concert at Hickory Hill Lakes lineup

Diversity of acts reflects genre's varied sounds, themes

By Carol Simmons

Staff Writer

Sunday, July 06, 2008

FT. LORAMIE — You just can't stereotype country music and its fans.

Oh, people try.

They see a peg and try to find a hole in which to pound it. But often as not, the peg and the hole don't match.

Yes, there are markers. Cowboy hats. Steel guitars. Rural roots. Yet nothing holds true across the board.

This year's Country Concert at Hickory Hill Lakes is a prime example. The annual four-day event — one of the largest of its kind in the state — features a slate of popular national acts that together offer a collective snapshot of contemporary country music.

And it's not as simplistic as the peg pounders like to think.

Some of today's biggest stars are on the lineup that runs Thursday, July 10, through next Sunday, July 13.

The Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music's reigning Entertainer of the Year, Kenny Chesney, for one, is the Friday night headliner; while hit-maker, reality TV star and political talk show pundit Trace Adkins is set to close out the Saturday night bill.

And yes, there will be cowboy hats. But Rodney Atkins, who has had four No. 1 singles off his sophomore album, "If You're Going Through Hell," always sports a simple ball cap; while baritone-voiced Josh Turner, a newer inductee into the Grand Ole Opry, isn't alone in not wearing any hat at all. Both Atkins and Turner have one-hour Saturday evening sets.

And of course there's bound to be some steel guitars, but the electric kind will dominate next weekend. Such performers as Travis Tritt (Thursday's headliner) and Billy Ray Cyrus (who opens Saturday's show) explore the rock and pop edges of country music; while the veteran band BlackHawk (performing Sunday afternoon) plays a solid country-rock hybrid.

And while the rural tradition of country music remains an enduring theme, the lives detailed in a song by Phil Vassar (Sunday's headliner) are just as authentic to the experiences of people in urban and suburban settings as they are to small-town America.

Country music, according to Willie Nelson, is the place where people tell their life stories. That's what makes it unique, and that's what makes it special.

It's not defined by a hat, or an instrument, or even a setting. It's as variable as the people of this nation. What ties it together is a sense of real life, real emotion — whether sad, happy or even at times just plain silly.

It speaks a truth that can't be typecast.

Contact the reporter at (937) 225-7309 or

csimmons@DaytonDailyNews.com.

How to go

What: Country Concert at Hickory Hill Lakes

When: Thursday, July 10, through next Sunday, July 13; concert grounds open at 8 a.m. daily

Where: Hickory Hill Lakes campground and RV park, 7103 Ohio 66, just south of Ft. Loramie, in Shelby County

Admission: Costs vary depending on seating and days attending

Camping: RV and tent camping available for an additional fee; arrival date depends on camping style and site, with the earliest arriving today, June 6

For more information: Call (937) 295-3000 or go online to www.countryconcert.com

Main Stage schedule

Thursday

6 p.m.: Heidi Newfield, formerly of Trick Pony

8 p.m.: Neal McCoy

10 p.m.: Travis Tritt

Friday

10 a.m.: USA Karaoke Finals

4 p.m.: Lady Antebellum

6 p.m.: Jake Owen

8 p.m.: Tracy Lawrence

10 p.m.: Kenny Chesney