20 August 2004
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Dancing on Bluegrass
Kenny Chesney, Unkle Kracker & Pal Pat Green Go Deep at the KY State Fair

   Louisville, KY: When Kenny Chesney played the Kentucky State Fair, it was to close the Margaritas'n'Senoritas Tour -- which ended up being the #3 ticket-seller last year -- and it was a night marked by guests (Tim McGraw, Montgomery Gentry), music and a lot of emotion ("when I realized the tour was ending, I just didn't want the night to be over..."). And when the Luttrell, Tennessean whose When The Sun Goes Down -- like his quadruple platinum No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems -- debuted at #1 on Billboard's all-genre Top 200 chart stood onstage last night, that moment wasn't lost on him.

   "Let me tell you a little story," he told the capacity-plus crowd. "Last year, we ended our tour here -- and for the next two-and-a-half months, the sound I heard in ringing in my ears was y'all. So I know you're gonna be wild tonight."

   Chesney's story was met with yowls of approval. And that was just the tip of the reasons to scream. In keeping with the way it's been on the Guitars, Tiki Bars & A Whole Lot of Love Tour, where John Mellencamp and Payton Manning were among the illuminati last week, Kenny Chesney found himself playing host to yet another non-tour guest: iconic Texas common man poet Pat Green.

   While the sturdy Texan was en route to his own show tonight (Aug 20) in Nashville, he stopped in at the Kentucky State Fair to see the man whose songs reflect the lives of the people who're buying enough tickets to again put Chesney as the third largest ticket this year behind Prince and Britney Spears. And in classic Chesney tradition, it wasn't long before Green was up onstage -- joining Kenny and Kracker in a soul deep rendition of "Drift Away."

   "Pat hit a couple notes that killed me," Chesney says, "but the highlight maybe of this part of the tour so far had nothing to do with singing at all! I had turned to sing to the other side of the stage, turned around -- and realized that Pat had grabbed Kracker and was leading him in this two-step and I about busted out laughing right there.

   "The sight of those two big guys... kinda lurching across the stage, yet looking so natural about it! I have to tell you: it was the funniest thing I've seen all tour. And that Pat Green is actually a really good dancer, even with a partner like that."

   Green also got points for being a gracious guest. As Chesney acknowledged, "And not only did Pat sing some great stuff, whirl Matt around, he made sure that everyone got their drink back during the encore, so nobody would have to leave the stage and their cocktail. Now that's what I call manners."

   For Green's part, it was just one more magical evening. "It's amazing. He blinks and they scream. He breathes and they scream. A bit of sweat breaks and they scream. I've been hearing about what he does for a long, long time -- and everything people say about the way Kenny hits a nerve with folks isn't even close!

   "Getting his drink was the least I could do. I mean, that's how my Mama raised me."

   The Guitars, Tiki Bars & A Whole Lot Of Love Tour creeps ever closer to its eventual tour end in Nashville on Sept. 11. Until then, look for more surprises, more guests, more fun and most of all more heart as the final shows take on more and more emotional resonance for the man whose already spent 8 weeks at #1 with "There Goes My Life," 6 weeks with his Unkle Kracker duet "When The Sun Goes Down" and a demi-residence with the self-penned celebration of music as a stamp for the moments that define our lives "I Go Back."

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