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Urban and Aldean keep the electricity charged
at Country Thunder

Country Thunder 2017
Shadow Hill Ranch
Twin Lakes, WI
July 22 - 25, 2017

Review and photos by Bill Stephens

Country Thunder fans

THUNDER DAY 1

Day 1 at Country Thunder in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin was a hot and humid day that followed a night of regional rain storms that dumped inches of soaking rain coupled with an amazing lightning show. The camping and parking areas have already turned to mud pits and we anticipate more as the weekend continues.

Opening at the main stage was Dorado and band out of Nashville who did not fail to entertain. Following Dorado was Runaway June also out of Nashville however these three ladies each have interesting backgrounds. One of them is related to a very famous Hollywood actor - I recommend you not only listen to their amazing harmonies but check out their bio as they are individually interesting.

Following up after June was Chase Bryant - a 23 year old Texas boy that comes from a long line of musical talent [his grandfather was a piano player for Roy Orbison] and Chase is a very accomplished guitar player in his own right. The energy and sound that came out of this small three piece ensemble was nothing short of impressive.

After a short break to change the set, Dallas Smith began his set - I have had the opportunity to see and hear Dallas on a number of occasions and he has never disappointed me. Dallas a multi award winning artist hails from Canada and always closely interacts with the audience using audience cell phones to pose for "selfies" and take video's while moving around the stage and runway all the while keeping his strong vocals moving the music. Dallas was a great choice to warm up the audience for tonight's headliner Bill Currington.

Currington's set was lit well and designed to keep the focus on him and his vocals. While it was a hot and humid night he kept his set moving with a mix of grooving and of course drinking songs.

Let's not forget the men and women of the stage crew that without them we would not have a location that takes the music and adds a visual level of enjoyment. Without their hard physical work, transforming a flat piece of concrete in a short day and a half to a stage is nothing short of a miracle, and they do this day in and out everywhere they go.

Looking forward to Friday's headliners winding up with Keith Urban. Enjoy the weather as we are truly entering the dog days of summer.

Billy Currington

Chase Bryant

Country Thunder fans

Dallas Smith

THUNDER DAY 2

Day 2 of Country Thunder was nothing short of all inclusive. We had continued oppressive heat - heart indices of 103F - Oh and the "F" is what Mother Nature was planning for us all day. We started out wet from sweat and ended with drenching rain that started just before Dan & Shay went on and continued long into the night.

The first act that I caught was Brandon Ray - a west Texas native that started learning music early, bought his first guitar at 13 and with well rounded influences thanks to his parents love of music he was exposed to the likes of Johnny Cash to Stevie Ray Vaughan. His dad loved rock and mom held the country influence. He was on the road at 18 and played 750 shows in three years. As an opening act he came to play and he delivered.

Next up was Restless Heart - 34 years and still going strong - With all of the original members and if you closed your eyes. Well it sounded just like 34 years ago. The harmonies are still dead on and I never heard one voice waver and the instrumental was dead on, just like the studio recordings.

Following Restless Heart was Michael Ray - out of south Florida with musical roots that run deep - his Grandfather taught him guitar. Granddad was a local country and gospel musician and even gave him first performance experience letting him tag along for his shows. Instead of moving to Nashville he chose to grind into the music scene in south Florida and as he built a following and sold out shows at The House of Blues in Orlando. Today's show was electric and he delivered that energy straight to the audience.

Next up - Frankie Ballard - from Battle Creek Michigan, no longer new in Country Music since he started in 2011 he has released four albums. His show reflected his musical ability, guitar work was great as usual. I would have liked to see him work the audience a bit more, maybe setting this guitars wireless so he would be capable of using the entire stage area and spending some close contact with his fans.

After Frankie next up was Dan & ShayÉ before they even took the stage the skies opened up and started to drench the festival grounds - when it finally did stop it left puddles, mud bogs and small rivers where dry dirt and grass once was. Dan and Shay brought their hooped-up performance to us as the rain poured on. They never let it bother them and the audience kept up the enthusiasm.

Keith Urban came out on the runway while the rain was poring straight into the masses and played to and with the audience. He even held an interactive sing along, well no words just sound and had the audience echo back the same sounds. It worked so well Keith dropped to his back on the runway splashing in the water soaked carpet.

So that's it for Day 2 - The rain continued all night and I am sure there were many adventures in the camping areas that we should never be talking about here.

Keith Urban

Frankie Ballard

Country Thunder fans

THUNDER DAY 3

Day 3 was a nearly a perfect day, although hot [103 heat index], high humidity and the grounds swampy in places and muddy in the rest. The day started out with my attempting to dry out my camera equipment and still maintain some sort of shooting schedule.

While I was unable to shoot the first three acts I was able to hear the performances.

Morgan Evans - another talent from Australia with a solid sound and the winner 2016 CMA Global Artist of the Year award. Morgan has released two EP's and has had some success with music released in 2014. Morgan just this last Friday released his first single "KISS SOMEBODY" He is also currently working on his debut album for Warner Music Nashville. Engaged to Kelsea Ballerini last Christmas they are planning the wedding for the end of this year.

Ryan Hurd - This "Love in a Bar" singer had a solid performance and is also a soon to be married man - Ryan met his now Fiancé Maren Morris in 2013 while in a song writing session which resulted in the Tim McGraw song "Last Turn Home" and have been close friends ever since.

William Michael Morgan was up next after a quick set change. Hailing from Mississippi and signed to Warner Bros Nashville. His debut album VINYL is a collection of songs about rowdy people and of course drinking. His music is classic country for people who love God and Country.

Next to hit the stage was CAM. Cam's bubbly personality really gave this middle set an energy and just plain fun. She played to and with the audience and they clearly loved it. I heard some talk about her shoes and well I'm a guy so to us shoes protect the bottom of your feet - but I guess her shoes were much talked about. Now as a guy we would notice her wild curly hair reflecting the bright sun and tight white slacks and as always Cam wears them well. Her voice is always nothing short of amazing and as a photographer she is always easy to photograph.

Tucker Beathard, signed to DOT records in 2016, is a drummer turned guitarist and son of a Nashville songwriter, turned in a solid performance and he will only get better with time. Tucker's set started with him behind the mike but as his set progressed he did venture out onto the runway to interact with the audience.

Old Dominion, this five member band formed in Nashville 2007, came to show that they are headliner material. They were visibly having fun while delivering their music from their heart to yours. The band was originally formed to show off the songs that were written by individual members for other artists such as The Band Perry, Chris Young, Kenny Chesney and many others. I enjoyed their show and their musicianship is second to none.

Thomas Rhett - a truly prolific song writer and now a superstar performer that has built a following based on music that not only tells a story but stirs up your insides. His Die a Happy Man release is a tribute to his wife and how he feels about her. Married since 2012 and now a family man of a beautiful adopted daughter and now a new addition due in the next couple of weeks. The audience reaction and interaction was something to see and hear.

That sums up the musical acts of day 3 at Thunder - there of course were other attractions from the food to the "Ultimate Redneck Wedding" which happened at 1PM.

Thomas Rhett

Old Dominion

CAM

CAM

CAM

COUNYTRY THUNDER DAY 4

Started out with a rain storm that left an already soaked festival grounds with a large pond at the front of the general admissions area that without the sandbags would have washed huge amounts of water and mud into the lower VIP seating area.

This storm was heavy enough to delay the start of the first show by around an hour and a half and by the time Jason Aldean took the stage the stage crew had nibbled away at that lost time and brought the delay down to only thirty minutes.

High Valley went on in the rain and never let it bother them and as they played through their set as the rain stopped and the party started. High Valley held an impromptu dance off and the winner danced away with some swag from the band. High Valley is a country music duo active since 1997 and used to have one additional brother until 2014. Originally from LaCrete Alberta Canada, a family based Mennonite community. In 2015 they signed with Atlantic Records Nashville and soon after the single "Make You Mine,' was released. They truly enjoy what they are doing and it is reflected in their music and the close audience interaction.

Next up was Tracy Lawrence hailing from the '90s honky-tonk country scene. Born in Texas and grew up in Arkansas. After playing on the local Honky-Tonk circuit Tracy moved to Nashville in 1990 and after winning a showcasewas signed to Atlantic in 1991 after which his debut album Sticks and Stones was released. Tracy's set was true traditional country without the flare, but all about the music and the message.

Maddie and Tae a country duo signed to Dot Records. Starting with their breakout single "Girl in a Country Song" 2015, climbed the charts to #1 and was certified platinum. Their single also scored 38 million views and the CMA video of the year. I have seen them perform a number of times and they are more pleasing every time I see them.

Big & Rich - a country duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich, both are songwriters, vocalists and guitarists. John Rich was a bass player for the band Lonestar and Big Kenny was a signed solo artist. When Big & Rich were formed and their first studio album Horse of a Different Color was released in 2004 that garnered four straight top 40 hits. They also have collaborations with a number of artists and also have their own label "Big & Rich Records." Their shows are always a colorful tapestry of surprises.

I never get tired of seeing the talented Jason Aldean. Jason always wears his signature flannel shirt, hat and torn jeans. His band, well they are as close as it gets to bringing the studio sound live as you can get. Just close your eyes and you would swear it was a recording - even when words are substituted to match the venue we are at. Jason closed out the festival on a high note and finally in comfortably dry weather.

Looking forward to next years line up and yes even the unpredictable weather because without the surprises, it just wouldn't be Country Thunder.

For everything Country Thunder and to order 2018 tickets visit www.countrythunder.com.