MAIN STAGE 2009
| Thursday July 2nd | Friday July 3rd | Saturday July 4th | Sunday July 5th |
| Jimi Jamison | Loverboy | Aaron Tippin | Caddle with Special Guest Lynn Allen |
Jimi Jamison
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Continuously acclaimed as one of the Top Ten Male Vocalists in the World, Jimi Jamison delivers a strong and powerful performance. "I`m Always Here", which he wrote and performed for the number 1 TV show worldwide, "Baywatch", is certain to solidify his standing as one of the premier performers in the music industry today.
From humble beginnings in rural Mississippi to established superstar in Memphis, Tennessee, his achievements call to mind the other Memphis Rock and Roll Legend, whom Jimi met as a young boy while Elvis was on one of his famous shopping sprees. Like Elvis, Jimi has never forgotten from whence he came, and continues to be dedicated to benefits assisting St. Jude Children`s Hospital, The Special Olympics and the ARF Foundation, with Tony LaRussa of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Beginning with the nationally acclaimed band Target in the 1970's, Jimi continued his rise to stardom with Cobra through the early 1980`s. In 1983, he joined Survivor as the group was to go on to enjoy five singles in the Top Ten, four gold, and double platinum albums and multiple movie soundtracks. His renditions of "Eye of the Tiger" from Rocky and "Burning Heart" from Rocky IV thrill concert audiences to this day.
Other fan favorites include "High On You","The Search is Over" and "I Can`t Hold Back", all delivered with crisp, clean live band backup for the strong voiced Jamison. The explosive "Rock Hard" from Jimi`s 1991 solo album, "When Love Comes Down", also features the unmistakable power of Jamison`s voice.
In addition to his career as a lead vocalist, he has also made six music videos and has made multiple television appearances. He has served on the Grammy Awards Committee and is a member of AFTRA, SAG, and NARAS. He has performed back up vocals for recordings by ZZ top, Krokus, Jeff Healy Band, and numerous other recording artists. Jimi has co-written songs with musicians such as Joe Walsh. Billy Gibbons refers to Jimi as the fourth member of ZZ Top.
Jimi has never forgotten from whence he came, and continues to be dedicated to charity work such as: St. Jude Children's Hospital, Ronald McDonald House, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, Dove House for Abused Children, WTC Relief, Special Olympics, Make-A-Wish Foundation, The Cancer Society, Fergie's Hep C Benefits, George Klein's famous annual Christmas Charity Show and Auction, The Children's Diabetes Foundation, The Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Telethon, the ARF Foundation (headed by Tony LaRussa of the St. Louis Cardinals), and the Toys for Tots programs nationwide.
He has been recognized by the Governors of Tennessee, Ohio and Arkansas for his work on and off the stage and he commands a loyal and dedicated following appearing at each of his concerts.
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In 1980 LOVERBOY introduced themselves to the world with their self-titled debut album. They quickly became one of America's and MTV's most popular rock bands. From 1980 through 1987 LOVERBOY garnered four multi-Platinum albums and numerous international Gold albums. Their tours sold out arenas and stadiums nationwide. Their hit singles came one after another, and went on to become the anthems and party songs of an entire generation of rock concert going fans. LOVERBOY’s red leather pants, bandannas, and big rock sound defined the band’s trademark image and high-energy live show.
LOVERBOY, driven by the powerful vocals of Mike Reno, the relentless rock groove of lead guitarist Paul Dean, bassist Scott Smith, keyboardist Doug Johnson and drummer Matt Frenette, built its reputation on-stage, bringing the energy from their radio hits to coliseum rousing excitement.
LOVERBOY’s inception began in Calgary, Canada, when Mike Reno was introduced to Paul Dean at The Refinery Night Club. Dean was rehearsing a new band out back in a warehouse with a friend of Reno’s and Mike stopped by to jam. Dean heard him sing a couple of songs and that was that! Over the next few weeks, Dean and Reno began writing songs on guitar and drums. Doug Johnson who at the time was in another Canadian recording band began to hang out and jam with Dean and Reno. It was during one of those jam sessions with Reno on drums and Dean on bass that Turn Me Loose and LOVERBOY was born.
After being rejected by all the major U.S. record companies LOVERBOY signed with Columbia Records Canada. On March the 20th, 1980, LOVERBOY went into the studio with producer Bruce Fairbairn and engineer Bob Rock to record their self-titled debut album -- LOVERBOY. The summer of 1980 saw the record fly out of the stores setting record sales for a debut album -- over 700,000 records in Canada. Columbia U.S. had no choice but recognize that 700,000 people could not be wrong. The U.S. released the album in November 1980 and by April 1981, it had gone GOLD. LOVERBOY’s debut album went on to sell more than 2 million albums in the U.S. and 4 million worldwide.
Soon the band found themselves playing on mega tours with Journey, Bob Seger, Cheap Trick, ZZ Top, Kansas and Def Leppard, to name a few; they quickly became MTV darlings, being one of the first bands ever featured on the music channel. Between dates,( over 200 shows in 1981) the band wrote and recorded their second multi-platinum selling album. In 1981, GET LUCKY was released. It featured Working For The Weekend, When It’s Over, Take Me To The Top, Only The Lucky Ones, Jump, etc. GET LUCKY, and the band’s enormous touring success, led LOVERBOY in 1982, to an unprecedented six Juno Awards, Canada’s highest music award. This record still stands today.
In 1983, LOVERBOY released their third album KEEP IT UP, and launched another extensive eight-month world tour. With Hot Girls In Love and Queen Of The Broken Hearts burning up the airwaves they were soon recognized as one of the hardest working bands with a must-see live show.
LOVIN’ EVERY MINUTE OF IT, the band’s fourth album it hit the airwaves, and landed them as one of the Top Five grossing touring acts, performing in over 100 cities across the U.S. and Canada. Their success earned them the title of becoming the first Canadian group to earn Columbia Records’ exclusive Crystal Glove Award, celebrating the sale of over five million albums outside their native country.
In 1986 LOVERBOY recorded Heaven In Your Eyes, for the soon to be blockbuster movie – TOP GUN. The single went Top 5 on Billboard’s chart. This was followed by the 1987 release of WILDSIDE -- LOVERBOY’s last studio album of the 1980’s.
After nine years of being ruled by LOVERBOY’s agenda of recording, touring, television appearances, videos, and hoards of interviews Paul, Mike, Matt, Doug and Scott decided to take a rest from the band and each other. The year was 1989.
In the late fall of 1992, LOVERBOY re-united to join Bryan Adams, Bon Jovi and other stars to help raise money for cancer-stricken friend and fellow recording artist Brian ‘Too Loud’ McLeod. Unrehearsed, and three years since their last performance, the band hit the stage running. The music industry-dominated crowd loved what they saw and were reminded of why LOVERBOY was such a great live band. Mike, Matt, Doug, Scott and Paul felt they this was the most fun they had had in years. They wanted to do it again.
This time LOVERBOY decided to have some fun. They got into their own cars and drove around Western Canada doing selected dates. They were back doing what they loved -- performing live.
In 1993 the band decided to go back into the U.S. with some trepidation -- LOVERBOY did 64 concert dates. There was no reason to be nervous. The fans came back out and brought new ones with them. Sony/Legacy released a new greatest hits album entitled, LOVERBOY – CLASSICS. By now, the band had been touring every year since 1993 doing shows with old friends such as Foreigner, REO Speedwagon, Cheap Trick, Night Ranger, Eddie Money. In 1998 they performed over 95 concerts in the U.S. alone. Old habits die-hard -- still relentlessly touring. A direct result of touring was that in the U.S. in 1998 LOVERBOY – CLASSICS went GOLD.
Buoyed by their new GOLD record, LOVERBOY management and Sony/Legacy started to exchange ideas on a live album. Having never released a live record it was decided it was time. Live recordings had to be relocated. They had to be carefully handled because most of the live concert recordings had being lying dormant for over 15 years. Members of the band worked with Al Quaglieri [Sony Producer] to refurbish the recordings. Finally, after two years of work, in the summer of 2001, Sony/Legacy released the first ever live greatest hit’s cd from
LOVERBOY’s iintense touring years of 1982 – 1986 titled “ LIVE, LOUD & LOOSE”. Joining Sony/Legacy’s best-selling “Live from the Vaults” series that has unearthed live recordings by Janis Joplin, The Byrds, Cheap Trick, Carole King, Ted Nugent, Santana and others, LOVERBOY’s “LIVE, LOUD & LOOSE” is a collection of live recordings captured on tape from some of their most exciting concerts. Recorded for Westwood One’s syndicated radio series at concerts in Pittsburg, La Crosse and their hometown of Vancouver, the cd contains 14 previously unreleased live concert recordings featuring LOVERBOY’s mega hits which include: Working For The Weekend, Lucky Ones, Lady Of The 80’s, Take Me To The Top, Jump, This Could Be The Night, Dangerous, Lead A Double Life, When It’s Over, Queen Of The Broken Hearts, Lovin’ Every Minute Of It, Hot Girls In Love, Turn Me Loose and The Kid Is Hot Tonite.
In conjunction with the release of “LIVE LOUD & LOOSE” LOVERBOY toured the US and Canada in support of their latest collection. The tour was dedicated to the memory of their friend and late bassist Scott Smith, who was declared lost at sea on November 30th 2000. With the cd also dedicated to Smith,” LIVE LOUD & LOOSE” serves as a special memory for the band that has been together since 1980.
LOVERBOY celebrated 25 years together in 2005 by performing in selected cities throughout the US and Canada to mark this milestone.
Aaron Tippin
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The hardest workin man in country music is back and ready for action. Though he was still touring heavily, he had not recorded new material for 3 years. After a 3 year break from recording, Aaron Tippin is now ready to share his new music with his devoted fans and catch some new ears along the way too.
After Aaron Tippin parted ways with Lyric Street records in 2004, he began recording a brand new CD that he released on his own label called NIPPIT RECORDS (which is TIPPIN spelled backwards). The album is titled "Now & Then" and is a mixture of new songs with some of Aaron's greatest hits. Included in the brand new CD is a song that Aaron and his wife Thea wrote about his father who passed away a couple of years ago. The song is titled "He Believed" and holds a very special place in Aaron's heart.
Along with recording "Now & Then", Aaron Tippin also released 2 brand new music videos, "Ready To Rock (In A Country Kinda Way) and "He Believed" which starred Aaron's son Teddy as a "young Aaron".
Aaron Tippin made his reputation with such hard-core honky tonk performances as "Working Man's PH.D", "Kiss This", "You've Got To Stand For Something" and "There Ain't Nothin Wrong With The Radio".
Tippin began performing in local honky tonks in the 1970's. He competed on the TNN"s "You Can Be A Star" TV talent contest in 1985, landed a songwriter's contract and moved to Music City in 1986. Always a focused and purposeful man, Tippin created a work routine that was Spartan in its intensity. He worked the midnight - to - dawn shift at a factory in Kentucky, commuted to music row to write songs, lifted weights late every afternoon, went to bed, got up and did the whole routine over again, day after day.
The dedication started to pay off. He began winning body building competitions and artists such as Mark Collie, Diamond Rio, David Ball and the Mid-South boys started recording Aaron's songs.
Tippin performed his first Nashville night club show in 1990. It earned him a recording contract with RCA records. Before ever setting foot on tour, he was afforded the opportunity to join Bob Hope on a USO tour to Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War. After Aaron came home, hits for RCA led to concert dates with such superstars as Brooks & Dunn, Reba McEntire and Hank Williams Jr. Tippin became one of the most memorable country personalities of the 90's. In concert he invariably communicated the heart of a poet, the zeal of an evangelist, the humor of the class clown and the soul of a gladiator.
His hits sounded like no one else-- "My Blue Angel", "That's As Close As I'll Get To Loving You" and "I Wouldn't Have It Any Other Way" formed a body of work that is totally individual and in direct contrast to the sound alike records that characterized the era.
Five of his RCA albums became Gold Records and one went Platinum. Between 1990- 1997, Aaron scored six hits records and created such memorable moments as "Call Of The Wild", "I Got It Honest" and "Whole Lotta Love On The Line". He appeared on the soundtracks of such films as "The Beverly Hillbillies" (1993) and "Fire Down Below" (1997) and became the commercial spokesman for Channel Lock Tools. Success as a songwriter for others also continued as Garth Brooks, Charley Pride and Kenny Chesney recorded Tippin tunes.
Aaron and Thea married in 1995. In 1997 they welcomed Theodore Tippin into their lives and son Thomas arrived shortly after in 2000. Aaron also has a beautiful grown daughter Charla from his first marriage. Charla is married to Kenneth, a Blackhawk pilot in the S.C. Air National Guard and they reside in South Carolina.
Aaron signed with Lyric Street records in 1998 and immediately scored back to back hits with "For You I Will" and "I'm Leaving". Aaron Tippin's popularity spiked again in the new millennium thanks to the chart topping "Kiss This" (2000) and "Where The Stars And Stripes And The Eagle Fly" (2002) as well as his sixth gold record and first ACM award nomination.
For Aaron Tippin, his career became a lifestyle. "The fans are truly amazing. They're the reason I still have a job. I'm a very lucky man.
In 2002 Aaron went to Afghanistan and since then he has been making annual visits to our forces in Iraq and became the celebrity spokesperson for the Paralyzed Veterans Of America, the Armed Services YMCA which takes care of military families while their spouses are overseas and Toys for Tots which the Marines founded. At every show, Aaron puts together a bike on stage while performing and at the end of each night, he brings a Marine up and donates the bike to the children of that community that they are in for Toys for Tots. Aaron has donated over 500 bikes since he became involved in this charity.
Aaron has been on "The Larry King Show", "Hannity And Colmes" and performed shows for the "Hannity Freedom Concert" and many benefits to support our troops.
On top of being one of the greatest performers and songwriters to hit the country music scene, Aaron also has many other talents. He became a commercial pilot at the age of 17. He owns 4 planes including a 1940's steerman, a cub, super decathlon and a heliocourier.
He is also an avid hunter and looks forward to personal time with his children teaching them how to hunt, fish and enjoy the outdoors.
And just when you think his talents end there, you can also add welder, truck driver and wine maker! Yes wine maker. After marrying Thea, Aaron became a huge wine connoisseur. He loves red wine and some of his favorites include: Red Zinfandel, Shiraz, and a special reserve EOS Petite Syrah. Aaron has his own winery and is constantly creating different types of wine including peach and muscadine. One of Aaron and Thea's favorite hobby is visiting wineries in Napa Valley, Sonoma and Paso Robles, California when he has time off.
In 2005, Aaron decided to close his firearms store/ Aaron Tippin Outdoors which had been in operation for 10 years and convert the building into management offices and his own recording studio. Later in 2005 he re-launched a brand new internet website and made it highly interactive with streaming videos & audio, fan chats, frequent updates, tour schedule, and consumer contacts.
Aaron and Thea Tippin have a beautiful log home and reside with their two children in Tennessee.
1982 - Lynn Allen forms with Billy Peiffer, Tim Compton, Terry Murphy, Dale Fisher and Bob Boyd.
1983 - Lynn Allen records their eponymous four song debut album "Lynn Allen." The album contained the regional hit "Leave Me Alone" and begins the upward slope of the band's popularity.
1984 - Lynn Allen releases their follow up LP, "We Laugh At You" containing the hits "Last Night'' and "Domino.'' It is a huge seller in the Quad-Cities outselling every album but Michael Jackson's "Thriller." They were also packing 1,500-seat clubs like Beethoven's and getting heavy radio play on local stations WXLP-FM and KFMH-FM. For a brief period the group lived in Los Angeles and opened for such bands as Ratt, Great White, Warrant, and The Fabulous Thunderbirds. During the mid-'80s the band lived high on the hog, courting record deals with several major labels (although none came through), playing to jammed houses around the region and drinking in the wild life.
1984 - Lynn Allen begins recording their third release but internal tensions marred the sessions. The first rift opened when keyboardist Dale Fisher left to pursue a solo career. Then guitarist Tim Compton quit. Eventually the CD "Panorama Park'' was released under the Lynn Allen banner, although it's pretty much a Peiffer solo effort.
Things turned upward shortly after, when Peiffer trekked to San Francisco to play with the group Big Rock, which also featured band members from Journey. However, the other musicians proved to be not as serious about the venture as Peiffer was, so he moved back to Iowa.
1991 - Peiffer hooks back up with original Lynn Allen members Terry Murphy, Johnny Williamson and "Panorama Park" drummer Tommy Guild to form the band the Dead End Kids. After six months, they decided to go back to the moniker Lynn Allen and began recording what would be known as "The Pink Album.'' They were also able to land record deals with a few overseas outfits, including Megarock Records in Sweden.
1992 - Lynn Allen releases the CD "Lynn Allen" (Self Titled) They break into the Chicago market and start to sell records overseas.
1994 - "Live At Beethovens" is released made from tapes Billy finds in Hawaii from a 1986 show. Area music fans vote Lynn Allen top rock group in the first Oil Music Awards.
1995 - "We Laugh At You" is re-released overseas on CD with the additional song, Had Enough.
1997 - "Petrified Ice Cream" is released. Recorded at Catamount in Cedar Falls, Iowa. They opened for Cheap Trick in Clinton, Iowa.
1999 - The "Best Of Lynn Allen" CD is released.
2006 - "The Horse You Rode In On" is written.
2007- The CD is released in the United States and it takes just weeks to generate interest overseas. Escape records hears the CD and signs it to European deal. The CD gets an average of 8 stars out of 10 on every review. With the music being reviewed and rated so highly it is no doubt we will be turning out another soon.
Caddle
Mixing gasoline and nitro would make a pretty impressiveexplosion, though nothing like the high powered alt-countryperformance from these blue collar boys from Birmingham. Described as "dixie fried roots rock with a dash of punk,"Caddle draws on classic country and bluegrass influences,
then supercharges them with hard driving rock n' roll with anattitude.
Caddle has opened shows for artists such as Billy Joe Shaver, Kid Rock, Jason Aldean, Molly Hatchet, Reverend Horton Heat, The Black Crowes, Dale Watson, Webb Wilder, El Pus, Bobby Bare, Jr., The Exies … In 2005 Caddle opened several shows for J Records recording artist, Silvertide. On stage Walt Lafty, lead singer of Silvertide said, “Caddle is the best band I have seen in two years of being on the road.” A huge compliment considering they have opened for Aerosmith, Van Halen and Velvet Revolver.
The Alabama ensemble known as Caddle has infused everything from snarling punk themes to heartache country lines, bluegrass breakdowns and furious Southern rock backbeats in their music, while steadily expanding their profile and audience the past two years through extensive touring and serving as the opening act for everyone from Hayseed Dixie and Lynyrd Skynyrd to Webb Wilder, Bobby Bare, Jr. and Billy Joe Shaver.
They’ve also become very popular among Nashville audiences due to several appearances on Billy Block’s Western Beat, where they return for another engagement tonight at 12th and Porter. “Nashville has become one of our most significant stops,” lead vocalist Phillip Hyde said. “Appearing on Western Beat has helped us sharpen and better define our core sound, which is really country with a Southern rock underpinning. In the beginning we got called kind of a country-punk band because of our attitude on stage, which is very energetic and almost kind of ‘in-your-face.’ But musically, there’s not really much of the punk sound happening anymore, much more country and Southern rock, presented in a fierce fashion.”
Interestingly, getting the right sound combination has also resulted in considerable personnel tinkering. “We went through about quite a few bassists and drummers before we really got the type of musicians that understand exactly what the Caddle sound is all about,” Hyde added.
With guitarists Drew Akin and Eric Watters each capable of doing explosive solos or exciting accompaniment, and bassist Chris Pottratz and drummer Finney James proving a capable and challenging rhythm section, Hyde’s now free to move in almost any vocal direction. Hyde adds that the varying audiences they’ve been appearing before recently have also helped sharpen their musical focus, something that’s evident on their recent debut CD produced by Grammy winner Don McCollister.
“When we were opening for Billy Joe Shaver it was an older crowd and we did an acoustic set,” Hyde continued. “But when we’ve worked with groups like Hayseed Dixie or the Burden Brothers, younger audiences also really enjoy the blend of country and rock. The key thing we’ve discovered is that it really isn’t that much of a stretch between a lot of the elements in the Southern rock wing and in really rocking country. Everyone responds to honest, driving music, and that’s what we’re emphasizing now, both in our show and on our disc.”
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