Music & Artists
The Kentucky Headhunters, Black Oak Arkansas kick off 2011 Heartland Music Festival on Friday
Friday night's concert will get the Heartland Music Festival
off to a fast start. The show begins at 7 p.m.
City Councilman Kenny Lewis, coordinator for the city's Summer Concert Series, said the opening band, Black Oak Arkansas, and The Kentucky Headhunters, will make a great combination because of their southern rock sound.
He said both groups have had several hits, which people will recognize when the music starts. The Kentucky Headhunters- perhaps best known for their country hits, "Lonesome Me" and "Dumas Walker"- was formed in 1968 by brothers Richard and Fred Young near Edmonton in Metcalfe County. The band was originally called "Itchy Brother."
They broke up 13 years later only to reform in 1985 as the HeadHunters. Soon after, they caught country music's attention with their first album. 1989's "Pickin' On Nashville." The album netted the band their two biggest hits, "Lonesome Me" and "Dumas Walker."
The band was also named the Academy of Country Music's top new vocal group that same year.
Black Oak Arkansas produced their first album under that name in 1971.
These bad boys of the south set standards for live performances, and still electrify audiences to this day. Early in the career, their touring schedule kept them on the road for as many as 10 months at a time. They have three gold albums, and have appeared on such TV shows as Don Kirshners Rock Concert, Midnight Special, and APCs in Concert. The King himself, Elvis Presley, encouraged them to perform the LaVerne Baker classic, "Jim Dandy to the Rescue." Which has become their signature song.
These days Black Oak Arkansas keeps up a busy tour schedule, especially during the summer when they are a favorite at bike rallys and outdoor music fairs and festivals around the country.
The Monarchs in Free Concert Saturday Night
The concert is free and will begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Freeman Lake Park.
In 1960 a group of high school friends from Louisville, Kentucky noticed that if you played in a band you could meet more girls. So, with no real musical background they began rehearsing in a basement and looking for teen clubs that would hire them to perform.
They named the band "The Monarchs" and soon were playing at teen clubs and sox hops throughout the Louisville area. After signing with a local talent agency, the band went to Nashville to make a record.
After signing with Monument Records, their 1964 release of "Look Homeward Angel" went to number one in major markets throughout the United States and Canada and was on the Billboard Charts for an astounding 13 weeks. The Monarchs toured with Dick Clark and his Caravan of Stars and worked with many of the icons of the early years of Rock & Roll. Appearances with Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, The Beach Boys, The Everly Brothers, The Righteous Brothers and Chubby Checker, only to name a few, was the beginning of a long and successful performing career.