Who's out playing on the "corn dog" circuit?

[Magiver]

The Doobie Brothers will be at Okskosh this year.

[astorian]

@Sternvogel

The Speedwagon stops not only at fairs, but at conventions. I occasionally attend the North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando as a guest of Long Time First Time, and Kevin Cronin was with REO the year the band performed there. (We didn’t see the show, but heard afterwards that Keep On Loving You, Take It on the Run, and the other hits sounded as good as they did when originally recorded.)

I saw a brief soundbite from Kevin Cronin on VH1 a few years back- he said, essentially, “I love performing, and I’m not too proud to play any paying gig. You want me to play in Mexico with a ventriloquist as opening act? I’m there. And I’ll wave to Styx and Cheap Trick as I pass them by.”

[Zsofia]

@tumbleddown

Blake Shelton also sang that song about Austin, the lovelorn answering machine messages song.

Urgh. I hate that song. I like the one about the dog, though.

[Ian_D.Bergkamp]

@astorian

It varies from band to band. Some of these guys know they’re washed up has-beens, and are just trying to make a buck. Others believe they’re still just as good as ever, and hope that, with a few lucky breaks and a new hit single, they could eventually be back on top.

Let’s face it, just ten years ago, many of us would have told Carlos Santana “Time to pack it in, dude! You haven’t had a hit in years! You don’t have a future!”

Well, it turns out he DID have a future!

Similarly, I saw Aerosmith in Memphis (performing at either the Memphis In May Festival or the State Fair, I can’t recall which) in the early '80s. Tons of people wandering around, but only a few dozen or so stopped to watch the show. It was embarrassing for the band (it didn’t help matters that they sounded terrible, too).

But a few years later, Run DMC covered “Walk This Way” with them, and Aerosmith were on their way back to relevancy and sold-out stadiums. (I still don’t care for them, though.) I’ve long thought that they should be sending 10% of all their income to Run DMC, just as John Travolta should be making a tithe to Tarantino for resurrecting his career.

[FalconFinder]

I’ve seen Styx, Foreigner, and Cheap Trick in the past few years and all put on great shows.

They were all playing at one point or another at the Marcus Amphitheater in Milwaukee. Usually as part of a package deal with other bands, but the place was packed and everyone was having fun.

I’ve seen Loverboy at a tiny little festival in a small town near me. They are really good live and they just love to tour, so they don’t really care where they play. If people will come to see them, they’ll be there.

[Sigmagirl]

@Lamar_Mundane

Kelly Clarkson is still at the top of her career, producing top selling songs. Why is she on the State Fair circuit?

Don’t know. Guess:

1. They pay great, and to big audiences.
2. They were booked a long time ago, before it was clear she was going to be a huge draw.

[Elmer_J.Fudd]

California Mid-State Fair

Chris Stapleton

Old Dominion

Ice Cube

Lainey Wilson

Eric Church

Phil Wickham with Pat Barrett

Megadeth

Howard Jones

Willie Nelson

Treaty Creak Revival

Three Dog Night

My wife and friends roped me into Howard Jones. Never heard of him. All in all, I would prefer a sing-along with “…Jeremiah was a bullfrog…”

[Aspenglow]

Wasn’t here for this thread the first time around.

Saw both Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Bob Dylan at the Mid-State Fair in Paso Robles, California. Same show, different performances. Dylan was first, though he did come out and join one of the Petty sets.

This would have been sometime in the early 90s, I believe. Doesn’t get much bigger than those two acts.

It’s kind of a thing, though, in Paso. Or at least, it was back then. Because the fair is situated conveniently between LA and San Francisco, lots of big names would stop and do a show there kind of as a lark.

[Elmer_J.Fudd]

@Aspenglow

It’s kind of a thing, though, in Paso. Or at least, it was back then.

Definitely, the latter. Every year for the last decade or so you can hear the collective grumble up and down the Central Coast when the fair announces the booked acts. The Vino Robles Amphitheater opened around the beginning of the decline, so maybe they are siphoning off the top acts.

[Die_Capacitrix]

Saw Jerry Cantrell in concert in 2022. There were a lot of people in his band, and they barely fit in the stage of the music hall which has a maximum capacity of 800. He complained about how small the stage was.

The place was not full. It was in 2022.

A bit of a step down from some of the larger Alice n Chains concerts.

[Aspenglow]

@Elmer_J.Fudd

Definitely, the latter.

I’m really pleased to hear the tradition carries on!

I know there were other bands I saw there who were more famous than a regular country fair would seem to merit, but I’m damned if I can recall which. They were never as big as Petty and Dylan, though.

Your own list is very impressive!

As an aside, Three Dog Night was the very first concert I ever attended. Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, and it was packed. This would have been in, ohh, 1969, I think. (Gad zooks!)

[Odesio]

@Ian_D.Bergkamp

But a few years later, Run DMC covered “Walk This Way” with them, and Aerosmith were on their way back to relevancy and sold-out stadiums. (I still don’t care for them, though.) I’ve long thought that they should be sending 10% of all their income to Run DMC, just as John Travolta should be making a tithe to Tarantino for resurrecting his career.

I know I’m replying to an old post, but I’ve heard Steven Tyler credit Run DMC for their comeback. You never know when an old band might have another big hit. How many people expected The Beach Boys to have a #1 hit in 1988?

[hogarth]

A few years ago at the Toronto CNE I saw Tom Cochrane and last year I saw Loverboy. Looks like this summer Tom Cochrane is coming back again along with Shaggy and The Trews.

[Kent_Clark]

The Missouri State Fair has Three Dog Night and the Little River Band, while the Illinois State Fair will have Lainey Wilson, Matchbox 20, 38 Special, the (former Dixie) Chicks and Ziggy Marley.

[digs]

I’ve had such good experiences seeing “old bands I used to love” that I sometimes look through my LPs from the '70s and '80s, and check on whether they’re touring.
“Hey, what’s left of Poco is playing a hot air balloon festival in Illinois! For five bucks!” (True story…)

That’s why I love Summerfest (Milwaukee, 9 days, 12 stages of B and C-list bands). I only catch the free stages, but I’ve gotten to see some of my bucket-list bands: The Zombies, Lyle Lovett, Elvis Costello, Steve Miller, Modest Mouse, Neil Finn, Todd Rundgren, and Willie Nelson with Kris Kristofferson.

This year the free bands aren’t that good, but still…

Styx, Third Eye Blind, Passion Pit, Gin Blossoms, Halestorm, Little Feat, Mountain Goats, Straight No Chaser, 9,999 Maniacs (no Natalie), Spoon, Spin Doctors, Soul Asylum, Kim Gordon, Old 97s, Booker T. Jones, Common, Modern English, etc etc…

Oh, and the ultimate in past-their-prime: Gene Simmons and David Lee Roth.

[markn_1]

Heh, Styx used to play at dances at my high school in Chicago in the early 1970s, when they were called TW4. I guess they’ve come full circle.

[Disinfectus]

@Little_Nemo

I’ve seen Cheap Trick twice at state fairs and both times they gave really good performances. As far as I know, they’ve still got the original line-up from when they were on top of the charts.

I believe Bun E. Carlos, the original drummer, left the band years ago.

[kenobi_65]

@Disinfectus

I believe Bun E. Carlos, the original drummer, left the band years ago.

Correct; he had a falling out with his bandmates in 2010, which was the last time he worked with them (other than playing with them when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016).

[Smapti]

Here’s the lineup for the state fair near me this year;

• Twisted Sister
• Adam Ray (a comedian, I think?)
• A reggae festival
• Boy George & Culture Club with special guests Wang Chung
• Chicago
• Blippi (a kid’s entertainer?)
• Gretchen Wilson
• Dylan Marlowe (?)
• Chase Rice (?)
• HARDY
• Trey Songz & Tyga
• Lauren Daigle (???)
• Jon Batiste
• Little Big Town
• Ice Cube
• Bailey Zimmerman
• Weird Al Yankovic w/ Puddles Pity Party

A mix of nostalgia acts, country, some rap, and a few people I’ve never heard of. Weird Al is probably the only one I’d be interested in seeing myself.

[Little_Nemo]

@Disinfectus

@Little_Nemo

I’ve seen Cheap Trick twice at state fairs and both times they gave really good performances. As far as I know, they’ve still got the original line-up from when they were on top of the charts.

I believe Bun E. Carlos, the original drummer, left the band years ago.

Yes, he left the band in 2010.

You’re quoting a post I made in 2009.