ASHLAND —
Two of the three headline performers for this year’s Summer Motion festival have been booked.
Classic rockers Bachman & Turner will open the riverfront concert series on July 2, and up-and-coming country act the Eli Young Band will perform the following night, Summer Motion President Chuck Charles said Tuesday.
“I’m very excited to have both of them,” he said.
Charles said he was particularly pleased to have been able to land the Eli Young Band. He said he felt the booking was in keeping with the long-standing tradition of country acts on the cusp of superstardom playing Summer Motion. Those who have done so in past years have been Trace Adkins, Martina McBride and, most recently, Lady Antebellum.
“I’d love to have all those people back here again, but there’s no way I could afford them,” Charles joked.
The July 4 concert slot remains open. “We’ve got some offers out there,” Charles said. Opening acts for the first two shows haven’t been booked, either, he said.
Bachman & Turner is headed by guitarist/vocalist Randy Bachman and bassist/vocalist C.F. “Fred” Turner, two of the principals in the 1970s chart-topping band Bachman-Turner Overdrive, or BTO. The current group was forced to drop the “Overdrive” from its name for legal reasons, Charles said.
The Canadian band scored an incredible run of hits in the 1970s that included “Let it Ride,” “Takin’ Care of Business” and “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet,” all of which are still staples on the playlists of classic-rock and oldies radio stations.
Following its heyday, the group went through numerous personnel changes, including the departures of Bachman’s brothers, Rob and Tim. The band broke up in 2005, but because of interest in a Bachman-Turner reunion, the two musicians announced their reteaming in 2009 in their hometown of Winnipeg.
According to an article on the band’s website, the reunion began with Bachman asking Turner if he would be willing to provide lead vocals on one track of a Bachman solo album. That led to a full-blown collaboration. The duo’s self-titled album, “Bachman & Turner,” was released in September 2010.
The Eli Young Band is fronted by singer/guitarist Mike Eli and guitarist James Young. The two met at the University of North Texas when they became roommates their freshman year. They released their first album in 2002, the self-titled “Eli Young Band.” In 2005, they released “Level” on Carnival Records and opened shows for Miranda Lambert.
The group’s third album, “Jet Black & Jealous,” was released in 2008. Its leadoff single, “When It Rains,” spent 37 weeks on the country charts and peaked at No. 34. A second chart single, “Always the Love Songs,” scored the group its first top 15 hit, reaching No. 11.
The band was nominated for an Academy of Country Music award as the Top New Vocal Group or Duo, an award based on the number of fan entries on the GAC website. It lost to the Zac Brown Band. The band was then nominated for the 2010 Top New Vocal Group for the 45th Academy of County Music Awards, but lost to Gloriana.
In 2011, the Eli Young Band moved to the Republic Nashville record label and released its fifth overall single, “Crazy Girl,” from its latest album, “Life at Best,” released in August of last year.
The band has three nominations for the 2012 Academy of Country Music Awards. It is nominated in the categories of Song of the Year, Top Vocal Group of the Year and Single Record of the Year. The winners will be chosen in April.
KENNETH HART can be reached at khart@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2654.
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