Tuesday, January 22, 2008

George Strait Crowd Gets Surprise Bonus

 
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Birmingham country music fans were already enthusiastic when they attended George Strait's concert at the BJCC Arena last week; after all, George is a great show on his own, and he'd enlisted Little Big Town and newcomer Sarah Johns for a tough-to-beat ticket.

But just like a late-night TV commercial — "Wait, there's more!" — George's concert had an added bonus. During the encore, George launched into "Amarillo By Morning" with a surprise guest: Kenny Chesney, making his first on-stage appearance of 2008.

"You know," Kenny says, "it's amazing to think about the fact that you've just gone to visit and get onstage and sing with George Strait."

The fans were certainly surprised, though there was good reason for Kenny to be in town. In mending from rotator cuff surgery, he's been spending time of late at a sports training facility in Birmingham. Kenny expects to be back at 100 percent when he kicks off his own Poets & Pirates Tour later this year.