At an event such as the Bartholomew County 4-H Fair, singer and guitarist Mike Wilson understands his band Ferguson Road must aim for a moving experience.
Literally. Because most of his crowd will be on the move from one spot to another amid everything from the midway to food booths.
But he knows one surefire way to bring a strolling crowd to an astonished halt: have his sister Melissa Rager croon the Janis Joplin classic “Me and Bobby McGee.”
“That is definitely one that has made a few people stop right in their tracks,” Wilson said. “Our hope, though, is that people are willing to sit for maybe a song or two and just enjoy it.”
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]
The trio playing rock to country to blues hopes to gain its share of listeners as part of the fair’s free entertainment slated Friday through July 12 at the fairgrounds on County Road 200 South near Garden City. Ferguson Road, something of a local fair regular, is slated to appear from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Friday at the Farm Bureau Building.
The free event’s entertainment schedule features everything from clogging to Celtic tunes, from magic to the rhythm of a drum circle.
“The crowd you might attract is definitely an unknown,” Wilson said. “And that in itself can make this exciting.”
The Columbus City Band has been a fair staple almost as long as cotton candy and lemon shake-ups. Director Steve McGrew, who loves the exposure that fairs in Bartholomew and Jackson counties give his group, has planned a music set geared toward a pops concert with a few marches thrown in for good measure.
So he has planned a medley of everything from Henry Mancini works to John Phillips Sousa marches for the group’s July 8 performance at the David Boll Theatre. For the younger set, a collage of Walt Disney Pictures’ soundtrack tunes such as “When You Wish Upon a Star” from the flick “Pinocchio” will be featured.
Adding to the varied mix will be a song “Ticondoroga,” which is Leroy Anderson’s only march.
And given that the ensemble will be playing just days after the July Fourth holiday, it seems ideal that the concert closer will be the flag-waving favorite “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” McGrew finds great fun in the festive fair atmosphere.
“It’s a real kick,” he said.
Local singer-songwriter Kendall Yeaton will have dad Mark Yeaton join him for a show July 11 at the David Boll Theatre. The song selection is expected to range from the sounds of former Seymour-based pop-rock group The Elms to Christian pop group Need To Breathe to late rocker Tom Petty. He also will include some original material in a 90-minute set.
“We always try to make the (performance) day at the fair a family event,” Kendall Yeaton said, adding that his wife and two young children will enjoy the event well before his concert.
He understands his presentation needs a broad scope to appeal to a wide-ranging audience.
“So we’ll try to cover at least a couple different decades,” he said.
And wait for the milling crowd to stop, look and listen.
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”A look at entertainment” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
At the Farm Bureau building:
bartholomewcountyfair.com/entertainment-2/farm-bureau
At the David Boll Theatre:
bartholomewcountyfair.com/entertainment-2/free-entertainment-2/
[sc:pullout-text-end]
