Summer concert series kicks off with a bang

Chris LeDoux summed up his concert in the lyrics: "Don't it make you wanna dance, don't it make you wanna smile."

And there was plenty of both at the first of the Capital City Music Series in the pavilion at Mills Park June 13.

Local musicians in the Buckin' Band opened the concert with songs ranging from traditional country to Kid Rock's "Cowboy."

"We are not your daddy's country," said lead singer John Standley of Reno. "We like to be loud; we like to jump and have a good time."

Rick Hayes and the American Steel Band followed with mostly original songs.

Garrett Bowden, 11, a fifth-grader at Mark Twain Elementary School, sat on a speaker beside the stage singing every note along with the band.

"My dad plays the guitar in the band," he explained. "Every Tuesday night, they come over and practice on the third floor of the house. I listen to them and watch, and sometimes I practice singing with them."

Garett followed his father's every strum.

"It's really nerve-wracking because he might mess up, but he never does so it's exciting."

The excitement continued to grow until LeDoux burst onto the stage in a swirl of smoke and flames shooting up from the floor.

Speakers set up around the pavilion brought the crowd to their feet as the music filled the cool night air.

Dressed in starched Wranglers and a white shirt open at the neck, he waved at small children and winked at adoring fans -- never missing a beat.

From his new album, "Horsepower," he rocked with lyrics like, "I got a need for speed, and I don't mean the drugstore kind."

He slowed it down for a tribute to the American cowboy:

"He's still out there ridin' fences

Still makes his living with his rope

As long as there's a sunset, he'll keep ridin' for the brand

You just can't see him from the road."

Long-time fans weren't disappointed as LeDoux strummed out classics such as "This Old Hat," "Hooked on an Eight-Second Ride" and "County Fair."

He went back to the very beginning with the first song he wrote, "Bareback Jack."

He rubbed his wrist across his gleaming silver belt buckle as he sang about a young boy's dream to be a bronc-riding champion.

And he didn't just sing about it.

As the concert came to a close, LeDoux climbed aboard a mechanical bull, riding it for 8 seconds.

The next concert in the series will be three-time Grammy nominee jazzman David Benoit on July 18.