The Oaks, Exile, Sugarhill Gang, The Turtles: Concerts to see at Kentucky State Fair

Walter Tunis

August 12, 2024 at 5:59 PM·8 min read

In the old cartoon series “Mr. Peabody and Sherman,” a studious child and his even more scholarly dog journey in a contraption called The Way-Back Machine to experience historical events as they unfolded.

Well, the music presented every August at the Kentucky State Fair’s Texas Roadhouse Concert Series affords us a similar, if somewhat more marginalized, view of live music from the past six decades.

You have pop from the ’60s, the beginnings of hip-hop in the ’70s, hair-metal from the ’80s, post-grunge from the ’90s, country from the ’00s and contemporary Christian music from the ’10s. That’s quite a ride — and a free one, too. All shows in the Texas Roadhouse Concert Series are free with paid admission to the Fair.

So strap yourself in and let the Fair’s variation of the Way-Back Machine bring you face-to-face and ear-to-ear with concert acts direct from the past. Just don’t get too settled. You’ll have to move to a different decade every night. Here’s the full schedule of musical acts.

Thursday, Aug. 15

? Lonestar and Eddie Montgomery, 8 p.m.

We land first in 1996 when the Texas band Lonestar initiated a string of nine No. 1 country hits (including “No News” and “Amazed”) that would last for eight years. Today, all of Lonestar’s original lineup is still on board save for lead singer Richie McDonald. He bolted for the second time in 2021, with Drew Womack as replacement.

Shift slightly ahead to 1999 and you find the breakthrough of Kentucky’s own country power duo Montgomery Gentry. That’s the year its debut single “Hillbilly Shoes” began a hit-making run that lasted until Troy Gentry’s death in a 2017 helicopter crash. Eddie Montgomery, part of what is perhaps Central Kentucky’s most prominent present-day country music family, remains very active as an artist — a fact underscored by the title of his 2021 solo album, “Ain’t No Closing Me Down.”

Friday, Aug. 16

? The Sugarhill Gang with Melle Mel and Scorpio of Furious Five, 8 p.m.

Rewind now to 1978 when rap and hip-hop were just starting to trigger a national stir with two pioneering groups — Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five (responsible for the mix of beats, turntable innovations and social commentary on 1982’s “The Message”) from the Bronx and The Sugarhill Gang (the group behind the 1979 single that largely introduced hip-hop to mainstream audiences, “Rapper’s Delight”) out of Englewood, N.J.

The Sugarhill Gang will boast two of its three original members for this Fair concert — Wonder Mike and Master Gee (the third, Big Bank Hank, died in 2014.) Rock and Roll Hall Famers The Furious Five are today represented by vocalists/songwriters Melle Mel and Scorpio.

Saturday, Aug. 17

? Stephen Pearcy of Ratt with Quiet Riot, 8 p.m.

All aboard for 1983, the early era of MTV and its championing of pop-metal bands with big hair and bigger hits.

Long Beach native Stephen Pearcy is best known for his on again/off again role as lead vocalist for Ratt, the MTV-friendly metalheads that scored big in 1984 with “Round and Round.”

Hollywood’s Quiet Riot struck just before Ratt with a cover of Slade’s “Cum On Feel the Noize” that turned the band’s third album, 1983’s “Metal Health,” into an international hit. Guitarist Rudy Sarzo is the only Quiet Riot member that remains from the band’s early years. Vocalist Kevin DuBrow was at the helm until his death on 2007.

Saturday, Aug. 18

? The Oak Ridge Boys with The Country Gold Tour including Leroy Van Dyke, Linda Davis, Jimmy Fortune and Rockland Road, 8 p.m.

Few, if any, performance acts of any kind have enjoyed such an extensive and fruitful relationship with the Fair as the Oak Ridge Boys. This year, by all accounts, marks the group’s 50th performance, although its first Freedom Hall concert goes back to 1971. The Oaks’ 2024 show will also be without mainstay vocalist Joe Bonsall. He retired from touring in January and died in July 9 from complications of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.) Singer Ben James now performs with longtime Oaks Duane Allen, William Lee Golden and Richard Sterban.

The Fair performance will also feature a set from The Country Gold Tour, a multi-act roster led by ’60s hitmaker Leroy Van Dyke.

The Oak Ridge Boys, with from left Ben James, Duane Allen, William Lee Golden and Richard Sterban, will again play the Kentucky State Fair. This will be their 50th Fair performance.

Monday, Aug. 19

? Cain with Katy Nicole, 8 p.m.

We get to spend this Monday evening in the present day with the Contemporary Christian Music trio Cain. Consisting on siblings Taylor, Madison and Logan Cain from Alabama, whose father was a Pentecostal pastor, the three moved to Nashville in 2012. They have since released a debut album (2021’s “Rise Up”) and have been touring regularly.

Among the trio’s road pals is Illinois singer Katy Nichole. Both acts played Rupp Arena in February as part of Winter Jam ’24. Nichole released her debut album, “Jesus Changed My Life,” in 2023.

Tuesday, Aug. 20

? Happy Together including The Turtles, The Cowsills, Badfinger, The Vogues, The Association and Jay and the Americans, 8 p.m.

Okay, Mr. Peabody, now set the Way Back Machine for the latter half of the ’60s and the annual Happy Together Tour, a gathering named after the 1967 hit by longtime host group The Turtles.

Here’s the rundown: Mark Volman is the only original Turtle left (longtime performance partner Howard Kaylan retired in 2017). The Cowsills (“The Rain, The Park and Other Things,” “Hair”) still boast siblings Bob, Susan and Paul Cowsill. Guitarist Joey Molland is the only surviving member of Badfinger (whose early hits, “Come and Get It,” “Day After Day,” reached into the early ’70s). Jules Alexander and Jim Yester remain from the 1966-67 heyday of The Association (“Cherish,” “Windy.”) Sandy Deanne and Marty Sanders are still around from the early ’60s hitmaking era of Jay and the Americans (“Cara Mia,” “Come a Little Bit Closer.”) The Vogues (“Five O’Clock World,” “My Special Angel”) have no original or heyday members.

Wednesday, Aug. 21

? Justin Moore with Alex Miller, 8 p.m.

Now let’s head for the country in the year 2009. Late that summer, Justin Moore released his self-titled debut album with its third single, “Small Town USA,” becoming the Arkansas-born country singer’s first No. 1 hit that October. Moore played Rupp Arena as recently as April as part of a bill headlined by Cody Johnson. Fortifying the show’s country spirit will be Lancaster native Alex Miller, who competed in the 2021 season of “American Idol.” Miller played the Fair previously in 2022. This year’s show will preface a headlining/homecoming Labor Day (Sept. 2) concert at Lancaster’s Grand Theatre.

Thursday, Aug. 22

? Everclear with Marcy Playground, 8 p.m.

Back to the late ’90s, everyone, for the return of the Art Alexakis-led rock collective Everclear. The guitarist/vocalist/songwriter is the only holdover from when “Everything to Everyone,” “I Will Buy You a New Life” and “Father of Mine” became hits with alternative rock radio in 1997 and 1998.

Post-punk power trio Marcy Playground has followed a similar timeline, having bolstered its fanbase with the 1997 neo-psychedelic radio single “Sex and Candy.” Vocalist/guitarist John Wozniak and bassist Dylan Keefe continue to pilot the band in 2024.

Friday, Aug. 23

? 38 Special with Exile, 8 p.m.

Time for one more run through early ’80s when 38 Special rode the crest of a hearty Southern Rock wave that gradually merged with the pop mainstream through hits like “Hold On Loosely” (1981) and “Caught Up in You” (1982.) Only vocalist Don Barnes is still around from the band’s ’80s heyday and even he sat out for a stretch from 1987-1992.

Exile, of course, is a veritable institution among Kentucky bands. Its history stems back to 1963, but the most popular of its many incarnations was as a country quintet with a run of chart-topping singles (“Woke Up in Love,” “I Don’t Want to be a Memory”) that began in 1983. The full lineup responsible for the hit parade — J.P. Pennington, Les Taylor, Sonny LeMaire, Marlon Hargis and Steve Goetzman — reteamed in 2008 and has been playing together ever since.

Exile, the Kentucky band that reteamed in 2008, will appear at the Kentucky State Fair with 38 Special. Exile, from left: Marlon Hargis, Les Taylor, Steve Goetzman, J.P. Pennington and Sonny LeMaire.

Saturday, Aug. 24

? Lauren Alaina with MacKenzie Porter and Kelsey Hart, 8 p.m.

Another fast-forward leap lands us in 2011. That May, Georgia country singer Lauren Alaina became the runner-up in the 10th season of “American Idol.” By mid-decade, hits like “Road Less Traveled” were making regular rounds on country radio, leading to considerable high-profile tour dates that included a Jan. 2018 concert with Alan Jackson at Rupp Arena.

Canadian vocalist MacKenzie Porter and another Kentucky-born country up-and-comer, Central City native Kelsey Hart, will open.

Sunday, Aug. 25

? Tauren Wells with Consumed By Fire, 6 p.m.

The Fair drops us off in 2016, a time when Contemporary Christian singer Tauren Wells, fresh from duties with the recently disbanded Royal Tailor, set off on a solo career. Eight years and 10 Grammy nominations later, Wells is in the Bluegrass to close the concert entertainment at this year’s Fair.

The sibling trio Consumed by Fire (Caleb, Jordan and Joshua Ward) rounds out the bill. With a career that has run mostly in tandem with Wells, the group’s debut album, “Giving Over,” was released in 2016.