There are certain country bands out there that have proven themselves time and time again, whose songs have enough enduring crossover appeal that fans of country and rock from 17 to 70 know their songs by heart, and pause to turn up the volume when one of their tunes comes on the radio. Nineties hit-makers BlackHawk are among those at the top of that rarified list, and this past Saturday they led a hard rockin', toe tapping, sing-along for a massive crowd of fans, old and new at the Wright County Fair in Eagle Grove.
BlackHawk is part of that wave of nineties country bands with a big catalog of hits, strong rock undertones and a talent for harmonies and ballads that broke through the dominance of solo acts that generally dominates the country genre, and found their way onto rock and alt-rock radio. Bands like Sawyer Brown, Diamond Rio, Little Texas, Shenandoah, Lonestar, The (Dixie) Chicks, and The Old 97s, to name a few of their contemporaries.
“Getting a BlackHawk record on the radio was often a tough sell,” founding member Henry Paul explained in the band's website bio, “for the same reason country radio rejected bands like The Mavericks, The Dixie Chicks and Alison Krauss. But we were committed to smart, strong songs whether they fit the format or not. And the fans responded.”
BlackHawk was founded in 1992 by three of country music's not-so-secret weapons of the time, Paul, Van Stephenson, and Dave Robbins. Lead vocalist Paul, who also plays mandolin and guitar, is a veteran of 1970's southern rock superstars The Outlaws (responsible for the iconic Ghost Riders in the Sky, and influential hits There Goes Another Love Song and Breaker Breaker). For their strong mix of country and rock with blues infused guitar work on some tracks, and vocal harmonies on others, The Outlaws are often compared to acts like ZZ Top and Eric Clapton on the one hand, and the Eagles, the Byrds, Poco, and Buffalo Springfield on the other. Van Stephenson enjoyed three Billboard Top 100 hits as a solo artist in the 80's, and wrote Crystal Gayle's top 10 hit "Your Kisses Will", as well as hits for Kenny Rogers, Janie Frick, John Anderson, and Dan Seals. Dave Robbins also wrote hits for Kenny Rogers, and Eric Clapton too, before teaming up with Stephenson, and writing several #1 hits for the band Restless Heart (including "Big Dreams in a Small Town" and "the Bluest Eyes in Texas", which he performed on Saturday).
One of BlackHawk's signature qualities is their on the nose precision when playing their old school hits. Despite the loss of original tenor vocalist Stephenson, who passed away in 2001 from melanoma, the current line up of the band rocked out their greatest hits so skillfully that they almost could be mistaken for the radio versions – were it not for that special something extra that they imbued into the songs, live and in person.
Their set on Saturday included all their greatest hits, and some of their hits as songwriters for other artists. They opened with 1993's smash single, the title track from their double platinum debut album "Goodbye Says It All" and went on to rock out top 5 hits from the album including "Down in Flames", "Every Once in a While", "That's Just About Right", and "I Sure Can Smell the Rain". Then they went on to play more of their hits “Big Guitar”, “Almost A Memory Now”, “Postmarked Birmingham”, “I’m Not Strong Enough To Say No”, “Like There Ain’t No Yesterday”, and “There You Have It”.
Paul was pleased to learn that Eagle Grove is home to a new streaming radio station (disclosure: I founded the station) that plays classic country and classic rock, Eagle Grove Classic Hits, and even volunteered to record a station identification intro for the station, where their fans can hear their music play.
The crowd was record setting for the Fairground Grandstand, even after last year's performance by Little Texas. But the band wasn't surprised to see so many fans turned out for the show. "Looks like they turned out in good numbers tonight," said lead singer Paul, "BlackHawk plays well out here in this part of the world, so we're thankful, but not shocked." Several fans bought tickets to a meet and greet with the band, and Paul expressed his happiness at seeing them. "Our fans are probably more invested in us musically and emotionally than when we were on the radio, so it's a special kind of thing," Paul said.
