Big & Rich w/ Sean Stemaly Salute to Soldiers in Attica, Indiana
On July 29th, 2023 a crowd of people gathered at the Badlands Off Road Park in Attica, Indiana for one reason and one reason alone. To share our love of music and honor those that have served to protect us. The Badlands Off Road Park is not your typical music venue. Normally the Badlands would be filled with vehicles flying over dirt mounds and zooming through the mud. But that night the park held a special Tribute to the Troops concert event to honor the men and women who have served our country. The concert lineup included Big & Rich, Cowboy Troy, and Sean Stemaly.
If you are wondering where Attica is, it’s ok because John Rich had the same question, “Where the hell are we right now? I don’t know, but I love it.” The stage was set up in the event area where people could stand in the party pit section or bring a blanket and chairs for the GA section. The crowd was just about as patriotic as the American Flag itself as many audience members were wearing, waving, or tattooed with it. The event had several moments celebrating the military including the National Anthem, a military honor ceremony, a flyover with propeller biplanes, and fireworks.
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Sean Stemaly opened and did not disappoint. Stemaly is a Hoosier himself from Newburg, Indiana so this was a home-state show for him. He quickly had the audience’s attention by cracking jokes and cold ones with them. He enunciated every word so that even someone who is unfamiliar with his music could understand the songs and relate. It might’ve been his sunglasses and ball cap, but my dad said “He reminds me of Eric Church,” which I think is the biggest compliment an artist of this generation can receive. As someone who had not listened to Stemaly music prior to seeing him perform, my favorites from his setlist were “Back on a Backroad'' and “Comeback Town.”
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Big & Rich opened with one of my personal favorites “Rollin’” featuring Cowboy Troy. I might not remember my driver’s license number or what I did yesterday, but all lyrics to that song have been living rent-free in my head since 2004. Cowboy Troy has not aged a day and still raps every word to perfection. That song is not the same without him in it.
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Big & Rich and Cowboy Troy had a great mix of high-energy songs like “I Play Chicken” and “Coming to Your City” to slower heartfelt songs like “Lost in this Moment” and “Look at You.” To my surprise “Look at You” was Big & Rich’s only hit that they performed off of their recent albums “Gravity” and “Did It for the Party” despite having success with other songs such as “Lovin’ Lately”, “Run Away with You”, and “California.” Classic rock covers appealed to the whole crowd and kept the energy in the venue up, but I personally would have preferred to see some more of their newer releases.
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Big Kenny and John Rich displayed their talents as veteran performers with timed body movements, gestures, and signature phrases. They stopped to tell stories behind the songs, interacted with the crowd, and threw in a little humor as well. This was refreshing compared to other artists who try to fill their sets with as many songs as they can without pausing in between.
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Big & Rich brought up 3 active-duty/veterans on stage to take a shot of liquor before performing “8th of November,” something they have been doing now for over 1,000 shows. The “8th of November” is a song inspired by Niles Harris who served in the 173rd Airborne on “Operation Hump” during the Vietnam War. The song talks about the brothers he lost that day and that clearly hit home with this crowd because there was not a dry eye in the house.
You can’t listen to country music or music at all for that matter without knowing the song “Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy.” It is a staple song at every bar in Nashville, a classic karaoke request, and featured on several television shows, but I can guarantee you have never heard a version like Big & Rich’s live version. It turned into a 25-minute long song featuring band introductions, guitar solos, covers from AC/DC, The Eagles, and Tom Petty (just to name a few), and raps from Cowboy Troy and John Rich.
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Big & Rich holds a special place in my heart. My first concert ever was Country Thunder in Twin Lakes Wisconsin in 2006 to see Big & Rich and Gretchen Wilson. I was 8 years old standing on a lawn chair in my “Here for the Party” tank top singing “Comin’ to Your City” at the top of my lungs. That’s where my love of live music started. Seeing Big & Rich perform again was my equivalent of traveling back in time to when I would listen to “Horse of a Different Color” on my pink CD player. It became a full circle moment when they put the spotlight on an 8-year-old boy in the front row and handed him a guitar pick.
Overall, Sean Stemaly, Big Kenny, John Rich, and Cowboy Troy put on a feel-good, high-energy, old-school performance. If you are looking for nostalgia, patriotism, and a party rolled into one Big & Rich is the show for you.
For more info on Big & Rich - https://bigandrich.com/
For more info on Sean Stemaly - https://seanstemaly.com/
