Darius Rucker's rocking Tucson birthday
Happy birthday to you
Country singer Darius Rucker spent his 51st birthday entertaining a sold-out crowd at the AVA at Casino del Sol on Saturday night.
Sold-out and then some
All of the reserved seats were taken, the sides of the stage were stacked a dozen deep and the lawn was overflowing with fans when Darius Rucker took the stage Saturday night at the AVA at Casino del Sol.
Tucson debut
Darius Rucker made his country music debut in Tucson Saturday night, but he has been here before with his pop band Hootie & the Blowfish.
Special guest and happy birthday
Darius Rucker's buddy Charles Kelley of the superstar country trio Lady Antebellum popped up in the last part of Rucker's concert to sing a couple songs and lead the audience in "Happy Birthday."
Slide guitar whiz
Darius Rucker called slide guitar player Sasha Ostrovsky his favorite member of the band. We're pretty sure he meant that the sound Ostrovsky created with his slide guitar was his favorite.
Baby act
When Darius Rucker launched a solo country music career 10 years ago, he went from pop superstar to country "baby act." On Saturday, he introduced us to a new "baby act," opener and country newbie Michael Tyler.
Crooner
In his velvety baritone, Darius Rucker covered his country solo and Hootie days, as well as a few diverse covers including a bopping rendition of Blackstreet's "No Diggity."
Darius and the band
Rucker's band included fiddle, mandolin, slide guitar, steel guitar and drums.
Ten years in country
Darius Rucker is marking his 10th anniversary as a country singer.
Golfing buds
We're just guessing here, but based on a Facebook posting, we think Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum was in Tucson Saturday to play golf with Darius Rucker. Lucky us; he jumped on stage for a few songs and to lead us in "Happy Birthday" for Rucker, who turned 51 on Saturday.
And it wasn't just the music. His birthday bash included a visit by a pair of owls, a superstar special guest and 5,000 people wishing him "Happy birthday."