Review: Neal McCoy raps, rocks and rolls at Country Thunder

Nothing about his frenetically paced, off-the-charts exuberant 90-minute show hinted that he was among the oldest artists on Thursday’s opening lineup.

A couple members of the Doo-Wah Riders had him beat by a decade or so. But they didn’t spend their time trotting the length of the center stage ramp that jutted out to the end of the VIP section, looking out into the lawn seats.

And they didn’t rap, rock and roll like McCoy.

If you have been to Country Thunder festivals past — McCoy has been a regular almost every year over the past decade — you have witnessed country music’s best-kept secret. He is dynamic, vivacious and personable — and a complete thrill to watch, even if you have seen him dozens of times before.

He also is a lethal weapon: some of Nashville’s biggest stars shudder at the thought of following McCoy, which is a modest consolation for the royal dissing he has suffered from Music City. Despite a handful of No. 1 hits, platinum sales and a reputation among fans for the best live show going, McCoy has yet to win a coveted industry honor beyond the minor TNN/Music City News nods in the late 1990s.

McCoy’s shows follow a format of sorts — he dips into the vault of his 1990s hits from “The Shake” to “They’re Playing Our Song”; moves into his more recent singles including “Billy’s Got His Beer Goggles On”; then takes a sharp detour to the 1970s and the songs he was listening to when he graduated from high school — Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky Music” and Heatwave’s ultimate makeout ballad “Always and Forever.”

Then he pulls out the “Beverly Hillbillies Rap” which has become his trademark, right down to the baseball hat cocked sideways and the unbelievably cool B-Boy move that he pulls off with dignity and finesse.

We have come to anticipate these interludes and cherish them, largely because McCoy is having so much fun.

One thing we have not seen in all his years at Country Thunder was McCoy drinking a toast with the audience. He solicited a beer from a fan when he sang “Beer Goggles,” took a quick swig, then handed the can back to its owner, who asked him to autograph it.

That led to a guy on the other side of the aisle near the stage to offer up a flask, whose contents were a little harsher than McCoy expected.

He unscrewed the cap, sniffed, then spouted: “What proof is this?” as the crowd topping 15,000 chanted “take a shot.”

“That bugger’s got a lot of jump,” McCoy said, then took a quick swallow of what he learned was Captain Morgan rum.

“Good lord. I done quit drinkin’ 20 years ago,” he winced in a rich Texas twang.

McCoy also debuted his new single, “Rednecktified,” which he said was the first song he has written since he became an artist 20-plus years ago. The song takes its lead from artists like Trace Adkins and Big & Rich, who spice things up with a bit of hick-hop and rock. The lyrics, though, are squarely country: “I’ve been hillbilly since way back when,” the chorus begins and includes the refrain “I’m as country as dirt.”

The song is on his forthcoming Rhino project “The Very Best of Neal McCoy,” his first record since shuttering his Texas label 903 Music last year.

McCoy inherited the stage from emerging star Joe Nichols, who made his first Country Thunder appearance since 2003. Back then, Nichols squandered a chance to grow his fledgling fan base. Instead of doing Joe Nichols songs, he spent his stage time covering Merle Haggard, David Allan Coe and Alan Jackson.

On Thursday, it was all about Joe, who has matured into a solid performer. He had the crowd cheering through his quirky novelty songs (“Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off,” “Size Matters (Someday”) and swaying along to the soulful ballads (“Brokenheartsville,” “The Impossible” and his No. 1 hit, “I’ll Wait For You”).

The festival continues through Sunday.

Review

Country Thunder Thursday night in Florence. The festival continues through Sunday.

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