Bethel Country Connection concert brings Josh Turner, Craig Campbell to Chattanooga

Whether playing guitars or golf, participants in Bethel Classic Weekend are playing for a purpose: Helping children in need at Bethel Bible Village.

Bethel Classic Weekend is the three-day fundraiser that kicks off Thursday with a dinner, live auction and country music concert at the Chattanooga Convention Center followed by the annual two-day Bethel Golf Classic. This year's tournament will be played at Bear Trace at Harrison Bay.

Bethel Bible Village is a safe haven for children of families in crisis; they can live in residential homes on Bethel's Hixson campus until it becomes possible to reunite with their families. Programs at the 64-acre campus also offer help for pregnant teens and teen mothers, residential care for teen boys with behavioral or emotional challenges, and assistance to homeless families.

"Over the weekend we hope to raise one-fifth of our annual budget - approximately $415,000 in three days," says Nancy Hoover, Bethel Bible Village director of communications and marketing.

Hoover says there are a few slots left for teams or individual golfers on teams that are not yet full. Wednesday is the deadline to enter. Tickets for the concert, hosted by well-known Nashville songwriter Kelley Lovelace, who grew up in Hixson, may be purchased through today.

Since Lovelace and his buddy, Brad Paisley, first found success with "He Didn't Have To Be," Lovelace has sent 21 songs into Billboard's Top 10 country charts, with 16 of them hitting No. 1. His songs are especially recognizable for their humor, in such songs as "I'm Still a Guy," "Ticks," "Online," "Crushin' It" and "Girls Lie, Too."

As Bethel Classic Weekend's celebrity host, Lovelace invites some of his Nashville buddies to town for a songwriter's showcase. Thursday night's featured performers will be Josh Turner, Craig Campbell and Neil Thrasher.

"I did this concert last year with Kelley, and it really was a fun event," Campbell says. "The kids were awesome."

Campbell's country-music career sounds like it could be a country song. After arriving in Nashville, he played piano in Luke Bryan's band before Bryan became a star. After Campbell began songwriting, the first artist to record one of his songs was none other than superstar Garth Brooks.

Even though Bryan didn't have a record deal during the time he played in his band, Campbell says, "I knew he was headed for big things. I'd pick his brain trying to figure out what I could do as far as my next move. He said songwriting was a big deal. At that time, I'd dabbled in it, but I didn't realize it was a big part of defining myself as an artist."

Campbell had two singles, one from each of his first two albums, crack the top 20 on the country charts. But his big score came when Brooks recorded one of his songs for Brooks's 2014 album, "Man Against the Machine."

"When I first heard he wanted the song, I thought, 'This is crazy! That's not happening,'" the singer laughs, thinking it was a joke. But reality set in when Brooks' asked permission to change the title from "All American Comeback Kid" to "All-American Kid."

"The first time I heard him do the song, I was sitting in the studio with Garth standing over my shoulder. It was pretty insane to be in a room with Garth and hear him sing a song I wrote."

Campbell is currently gathering and cutting tracks for an upcoming album that will be the first on his new label, Red Bow Records. He just released its second single, "Outskirts of Heaven," which Rolling Stone calls "a mix of traditional country twang and a declaration of faith." In the single, Campbell reimagines heaven from a country boy's perspective.

"I grew up in a strong Southern Baptist home. I've been taught my whole life about heaven and the pearly gates and streets of gold," he says."In my mind, that's very big-city-like. I grew up in the country and my image of heaven is totally different. As much as I appreciate (the good Lord) building me a mansion, I would be better suited to something on the outskirts of town. I think heaven is going to be what you want it to be. For me, it's going to be a farmhouse with my family around me and a river where I can go fishing."

While Campbell is making a name for himself as both a singer and songwriter in Nashville, he pauses thoughtfully before deciding that neither is his ultimate goal in life. The dad of two daughters says:

"I just want my kids to be proud of me, whether that's from songs I've written or ones I've sung."

Contact Susan Pierce at spierce@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6284.