Country’s superstars and rising stars will share the stage at Wednesday night’s Six Strings at Sunset.
The concert is a benefit for the Kidney Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, which is partnering with radio station 107.9 The Duke to present the show.
“Proceeds from this show go to our patient services program,” said Jennifer McGlohon of the Kidney Foundation. McGlohon said the services range from transportation to and from dialysis treatments, to emergency mortgage and utility assistance.
McGlohon said the format showcases the songwriting talents of the featured artists.
“We bring them out one by one, and each gives a behind-the-music story about the song they perform. After all the artists have come out, they’ll remain onstage and tell more stories and perform in a round-robin. There are always surprises every year,” she said.
Newcomer Jeremy McComb could just be the guy to deliver that surprise.
McComb, 29, who was Larry the Cable Guy’s tour manager and also worked with the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, said he’ll sing a couple of songs he wrote for the comic.
The two met when McComb took out a personal loan to pay the comedian’s fee for a show in the honky-tonk where McComb worked.
The two kept in touch over the years, and the comedian asked McComb to help him write a couple of parodies for his act. McComb later wrote the soundtrack for “Health Inspector” and music for Blue Collar tours 2 and 3.
“He asked me to come hang out on his tour. I borrowed $150 from my dad to take a train to Illinois. I went out for a week, and it turned into a job for three years,” McComb said.
The singer’s current hits are “This Town Needs a Bar” and “Wagon Wheel.” The latter is currently No. 3 on MySpace music charts.
“Last year I wrote 60 to 70 songs that I’m weeding through. I’m hoping to have a new record out next spring,” the singer said.
If You Go
What: Six Strings at Sunset.
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Where: Tivoli Theatre, 709 Broad St.
Admission: $25; backstage VIP packages are $100, which includes two tickets to show and preshow meet-and-greet
Phone: 642-TIXS or 265-4397.
THE SINGERS
* Richie McDonald: Lead singer of Lonestar from 1992 until 2007, when he departed for solo career. Co-wrote ‘I’m Already There,” which won Lonestar the BMI Country Song of the Year in 2002.
Larry Stewart: Front man for Restless Heart since 1983, with the exception of a short solo career in the ’90s.
* Ashton Shepherd: Got her big break in 2006 when she won a talent contest and got to open for Lorrie Morgan. New single is “Sounds So Good.”
* Bryan White: One of the most successful new country acts of the ’90s, he is most famous for his duet with Shania Twain, “From This Moment.”
* Cody McCarver: Longtime member of hometown favorite band Confederate Railroad, the Dunlap, Tenn., native is pursuing a solo career. He was named Music Row’s Independent Artist of the Year for 2009. His video “White Trash With Money” was No. 1 on CMT’s Pure 12 Pack Countdown until this week.
* Jeremy McComb: This former tour manager for Larry the Cable Guy has two songs receiving radio and CMT video air time, “Wagon Wheel” and “This Town Needs a Bar.”
Katie Armiger: A new Texas artist whose first single, “Kiss Me Now,” was released in February.