Jodi Copus, her sister and her two grandchildren hustled to beat the crowds and stake out the right spot to spread out their blankets, as close as they could get to the looming Coca-Cola Stage floating on the river.
It was four hours before Billy Currington was supposed to take the stage and people already were trickling into Riverbend through the gate, unfolding chairs under the hot sun and settling in to watch the evening's big act.
Waiting in the shade, Ms. Copus and her sister, Dawn McCracken, both from Lookout Mountain, Ga., giggled about how cute they thought the young country singer was.
Faith Nicole, 9, and Oscar, 10, recited the words to their favorite of Mr. Currington's songs, "People are Crazy."
"God is good, beer is great and people are crazy," Faith Nicole sang. "I love that song because I always listen to it on my radio."
A few hours later Faith Nicole was singing along with Mr. Currington, matching him word for word. On the stage with fans screaming, he opened with "That's How Country Boys Roll" and "Why, Why, Why?"
A rising country star who was nominated this year for a Grammy Award, Mr. Currington is known for his rich vocals and southern drawl. Many of his songs named to the Billboard Top Ten show rhythm and blues, pop and rock influences, but Mr. Currington doesn't stray far from his country roots. In some of his most popular songs, "Must Be Doin' Somethin' Right," "Good Directions," "People Are Crazy" and "That's How Country Boys Roll." he croons about playing in bars, casting reels and loving Mama and Jesus.
Those are the songs that Scott Smith and his son, Matthew, 9, came to see.
Matthew, who had come to visit his dad in Sale Creek for the week of Riverbend, waited for nearly six hours near the main stage before Mr. Currington began his performance. His dad had given him a straw cowboy hat to wear throughout the week and he had gotten different Riverbend performers to sign it.
He hoped to find a way to even get Mr. Currington or one of his band members to sign his hat that night.
"This is fun," he said. "Billy Currington is a good country singer."
