LEXINGTON — Before he would become known for his 20 No. 1 Billboard hits and was a dominant name in the country scene, Toby Keith would perform locally at the Dawson County Fair in 1994.
Keith recently died at the age of 62 after a two-year battle with stomach cancer.
An Oklahoma native, Keith worked as a roughneck in the oil fields of the state as a young man. He then played semi-pro football before launching his career in music.
“All through this whole thing the only constant thing we had was music,” Keith told the Associated Press. “But it’s hard to sit back and say, ‘I’m going to go make my fortune singing music, or writing music.’ I had no contacts.”
His path eventually took him to Nashville, where he caught the attention of a producer with Mercury Records, after they received a copy of Keith’s demo tape from a flight attendant who was a fan of Keith’s.
Keith’s debut single, “Should’ve Been a Cowboy”, went to number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1993, and it reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100.
This was the song that also led off his self-titled album which also released the same year. It was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of one million copies,
The album produced three more Top 5 hits on the country charts with “He Ain’t Worth Missing,” which hit number five, “A Little Less Talk and a Lot More Action” and “Wish I Didn’t Know Now,” both which reached number two.
After releasing his first album in April 1993, Keith would hit the touring circuit. In 1994, he would hit Merrillville, Ind., Peoria, Ill. And Huntingburg, Ind.
On Friday, Aug. 19, 1994, Keith was booked to perform at the Dawson County Fair in Lexington. The fair even seemed to take their theme, “A Lot More Action,” from one of Keith’s hits.
In a sign of the times, reserve seat tickets were $10.60 each, while general admission tickets were $8.50 each.
Cozad’s Tri-City Trib newspaper had a half page advertisement for the signer.
“Friday evening, Aug. 19, will be Toby Keith night at the 1994 edition of the Dawson County Fair. Headliner Keith is best known for his debut sign that skyrocketed to No. 1, “Should Have Been a Cowboy.”
“Keith who grew up in Oklahoma, was employed by a rodeo company through his high school years. ‘I’m really just what you call a straight-ahead country boy, though I don’t wear a hat,’ Keith observed. ‘And I’m willing to bet that on any given night when my band and I go into a bar and play for a roomful of hats that I’ve been on more bucking stock than anyone in the room.”
The Trib article continued, “On the Western dance club circuit, Keith said he and his backup musicians go against many great bands and national names. ‘Plus we’ve opened for every star from Garth Brooks to Freddy Fender. And I’m not bragging when I say that, musically, vocally, whatever, the Easy Money Band and I can hold my own against any of them.’”
“Speaking of his debut album, Keith explained, ‘What my band and I do live is really what we wanted to capture on the new LP. I wanted every song on this album to count. I wanted to come out of the studio with such a strong album that they’d have trouble picking which three or four cuts to release as singles. That’s what we set out to achieve and I think we succeeded.’”
As July wore on, the Trib noted, “Early ticket sales indicate that country music star Toby Keith will draw a huge audience during the 1994 Dawson County Fair.”
During the night of the performance at the fair, the warmup act was the brother-sister duo of Matt and Robyn who provided family entertainment.
A picture from Keith’s performance taken by the Lexington Clipper-Herald shows packed stands, the caption reading, “The grandstands were packed with country music fans during the Friday night performance by Toby Keith at the Dawson County Fair. Fans couldn’t sit still at the end of the singer’s performance. They crowded the stage, demanded an encore and cheered when Keith gave them another song.”
Another photo from the Trib shows Keith clad in a black cowboy hat with a crowd pressing close to the stage. The caption said, “County music recording artist Toby Keith had his audience on their feet from the first note of Friday’s Dawson County Fair concert. Keith drew a big crowd of revelers to the stage where they pressed as close as they could get to the star.”
In a Trib article following the fair, the sub headline read, “Toby Keith and demo derby drew big crowds.”
The article quoted Dale Holbein who said, “The Toby Keith concert and the demolition derby drew the largest crowds.”
The article continued, “Toby Keith had his audience dancing in the aisles almost from the first note. By the show’s end a throng of wildly enthusiastic fans was pressed against the stage, reaction to the popular singer’s every fascial expression and gesture.”
Keith would continue to tour throughout the remainder of 1994, including a performance in Denver, Colo. In September of the same year, he released his second album, “Boomtown,” which would be certified platinum.
Keith would go on to release 19 studio albums, two Christmas albums, and five compilation albums, totaling worldwide sales of over 40 million albums.
He has charted 61 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including 20 #1 hits and 22 additional top 10 hits.
