September 2017 22 Sponsored by Cowtown Boots • Phoenix • Tempe • Tucson GARY ALLEN Oct. 6, 2017 Gary Allan hit the honky tonk circuit in his native Southern California at the seasoned age of 12. Playing in and out of the smoky, sweaty bars with his dad’s band led Allan to follow in his father’s footsteps and start his own band. When Allan returned to those same honky tonks with his own combo, the sound was true Bakersfield country: Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, and the rest. Allan spent most of his twenties honing his skills as a new traditionalist country singer; finally, in 1996, he was picked up by the Decca label. Hits include, Every Storm Runs Out Of Rain, Her Man, Best I Ever Had, Watching Airplanes and many more. Venue: Arizona State Fair 1826 W McDowell Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85007 (602) 252-6771, https://azstatefair.com CHARLIE DANIELS  Oct. 7, 2017 8:00pm SALUTING OUR VETERANS BENEFIT CONCERT The Charlie Daniels Band Show your support Saturday, October 7th! Santana Insurance Agency and event host Mazatzal Hotel & Casino present “Saluting Our Veterans” a benefit concert featuring the legendary Charlie Daniels Band. All proceeds specifically benefit local Payson military veteran charities. Venue: Mazatzal Hotel & Casino Highway 87, Mile Marker 251, Payson, AZ 85541 (928) 474-6044, http://www.mazatzalcasino.com MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET Oct. 8, 2017 Million Dollar Quartet is the smash-hit musical inspired by the famed recording session that brought together rock ‘n’ roll icons Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins for the first and only time.  Venue: Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino 5040 Wild Horse Pass Blvd, Chandler, AZ 85226 (800) 946-4452, http://wingilariver.com/index.php/ wild-horse-pass-hotel-casino BILLY CURRINGTON Oct. 11, 2017 Debut album, Billy Currington, was released on Mercury Records in 2003. A second album, Doin’ Somethin’ Right, followed in 2005 on Mercury Nashville. Three years later, Currington delivered the eclectic, R&B-inflected Little Bit of Everything, also on Mercury Nashville. In 2010 Currington returned with his tenth studio effort, Enjoy Yourself, featuring the Troy Jones co-written single “Pretty Good at Drinkin’ Beer.” That song went to number one, as did “Let Me Down Easy.” “Love Done Gone” and “Like My Dog” also reached the country Top 40. Venue: Arizona State Fair 1826 W McDowell Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85007 (602) 252-6771, https://azstatefair.com LUKE BRYAN Oct. 26, 2017 Bryan moved to Nashville in 2001, quickly landing a songwriting contract with a local publishing house. At night, he performed his own music at local clubs, and when an A&R rep from Capitol Records saw him perform one night, Bryan was signed to the label. In the summer of 2007, Capitol released Bryan’s first major record, I’ll Stay Me, and two years later Doin’ My Thing came out. Both albums peaked at No. 2 on the country charts. The latter release also produced two No. 1 country singles: “Rain Is a Good Thing” and “Someone Else Calling You Baby.” His early success led to an Academy of Country Music nomination for Top New Male Vocalist, and both Billboard and Country Weekly called Bryan an “artist to watch.” Two years later came Tailgates & Tanlines, an album that saw four singles land in the Top 5 of the country charts— with “I Don’t Want This Night to End” and “Drunk on You” both hitting No. 1. It wouldn’t be long before Bryan found true crossover success, as his 2013 album Spring Break... Here to Party hit No. 1 on the pop charts.  Bryan won the Academy of Country Music’s Entertainer of the Year Award and released his fourth studio album, Crash My Party, which hit No. 1 on both the country and pop charts. With the bulk of songs from the album landing on the country charts, three singles found their way to No. 1. Continuing to thrive, Bryan picked up his first Country Music Association Award win in 2014 as Entertainer of the Year.  Venue: Ak-Chin Pavilion 2121 N 83rd Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85035 (602) 254-7200, http://livenation.com Currington returned to action in 2013, releasing the single “Hey Girl” in March and then delivering the full-length We Are Tonight that September. The album debuted at five on the Billboard Country charts, and spawned the number one Country Airplay hits “Hey Girl” and “We Are Tonight.” In 2015, Currington returned with Summer Forever, an album preceded by the single “Don’t It” -- a song that reached number four on the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart -- and supported by “Drinkin’ Town with a Football Problem.” Venue: Arizona State Fair 1826 W McDowell Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85007 (602) 252-6771, https://azstatefair.com RANDY HOUSER Oct. 19,2017 Randy Houser is a renowned country music singer and songwriter from America. One of his most notable works is ‘Anything Goes’, which ranked among the top 20 hit of Billboard country singles. Earlier signed with Universal South Records, he moved to the Broken New Records, and went to number one with his ‘How Country Feels’. He is also a song writer, who has given important numbers like ‘Honky Tonk Badonkadonk’, ‘My Cowboy’ and ‘Back That Thing Up’.