TOBY KEITH, TRACE ADKINS AND JAMES OTTO, USANA Amphitheatre, Aug. 14
WEST VALLEY CITY — Toby Keith knows how to have a good time. And while he's having a good time, there's a good chance his audience is along for the ride.
Keith made a stop at the USANA Amphitheatre on Saturday and it was a rambunctious, good-rocking and irreverent time.
Instead of the Rock 'n' Roll creed of "sex, drugs and Rock 'n' Roll," Keith, the country boy from Oklahoma, played out the "sex, booze and country tunes."
And he did it with a shoot-from-the-hip band and an elaborate multi-tiered stage that included a rising Ford pickup behind the drums and a Ford tailgate underneath the drums.
The first song out of the barrel, after a lengthy introductory video, was the title track to his new CD, "Bullets in the Gun."
With a flashing blast of well-timed pyrotechnics and two massive video screens set up on either side of the amphitheater, Keith's show never got boring.
He treated his fans with old Keith standards such as "I'm Just Talkin' About Tonight," "I Want to Talk About Me" and "Who's Your Daddy."
His tongue-in-cheek humor emerged during the back-ground videos and his in-the-moment, and sometimes salty, ad libs.
The men got an eyeful of silhouetted pole dancers during "Whiskey Girl," and the women in the audience were able to tame their men when Keith sang the heartfelt "You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like That."
Another tender moment wasn't during a love song, but a tribute to jazz bassist Wayman "Brother Tiz" Tisdale.
Keith set up the song, "Cryin' for Me," with a story about how his and the left-handed, upside-down-playing bassist's friendship ended with Tisdale succumbing to cancer and leukemia.
Ever the showman, Keith added a lot of Utah references to his songs. During the new "Trailerhood," he slipped in "BYU football on TV" and talked about Salt Lake bars just before he launched into "I Love This Bar" and "Should've Been a Cowboy."
He also took time to raise his cup of "refreshment" in many toasts with the crowd.
And what would a Toby Keith show be without "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue?"
Opening the evening was newcomer James Otto. His bluesy country was a hit with the audience who loved his songs "Groovy Little Summer Song" and "These Are the Good Ole Days."
Long Tall Louisianan Trace Adkins strutted his stuff as his deep southern bass vocals delivered a set that included "Marry for Money," "Swing Batter Swing" and "Hot Mama."
His videos were limited to the LED screen and light fissures at the back of the stage, but he made the most of it by utilizing an extended platform that shot out into the front rows.
Adkins also slowed things down with "This Ain't No Love Song" and his cover of Larry Graham's "One in a Million," before getting the fans on their feet with his trademark "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk."
His set ended with a rocking version of Foreigner's "Dirty White Boy."
And where Adkins ended, Keith started.
e-mail: scott@desnews.com