Country star salutes troops/ McGraw will play free show at Fort

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), May 7, 2003 | by BILL REED

Tim McGraw and the Dancehall Doctors have announced plans to bring their medicine to Colorado Springs on May 21. The country superstar is performing a free concert for military families at Fort Carson's Pershing Field.

"I just wanted to show my appreciation to those who protect us and to their families while I'm on the road touring," McGraw said in a statement on his Web site. "It's our small way of saying thank you."

Beginning Friday, 20,000 tickets will be distributed to military personnel and their families in the Colorado Springs area.

McGraw is in the middle of his "One Band Show" tour, and he's calling this his "One Base Show." McGraw's publicist Jessie Schmidt said the star will bring his full production to the outdoor concert and perform the 21/2-hour extravaganza of jams and deep album cuts that has marked this tour.

McGraw and his wife, Faith Hill, are the first family of country music. McGraw achieved his 20 th No. 1 country hit this week with "She's My Kind of Rain," and his latest album, "Tim McGraw and the Dancehall Doctors," has sold more than 2 million copies.

The concert is also remarkable because McGraw will be playing Fort Carson instead of attending the Academy of Country Music Awards, where he is nominated for Top Male Vocalist and Video of the Year.

"This night was the one that worked for both camps," Schmidt said. "Just so happens it fell on ACM night."

No word yet whether McGraw will provide a live feed if he wins an award, said Academy of Country Music publicist Maureen O'Connor.

TIM MCGRAW AND THE DANCEHALL DOCTORS IN CONCERT

WHERE: Pershing Field at Fort Carson

WHEN: 8 p.m. May 21

TICKETS: Free tickets are available to area military personnel and their families (active and retired) through ITT & ITR offices at Fort Carson, Air Force Academy, Peterson Air Force Base, Schriever Air Force Base and Buckley Air Force Base. Distribution begins at 10 a.m. Friday. Call 526-5366 for more info.

TICKETS FOR THE PUBLIC: If all 20,000 tickets aren't claimed by military families, some may be available to the public. Fort Carson officials are deciding how they will be distributed. Only ticket holders will be allowed at the concert.