The Livingston Hoot has announced the 2016 headliners and they’re not messing around! 20 time Grammy winner Vince Gill will join his good friend (and Hoot alum) Rodney Crowell for what they’re calling “a street dance.” The Hoot is a free community sponsored event providing fun, food and music on historic Main Street in downtown Livingston.
The Hoot will take place Thursday, August 4th, rain or shine. One of the most popular singers in modern country music, Vince Gill is famous for his top-notch songwriting, world-class guitar playing and warm, soaring tenor, all wrapped up in a quick and easy wit. Gill achieved his big breakthrough in 1990 with “When I Call Your Name,” which won both the Country Music Association’s Single and Song of the Year award as well as a Grammy. Since then, he has won 17 more CMA honors, including Song of the Year four times–making him the most-awarded artist in that category in CMA history. Since 1990, Gill has won 20 GRAMMY Awards. The Academy of Country Music has conferred on Gill eight awards, including its prestigious Home Depot Humanitarian Award and the 2011 Career Achievement Award. Gill was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2007. He is also a member of the Grand Ole Opry. In August 2012, Gill was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He is a member of the four-time Grammy-nominated band The Time Jumpers. Rodney Crowell is a Texas-born, Nashville-based songwriter, artist, producer and author whose work and career sets a benchmark for commercial success and lifelong artistic ambition and integrity in country and Americana music. His compositions, including “Til I Gain Control Again,” “I Ain’t Livin’ Long Like This,” “Song For The Life,” and “Ashes By Now” have been widely and successfully covered by legendary singers. He led the way as a recording artist, achieving a dazzling run of radio hits in the 1980s, followed by a series of more personal albums in the 2000s that secured his place as much more than a chart-topper. His 2011 memoir Chinaberry Sidewalks vividly fleshed out the life story of this sincere and complex artist. Crowell is a 2 time Grammy Award winner, a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and the recipient of the 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting from the Americana Music Association. Crowell says, “In 1976, Vince Gill and I met at the Troubadour in Los Angeles. Since then we’ve been close friends and collaborators. Once a year, Vince and I host a barn dance fundraiser near my home in Nashville. We play pretty much any song that pops into our heads. If we don’t know the words we just make new ones up. On August 4th, Vince, myself, the legendary steel guitarist Paul Franklin and a rocking little dance band will be taking the stage at the Livingston Hoot.
Two years ago, I played the very first Hoot and afterwards alerted Vince that this year he and I would be providing the merriment. ‘It’s already on the calendar’ was his reply. Be there!” Hoot producers Joanne Gardner and John Lowell created the event in 2014. “Livingston is such a special place, and we thought we’d throw our town a big party,” said Gardner. “We also realize how much great work the non profits of this area do and wanted to give them a chance to interact with the community in a fun environment.”
“The first Hoot drew 3,000 people in 2014,” said Lowell. “Rodney Crowell was our first headliner and everyone loved the show. Local musical legend Bill Payne joined Crowell, with Steuart Smith on guitar and special guest John Mayer. It was a memorable night–and packed Main Street. This has turned into the biggest night of the year for many restaurants and bars in Livingston.”
Last year, the Hoot featured New Orleans trio the Tin Men and headliner Roy Rogers and the Delta Rhythm Kings with special guest Phil Aaberg. The event drew close to 5,000, and spread three blocks. This year, the event will kick off at 4pm, with a kid’s fun area available, and vendors with food, drink, art and more on Main Street. Opening act, the Fishing Music Band with Mollie O’Brien, kicks off the music at 6pm and Vince Gill and Rodney Crowell with special guest Paul Franklin will take the stage at 8pm. The International Federation of Fly Fishers is returning to Livingston for their Fly Fishing Fair and will be attending the Hoot. The opening band at the Hoot this year is a talented combination of artists doing many fish related songs. The Fishing Music Band began as a recorded music project dreamed up by Ben Winship and David Thompson, two avid fly fishermen and long-time, Rocky Mountains based musicians. Winship and Thompson spent countless hours collecting songs they thought captured the spirit of fish, fishing, and rivers–also contributing some originals to the mix–and then invited some of the top musicians from the new acoustic scene to bring their talents to the project. Artists like Tim O’Brien, Mollie O’Brien, John Lowell, Mike Dowling, David Grier, Matt Flinner, Billy Novick, Rob Ickes and many more brought the ideas to life in two Fishing Music albums, which have enjoyed remarkable success across the country. At the Hoot, Winship, Thompson and O’Brien will be joined by Rich Moore and Brian Crumrine.
For information regarding sponsoring the Hoot, vendor and volunteer opportunities and non profit organizations requesting space, please visit LivingstonHoot.com/. The Hoot’s fiscal sponsor is the Park County Community Foundation. •
