Neil Young tribute band, Dillon Carmichael, Jackyl headline at Marion Popcorn Festival
The Main Stage at the 43rd annual Marion Popcorn Festival will feature three nights of free live entertainment, including a tribute to a legendary singer/songwriter, one of the fresh faces of country music and closing out with some Southern Rock tour warriors from Georgia Sept. 5-7 in downtown Marion.
HARVEST - The Neil Young Electric & Acoustic Tribute kicks off Main Stage headline entertainment Sept. 5.
Presented by Buckeye Community School, HARVEST performs a tribute to classic Neil Young, covering Young's career from Buffalo Springfield, CSNY and solo to the modern Harvest Moon, with a particular focus on the early-to-mid '70s solo and Crazy Horse era.
Since 1987, members Jim Tigue and Eroc Sosinski have been performing Neil Young music for fans across the Midwest, in the bands Harvest and later Tie-Dye Harvest, the Jim & Eroc Duo, and eventually forming the Pink Floyd concert act Wish You Were Here. Peter Telari (also of WYWH), Tim Hamman and Keith Chelm are veteran northeast Ohio musicians as well. For 28 years, Sosinski was the late Michael Stanley's primary bassist/vocalist, performing in concert at venues across the country and on many studio and live releases since 1993.
Main stage entertainment starts at 6 p.m. Sept. 5 with local group Analog Youth, sponsored by Route30 Harley-Davidson.
Dillon Carmichael
Dillon Carmichael will take the Main Stage Sept. 6. Carmichael is a rising country music artist from Burgin, Kentucky. He’s the nephew of John Michael Montgomery and Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry, who performed at the Marion Popcorn Festival in 2021.
In December, the Country Radio Seminar named Carmichael as one of the Fresh Faces for 2024. He landed on Artist To Watch lists from Billboard, Rolling Stone, Taste of Country, Pandora and more, reached No. 2 at country radio’s Most Added chart with his debut radio single “Dancing Away With My Heart,” electrified festival crowds from CMA Fest to Dierks Bentley’s Seven Peaks, and earned tour dates with Lynyrd Skynyrd, Brooks & Dunn, Justin Moore, Dwight Yoakam and Trace Adkin, among others. The 2024 tour artists include Jon Pardi, Cody Johnson and Luke Bryan.
Carmichael’s new Pardi-produced single, “Drinkin’ Problems,” is climbing the radio charts and was the most added song for five consecutive weeks. It serves as an introduction into his four-track project, “Where I Grew Up,” that highlights his bluegrass roots, produced by Riser House Entertainment. Rolling Stone dubbed Carmichael as “country music’s most convincing young star since Stapleton.”
In October 2021, Carmichael released “Son of A.” The tune marked the emerging artist’s third single to radio in under five years after being signed to Sony-distributed Riser House Entertainment. It also inspired the name of his 2021 full-length album, which was later expanded as a deluxe project. Also charting on this release was the single “Hot Beer.”
The New York Times compared Carmichael to Randy Travis in his previous album, “Hell On An Angel,” and said his rich baritone voice “moves with the heft and certainty of a tractor-trailer,” while NPR praised his “deep holler,” and Parade raved that “Carmichael defines pure country.”
Jackyl rocks out on final night of Popcorn Festival
Jackyl will wrap-up the Main Stage entertainment Sept. 7.
On Aug. 11, 1992, Jackyl released its debut album on Geffen Records. It was the middle of Grunge, but Jackyl’s loud rock songs, produced by Brendan O’Brien (Stone Temple Pilots, AC/DC), earned the LP double-platinum status. Videos for the singles "The Lumberjack," "I Stand Alone,” "Down On Me," "Dirty Little Mind," "When Will It Rain" and "Back Off Brother" earned rave reviews and rabid fans for the band’s no-holds-barred energy and lyrics.
On Aug. 11, 2022, 30 years to the day of Jackyl’s debut, the lineup played Sturgis, South Dakota’s Full Throttle Saloon, in a celebration of the lineup’s 30th anniversary that also marked the debut of the quartet’s album, "Jackyl 30 Coming In Hot" and first single, “Get All Up In It.”
From 2009-2015 Jackyl's Jesse James Dupree became one of the lead characters of the hit reality TV show "Full Throttle Saloon." In 2010 the band released "When Moonshine and Dynamite Collide," which featured DMC from Run-D.M.C.
“Jeff, Chris and Roman coming down on the ‘one’ together is still a force of nature,” Dupree said. “Thirty years together and I feel we’ve found an honest place about our new music, our fans and us as a band, on and offstage.”
All bands will perform at 8:30 p.m., following 6 p.m. opening bands. Friday and Saturday opening acts will be announced later.
Performances on the Festival’s Main Stage are free. A limited number of Kernel sponsorship seats are available for Main Stage performances by calling 740-387-FEST.
Other festival events and activities include the Popcorn Parade on Thursday with over 300 units, a 5k run, fine arts show, crafts and vendors, corn hole tournament, Community Showcase Stage, Poppin’ Party stage beer garden, Popcorn Matinee musical performance at the Marion Palace Theatre and more.
For more information, visit popcornfestival.com or call 740-387-FEST.
This article originally appeared on Marion Star: HARVEST, Dillon Carmichael, Jackyl to headline Marion Popcorn Festival