Be Still, My Country Heart

Just when I thought this summer’s anniversary of the Cody Stampede couldn’t get any more exciting, I learned today that Cody will be hosting one of my all-time favorite country singers – in addition to Dan Miller of course – to kick things off.

Clint Black will be “Killin’ Time” in Cody on June 27 for a charity concert to benefit the St. Jude’s Research Hospital. One of my favorite charities, St. Jude’s provides no-cost, top-flight health care to seriously sick children, and it helps families with travel and lodging expenses so they can be with their kids while they’re in the hospital. The concert will be free, and guests will be encouraged to make donations in return for enjoying the musical fun.

The concert will be held at the Stampede Park with enough room for thousands of fans.

Clint – we’re on a first-name basis – came on the country music scene in the late ‘80s with a breakthrough album called “Killin’ Time.” The album had a whole bunch of hit singles, including “A Better Man” and “Nobody’s Home.” (Nobody’s home, coincidentally, is exactly what a friend said happened to me whenever I played the album.) I was a bit of a music trivia nut then, and I was so impressed that Clint used his own road band to record the album instead of using a session band like everyone else did.

Getting Clint Black to Cody took a little doing, but the Stampede Board was clearly up to the task. The board worked with the Big Horn Radio Network to make it happen.

It will be a great way to kick off the 100^th anniversary of the Cody Stampede. It’s been several years since the Cody Stampede included a major concert, so it will be a fitting way to mark the centennial of an event that was originally created to honor the legacy of town founder Buffalo Bill Cody.

We’ll learn more details about the concert soon, and I’m hoping the board will also soon announce the Grand Marshal for the Cody Stampede Parade.

Until then, I’m Killin’ Time and loving life here in Cody Yellowstone.