The continuing tradition of the 142nd annual Nobles County Fair will fittingly include another nationally known musical act.
Josh Abbott Band will perform at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 5 at the Worthington Speedway on the Nobles County Fairgrounds. Adam Schwind, a former member of Drake White & The Big Fire, will also take the stage for the show.
Josh Abbott Band has been part of the Texas music scene since forming in 2006 at Texas Tech University. The band’s sixth and most recent studio album is "The Highway Kind," which saw the band team in mid-2019 with producer Marshall Altman (Marc Broussard, Frankie Ballard, Aaron Watson) for what Abbott dubs “the first real, true band album experience” that the group has recorded. "The Highway Kind" followed the 2019 EP “Catching Fire,” the string and horn-infused "Until My Voice Goes Out" from 2017, and Abbott's divorce album, 2015’s "Front Row Seat."
Among the memorable cuts on "The Highway Kind" are the infectious lead single "Little More You,” the ballad "Settle Me Down," the hope-fueled "The Luckiest," memorable album closer “Old Men & Rain” and the vivid “Women & Wishes.” Previous Josh Abbott Band hits include “Girl Down in Texas,” “Amnesia,” “Wasn’t That Drunk,” “She’s Like Texas,” “Oh, Tonight,” “Touch,” “I’m Your Only Flaw” and “The Night Is Ours.”
This marks yet another year of bringing a popular country music artist to the Nobles County Fair. Joe Diffie, who had 12 No. 1 hits and more than 20 Top 10 singles in his career, played the fair in 2019. There was no fair in 2020 because of COVID-19; Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry played the fair in 2021.
"Every year we can bring in a national act, we're excited," Nobles County Fair Board of Directors President Corey Gronewold said. "Country acts seem to bring in the most people, and this year we're actually changing things up a little bit. On Friday night, we're going to have an act, then we're going to have an opener and then we're going to have the Josh Abbott Band, and following that we're going to have kind of like a rock band in the beer garden. The goal is to keep the people on the grounds through the evening all night long. and to have the music acts it gives adults a chance to enjoy the music festivities and their kids to enjoy the carnival at the same time."
Advance tickets go on sale on May 1 and are just $10 through July 4. Tickets are $20 July 5 through the night of the show and may also be purchased at the gate. All tickets may be purchased on the Nobles County Fair website and at Radio Works in Worthington.
