Headeast back in 1983 was the best and it was so packed in the grandstand area! You can't take the numbers to mean much, Saturday numbers are always the biggest and it has nothing to do with the acts, its SATURDAY!!!

The Osmond Brothers! Hands down!

That was kind of my whole point. Attendance is vastly exaggerated all the time, no matter what the venue. Often they count people entering the gate, many of which never even go to the concert. Sometimes it's simply by tickets sold, and many tickets sold are no shows. They have no turn style at the fairgrounds, so I think its safe to say any figure is fundamentally flawed.
.
Funny post Testerrific!
Few years ago I was out in West Virginia on business, and could not find ANY place to stay within 30 miles of Wheeling. Everything was booked solid The reason for it was they had this "Jamboree in the Hills" which is like the big country music event out there. Now if they counted attendance at that event by your tooth theory, the numbers very well not even top 100!!

As far as how the attendance is done for the conerts I am not sure, but I do know that every time you walk through that gate you get counted, even if you just walk outside a minute then come right back again. I know I was counted 8 times on Sunday when we were going back and forth getting fair projects to the car. I would think they would have a more accurate attendance system than that. Perhaps a counter as the people enter the grandstand area?

I have no objection to good rock music, clasic or otherwise, but those shows are USUALLY very costly and the fair budget just isn't there for those shows. Also it sometimes takes being on a waiting list for a year or two before they have a opening to preform, so even though they are out there, they may already be booked because of so many other Riverfest/ Summerfest type of festivals going on. The music acts I was refering to as not family friendly are the Heavy Metal/Hard Rock and the Rap only because most of the lyrics (not all of them)are inappropriate for the younger viewer. I do agree some of the country acts also have poor choice in lyrics as well, but most are less offensive than say a rap song about prostitutes and gang banging.
That's just my opinion of course as I am not familiar with that type of music so I could be wrong, I know it wouldn't be the first time LOL

It is an interesting question...how IS the "attendance" of musical concerts calculated at the Rock County 4-H Fair?? Honestly, I think it is a valid question. How they heck DO THEY determine which washed-up hack singer has drawn the biggest crowd over the years???? I remember years ago, when I purchased a ticket to the Rock County 4-H Fair, I was told I was now officially a "viewer" of N'SYNC, even though I did not want to witness that godlessness on stage. So I told that ticket seller that "I DID NOT WANT TO BE COUNTED AS A VIEWER OF N'SYNC", and he told me that I must be "nuts or sumthin", so I grabbed a pile of cow manure and pretended I was going to throw that manure in his face, but while he was distracted by my doing that, I hit him in the head with a gravy spoon and ran away. I have no idea why that gravy spoon was laying there in that pile of cow manure, but I am eternally grateful to this day. But in regards to this "attendance" question, I have a solution, my friends! With every ticket admittance to the fair, the number of teeth of the ticket buyer must be counted by the ticket-takers. Bicuspids, Canines, Molars, they all count, my friends! Then, through a complex algorithm that I have come up with, we can determine the number of teeth that watched Ronny Milsap in concert in 2008, and compare it to the number of teeth that watched Buck Owens way back in 1973. The only complication to my algorithm is evidenced in 1979, when the late Minnie Pearl played the stage, and screamed HOWDYYYYYYYYYYYYYY so forcefully that teeth actually fell out of mouths of fairgoers in the stands, and the ensuing chaos led to a stampede that ultimately trampled a "pickle-on-a-stick" stand and injured a midget. Yes, Yes...I understand this "Minnie Pearl" fiasco will give the critics of my algorithm their ammunition, and thusly the toothless legions will argue my algorithm's integrity, but that is fine. I am fair and balanced. I would never come onto this website and only post one side of the story. I post all three sides of the story, and sometimes, if I am carnally stimulated, I will post a fourth. But I still think that counting the teeth of fairgoers will amount to a fair and balanced (and gummy) analysis of concert attendance in this fair city of Rock County. If anyone can argue with my logic, I always welcome friendly and antagonistic discussion.

The best was Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch during the summer of 1992!!

Interesting point Gwendt
How is the attendance taken now?
That really brings up an interesting question. Attendance figures are exaggerated ALL THE TIME. Take for instance the Great Circus Parade in Milwaukee. They actually claimed to draw 1 million people, when in fact a journalist did a study on it and figured it to be no more then 40,000. Pretty far cry from the million they touted. They say numbers at summerfest are often exaggerated as well. This is done all the time for pure hype purposes. How often is the media really going to check if the numbers are legit?

i can remember when people from Indiana to North Dakota coming to stay in our motels for the whole week when we had solid country.they sure didnt bring enough food to feed them. they visited our local establishments.
then they changed the way the attendance was taken & suddenly country wasnt drawing. go figure!!

There are a lot of rock bands out there that are very family appropriate.
U2, Shinedown, Foo Fighters, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Three Doors Down, Soundgarden, Tantric... that's just to name a few. Those are mostly more popular and younger bands, but there are a lot of classics out there, too. Rock and Roll is not devil music. It's a misconception that I really don't understand. Back in the 50s and 60s I can understand how people had that belief, but I don't know how people can be so uneducated today.
Country music has just as many inappropriate songs as rock and roll. Songs like, "I love this bar" and the oh-so-famous Rock County 4-H Fair favorite, "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy". Please don't be so quick to accuse all rock and rap to be inappropriate for families.
I'm a metal head, I admit it. I like the heavy stuff. I'm not asking them to bring Slipknot or Mudvayne to the fair though. I just really don't like country at all. I'd like to hear something else.

I posted this on the other blog but thought it would be good to post here too:
Well I for one enjoyed the shows this year at the fair. I was lucky enough to even win back stage passes to see Ronnie Milsap. Corbin Bleu was not my favorite (Randy Travis was though LOL), but my daughter really enjoyed CB's show.

I like the fact that the fair hosts many of the great country stars and even the up and coming ones. I could never afford to go to concerts otherwise. As for those who want hard rock, rap etc... remeber this is a family- youth oriented venue. All of the fairs musical acts need to be family friendly, and I don't think there are many rap or heavy metal songs out there that fit that description (at least none I have heard)

If you really want to hear that kind of music that's great, but not at a YOUTH fair. Do attend other music events for that.

Besides who said if you attend the fair you have to stay around for the entertainment? Why not just go and support the kids who are exhibiting all of their projects and animals. I know from first hand experience that these kids work hard all year just to be able to exhibit...and being able to show off their achievements to the community is very important to them.

So please visit and support the fair, & the 4H youth next year even if you don't care for the music acts.

Bring in some metal! SLAAAAAYER!

Better yet, bring in 311!

Chubby Checkers enjoyed the Rock Co. fair.

Rodney Atkins (Adkins?) was super last year! I don't think there was a dry eye in the audience when he sang a song with a little girl in remission! Personally I like country and think the county fair is appropriate for those kind of singers. We went to RiverFest this year to see Joan Jett (yes, I'm old) and I think more rock bands play there. It would be nice however to get a rock band into a county fair if just for one night to appeal to the different likes out there. It's not all country now that I think about it; Corbin was there this weekend and he is far from country. My first concert at the fair was The Gatlin Brothers in the 80's. I was there for Tiffany too. oh the memories!

What about the year Roy Clark from Hee Haw played....

Instead of taking a written survey at the fair, disturbing my ability to show my kids how i grew-up with the fair, why not have the Gazette host a suggestion box here on-line?
*
This blog here has brought back many memories - I was there for Ricky Nelson, Festus, Michael Landon, England Dan and John Ford Coley, Jerry Reed, Garth, Johnny Cash - I missed Elvis and Hendrix in '68 (HA!) - but Josh Turner was great a few years ago.
*
Why not have local bands during the day hours? Might they be willing to open for the national acts? If just for the exposure?

Testeriffic, I don't know who you are, but you are one funny dude!!!

jmac420:
That was kind of my thought as well.
No offense to who ever compiled this survey, but clearly they must have tipped a few back before deriving it.
.

I mean how can you not have Johnny cash, or Garth brooks even listed???????? I think to much of the list was focused on attendance, and not the quality of the artist. Kenny Rodgers, Garth brooks, and Johnny cash will all be in the country music hall of fame.

Optimism, I totally agree with you. Rock County simply cannot afford the rock bands. I remember a couple years ago, Michelle Branch was supposed to play, and then she realized she was playing a fair, and refused. I've hated her since then. So it's also not just about the county not being able to afford pop and rock bands, it's also that those pop and rock people seem to think they're too good to play a county fair!

I remeber back in the 70's When England Dan & John Ford Coley came. They were good.

Hey what about Foreigner,BTO,or Frampton I thought they were all better than the list.
Who is Blackhawk and Confederate Railroad?

Ya and i think brad paisley

I'm probably mistaken, but didn't Toby Keith perform at the fair?

are you kiddin me it's johnny friggin cash!

I find it rather surprising that neither Garth Brooks, or Johnny Cash are on the list. Both are true legends of country music, and both appeared at the Rock Co 4H fair as I recall.

Belinda Carlyle!

Cheap trick!

Hands down, GARTH BROOKS!!!!!

LAKENNEDY: I'm one of those who sat for hours waiting for Tiffany only for her to disappoint a 15 year old kid...what about Marky Mark? Walberg and the Funky Bunch were here in the early 90's.

TIFFANY? Hey no one mentioned England Dan & John Ford Coley. (just kidding) How about Garth people??????

So since the 4H is a "farmers world" we can only get entertainers to fit their taste? Last I knew the 4H fair was for the entire county. It's weird tho, being told to go to Beloit's Riverfest or even other counties fairs, because if they can get some good rock shows, why can't we?

My favorite memory of the Rock County 4-H Fair is the time a young but old Elvis Presley played the stage in 1977. I remember the day well. It was cold, and hot, but sometimes warm. I remember distinctly the moment that Elvis staggered onto the stage and sang "Hound Dog" while wearing a MuuMuu and sitting in a giant onstage Port-o-let. He kept saying "Oh Lordy, The Acoustics Are Astoundin' In Here". Yes, yes, it was kind of embarrassing, but also completely honorable in its own way. But I assure you, my friends...when Elvis sang "Can't Help Falling In Love With You", he leapt out of the MuuMuu and exited the Port-O-Let, and sang the most beautiful version of that song that I have EVER heard a fat drug addict sing directly to a bottle of quaaludes sitting atop that very same Port-O-Let.
But sadly nowadays, all we have is people like Ronnie Milsap. How boring. And what a letdown for a great singer like Ronnie Milsap to have to play Janesville!!! At least "his people" tell Ronnie that he is playing the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles, and he is content. How the heck would he know the difference anyway??? He is happy, I am happy, and God knows, the "Sap-Heads" in the audience are thrilled. After that, for the full enjoyment of the glorious Rock County 4-H Fair, just enjoy a carnival ride being operated by a two-toothed beast who smells of day old cheese and refers to his mother as his step-brother, and indulge in the obligatory pickle-on-a-stick, and once again, the Rock County 4-H Fair will be a hit for you, and yours...and theirs...and that weird guy over there too!!!!!!

Festus! ken curtis http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6FfHhamR... i still have his autographed photo somewhere!

donna fargo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAOsb9eF8...
lorretta lynn
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hKrbyNZD...
johnny cash and june carter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxU3gXy1Q...
flash cadillac (yes from happy days!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tzw1I-I0...

Alabama in the 80's was a good concert also. Jonny Cash, Conway Twitty, Brooks and Dunn, Rodney Atkins. Most every year they have atleast one good entertainer.

Why can't Janesville fair get good bands like Beloit riverfest?

just because the fair is "rooted by the farmers' world" doesn't mean that the rest of the community has to listen to the same genre of music year, after year, after year.... yes, N*SYNC and Tiffany got booked... the fair committee was using them, targeting the youth as a financial asset...

I'm not saying that country is bad, but why not something else to break the barrier... anyone for Ratt, Motley Crue, or ZZ Top?? ok, yeah, they're from the 80's, but that doesn't mean let their music die out?? or what about someone like Tracy Nelson, BB King, or someone else well known in the Blues department?? the fair is supposed to be for EVERYONE, not strictly the farming community... and you can't say as though they wouldn't enjoy something tasteful and different for a change of pace....

Hendrix in '66 was the best.

We never go--not in to CW.

If I am not mistaken, the 4-H fair is rooted from a farmers' world...that is probably why country music seems to dominate. If you are looking for rock concerts, you should try Riverfest, The WI state Fair, Alpine Valley or Summerfest. A 4-H can't really AFFORD high paid bands, that is why we get the has been country singers. And I think that country music lovers (i.e. farmers etc...) dominate the fair grounds, could be wrong, but that is what commen sense tells me. Also, IHAVEALIFE....I also thought CANDY was WAY out of LINE for ripping on you for your mistake on the show MICHAEL LANDON was on.....woopie...people like that make me ill. I too thought he was soooooooo cute.

I remember going with my mom, aunts, and cousins to see The Lettermen and Sha Na Na in the 70s - and Loretta Lynn! I also took my grandma to the Johnny Cash concert in the early 90s; I didn't appreciate it then the way I probably should have...I have been wondering why so mnay country acts (and old 1960s bands as well) have been around, and I think a lot of it has to do with the fair circuit being part of the "lifestyle" of the country music scene that dates back into the 1950s at least. I don't know if there is as rich of a history of rock bands playing county fairs as there is with country acts...but of course I could be wrong...

ihavealife

It was the early 70's when Michael Landon came. Our neighbors got to go and all they talked about was "Little Joe" pretending to shoot his gun. We didn't get to go; we never got to do anything....

Does anyone see a pattern forming here? Is it really so bad to have a good rock concert? I'm not saying bring out marilyn manson or anything(but I do listen to him) but how about something a little different from country? I understand a lot of people enjoy it, that's fine. But not all enjoy country, I personally get bored with it. My husband listens to it and I am not putting it down, I just wish that the fair could bring in a wider variety.

Perhaps I am dating myself, Willie Nelson was a big draw as was Ricky Nelson. Seems like Kenney Chesney was here too.

Garth in I think 1992 before he went big time was the best!!!

so much country, but what happened to the BLUES?? or even some good ol' rock and roll...

ihavealife; I guess he couldn't have had too much of impression on you. Michael Landon starred on the tv programs "Bonanza" and "Little House on the Prairie", as well as "Highway to Heaven", not "Gunsmoke".

At some point in the 1990s didn't the fair start counting their attendance differently? I mean, how is Garth Brooks not on the all-time list, but Michael Peterson (who?) and Bill Engvall are?

Tiffany was awful the year she came. She complained constantly about the sound and ended up only performing 3 or 4 songs if I remember right. She drew a large crowd and completely disappointed.

What? Where are all of the Tiffany supporters???
Remember your roots, people.

I personally don't like country, but many of the fair goers do (possibly because country music seems to dominate the stage every year).
That might make this a little slanted... I still believe N*Stink out-shined them all though.

HEADEAST in or around 1980-81... cant remember... rock on

Wow... I would have thought that more people would disagree with it being N*Sync.... even though I have a great distaste for boy bands, I can not argue with the facts.