Hard to tell when-or even if-it became a good thing to be considered a redneck, but Toby Keith sure made it seem like fun last night.

Whether he sang about the dangers of smoking pot with Willie Nelson, damning the notion of last call or flipping off the Taliban, Keith entertained more than enough at the New York State Fair to make up for some frivolity and narrow-minded patriotism during his rollicking, star-spangled, 15-song set.

Keith packed all of his standards into the show-the last of his summer Big Throwdown Tour-singing powerfully with his deep, commanding voice. He especially shone during the drinking anthem, ‘I Love This Bar’ and his newest single, ‘As Good As I Once Was,’ a mellow attack on growing old.

The 15,000-plus packing the Fairgrounds ate up not only the tracks, but also Keith’s espousing of his southern-fried ideals. Promoting bar fights, drinking until 5 a.m. in Key West and American excess between songs drew roars from the crowd, proving Keith’s lack of political correctness matches his understanding of his audience, which included more than one grown man wearing a Labatt Blue 30 pack as headgear.

Early in the set, after he opened with the powerful ‘Honkeytonk U,’ Keith asked if there were any rednecks in the crowd, drawing raucous applause. In the middle of his third tune, ‘When Country Comes to Town,’ he informed anyone who didn’t call him patriotic that they could ‘kiss my patriotic ass.’ Even as you felt your IQ drop, you couldn’t help but tap your foot, sing along and enjoy the show.

The Easy Money Band, Keith’s backup band, made that task pretty easy. Easy Money supplied soaring backup vocals, sharp keyboard play and a horn section that added depth to hits like ‘Stays in Mexico,’ and ‘Ain’t Much Fun Since I Quit Drinking.’

The band left the stage for a pair of songs, during which Keith’s songwriting protg, Scotty Emerick, joined the burly Oklahoman, two microphones and two guitars-the only thing to be seen on stage. It was a reunion of sorts, since the pair played for American troops during several trips to Afghanistan and Iraq, a point Keith had no trouble belaboring.

The duo played what they called their two most popular songs with the troops, ‘The Taliban Song’ and ‘Weed with Willie.’ The first was a sympathetic look at a fictional man in Afghanistan living in ‘a two-bedroom cave,’ whose life has been ruined by the Taliban. We’re pretty sure Keith didn’t have all of his political facts straight, and some of the lyrics offended, but the song still came off as sweet and soothing. Ditto for ‘Willie,’ an ode to the potent marijuana Nelson-who joined Keith via videotape for their enjoyable duet ‘Beer for My Horses’-and is famous for partaking in after shows.

Despite the suggestion during ‘Come to Town,’ and the first song with Emerick, Keith saved most of his patriotic bent for his encore. He played ‘American Soldier’ and ‘Angry American’ after a five-minute break, slinging a guitar painted with the Stars and Stripes for the final song. Both tributes to America seemed sincere enough, but still reeked of exploitation.

It’s hard to know when Keith sings of a soldier’s sacrifice if he’s doing it out of honoring them or trying to cash in, particularly when a Ford truck remained on stage the entire night.

Why was it there? An explanation took place before the show, during an are-you-serious introduction video. The plot centered around Keith conversing with a bulldog, using a Ford truck to outrun aliens (no, really) on his way to the concert.

Ghastly as the footage was, it was not the night’s biggest abomination. That came midway through the concert, when Keith turned his classic, ‘Should’ve Been a Cowboy,’ into a reggae song, stemming from drunken nights in Key West’s watering holes, he explained. It seemed like a fun idea at the beginning, until you realized he wouldn’t be warbling-poorly-in a reggae tone for a verse, but the entire song. It became worse still when Keith turned his mic over to a rapping trumpet player, who proved Keith wasn’t the one on stage who could butcher the song most. Considering the song’s place in his career and its enduring quality, robbing the crowd of a proper rendition was a shame.

But, in the end, the crowd didn’t seem to mind. As red, white and blue ticker tape fell over the crowd (most country music concerts end that way, don’t they?), the images of aliens chasing down an F-150 and awful reggae didn’t resonate. Rather, it was the idea that no matter how frivolous, acting like a redneck for a night can be pretty damn fun.

Published on August 29, 2005 at 12:00 pm