Sean C. Morgan
Record crowds brave muggy weather to celebrate 22nd annual Oregon Jamboree
(See more photos in our photo gallery)
Miranda Lambert opened her show Friday night with some sentimental memories of Sweet Home from her previous visits – meeting Merle Haggard here in 2005 and then headlining the 2010 Oregon Jamboree in 2010 with her then-fiance Blake Shelton.
She and Shelton watched Neal McCoy dazzle the crowd here, she said, and that’s when they decided they wanted him to play their wedding.
Before Lambert took the stage Friday, the Jamboree announced one of next year’s headliners: Keith Urban, which drew roars from an enthusiastic crowd.
The weekend was hot, literally and figuratively, for the Jamboree.
Festival Director Erin Regrutto said the event drew an average of 17,500 per day. Sunday attendance was lightest, while Saturday was heaviest.
“It was incredible, not only the crowd but the volunteers,” Regrutto said. After everything was said and done, the event used about 1,000 volunteers. After things got rolling, some supervisors needed more volunteers to help cope with logistical changes, most obvious in the larger stage and revamped concert grounds.
“This year was definitely a growing year,” Regrutto said. “The crowd grew. The logistics of the site and seating were new. More than any other year, the job everybody was doing was just amplified a couple of notches up.”
People were doing an “incredible job,” from the volunteers to the staff to the vendors, she said. “Everyone just stepped it up. It was as smooth as it could possibly be,” Regrutto said.
Based on survey and suggestion forms, “we had a great response from the fans, the best response I’ve heard in all the years I’ve been here. It really was just a phenomenal year.”
The people loved Lambert’s performance, and McGraw’s was definitely the big show, with amazing energy fueled by Owen and Pope, she said.
Lambert was popular, but some fans grumbled about her popping a beachball that strayed too closely.
Fans who spoke with a reporter were generally very positive in their assessment of this year’s festival.
“Every single bus driver we’ve had has been amazing,” said a patron from Mill City, who identified herself as Tawny, 24.
“Even the camp hosts are really cool. They’ve been really accommodating.”
Amanda Leve of Beaverton was sitting in the shade at Sankey Park Saturday afternoon with her fiance, Steve Burnhard.
“We loved Miranda Lambert last night – she was really good,” Leve said.
This was Leve’s 12th year at the Jamboree and Burnhard’s third.
“She brings me. I didn’t used to like country, but I love it now,” he said,” adding that Tim McGraw and Jake Owens are two of his favorites.
“I’ve never seen them in concert.”
Temperatures in the 90s and high humidity made the park and Weddle Bridge popular spots between concerts, especially with up-and-coming artists performing on the Spirit Mountain Casino Stage between the Main Stage acts.
Burnhard held a portable fan about a foot wide, powered by D batteries.
“If it was just a little bit cooler, it’d be good,” he said.
“It was the biggest one I could find that was portable. It’s expensive, because the batteries are like 20 bucks, but it’s worth it to have a breeze.”
“We get a lot of compliments about it,” Leve said.
“Yeah,” Burnhard added. “They tease me about it. But they’re just jealous.”
Steve Witchman of Albany, at his first Jamboree, wasn’t enjoying the heat but also had found some respite in the park.
Witchman, a retiree, said he and his wife had some frustration figuring out the rules concerning water bottles and had left theirs in the car, and then had to retrieve them. But while his wife was doing that, he was enjoying the shade in the park.
“The people-watching is wonderful,” he said.
“Country music is actually rock ’n’ roll in cowboy boots, so I like it a lot.”
Owen and McGraw drew a record attendance of 18,000 Saturday night. “The Voice – Season Three” winner Cassadee Pope joined McGraw on stage for “Down on the Farm,” and McGraw later invited a member of the audience named Jordan onto the stage to propose to his girlfriend, Molly, who accepted, to the delight of the crowd.
Sunday headliner Billy Currington officially hit No. 1 for the ninth time that day with “We Are Tonight” from the 2013 album of the same name.
Lambert is touring in support of her new record, “Platinum,” while McGraw will release “Sundown Heaven Town” on Sept. 16.
Newcomer Austin Webb, country music veteran Joe Diffie and Justin Moore opened the show for Lambert Friday night.
Mid-Valley performer Jackson Michelson kicked things off Saturday, followed by A Thousand Horses, Old Dominion and Pope.
The Railers led off the Sunday lineup, followed by country veteran John Michael Montgomery and the Eli Young Band.
The quality of the headliners is a tribute to the Jamboree’s talent buying agency, Neste Event Marketing, Regrutto said. The company, which provides consummate knowledgeable professionalism, has been doing it since 1998.
And the 2015 lineup continues the tradition.
“We’re so excited to have (Urban) back,” Regrutto said. “It’s always a joy to have their tour here.”
Doris Maybee, 79, of Sweet Home, who’s attended the Jamboree “since the beginning,” said the quality has always been a draw.
“They’ve always brought in good western singers – every day, even the last day,” she said. “And every year there’s more performers, more people, more food. Actually, that’s why I come, for the fair food. There’s nothing that smells better.
“I don’t think there’s anybody here who’s actually come for many years who’s going to say any different, cause they always have good bands and who can turn down the food?”
On the field, the reserved seating section held the same number of seats as before, Regrutto said, but all of them were in front of the larger stage this year. In the past, depending on how equipment cases were arranged, the view from reserved seats could be blocked. This year, every seat had a clear view of the stage.
The artists took full advantage of a “thrust,” a stage section protruding into the audience. In the past, artists had brought their own or simply jumped to the ground to mingle with their audiences.
Jamboree staff thought, “Why not just make it a permanent feature?” Regrutto said. “I think for the most part, everybody enjoyed the space, and the bigger stage was a big deal.”
Elsewhere on the grounds, cabanas in the beer garden were a big hit, Regrutto said. Those spaces could be purchased like tables on the sponsor hospitality deck.
Behind the stage, in the Boys and Girls Club, Webb played a special barbecue reception and auction benefit for the Sweet Home Community Foundation Friday.
That event went well, Regrutto said. Crown Royal sponsored the event, and the Jamboree established a volunteer team to organize it.
“It’s turned into a big deal,” Regrutto said. Performers often give a Q&A and then play a selection of songs acoustically.
Wendy Younger of the Community Foundation said the event raised at least $3,000 for the Sweet Home Community Foundation, but final numbers weren’t available yet. The event sold 22 tickets for $60 each, and concertgoers bid on several items, including sports packages.
“It was amazing,” Younger said. “I was so impressed with Austin’s performance and the way the community stepped up and got involved in supporting the Community Foundation.”
She also thanked the Jamboree for hosting and coordinating the event. She said it would not be possible without the Jamboree’s support.
The Jamboree and KRKT also promoted another fund-raising effort Thursday night when 2009 Jamboree veteran Cloverdayle performed at the Elks Lodge. About 30 attended, and the event raised about $400 toward the Sweet Home Auditorium Remodel Committee’s goal of repairing, remodeling and improving the High School auditorium.
Cloverdayle singer Rachel Hamar explained that it’s facilities like the high school’s auditorium that helped her and her husband, guitarist Chad Hamar, launch their music careers. They hope to return and perform on the high school stage after the work is complete.
Cloverdayle plays next in West Linn on Aug. 10 before returning to Nashville.
Regrutto said the Jamboree featured several other receptions, including Ben Rue, the Railers and Old Dominion.
Overall, from an emergency services perspective, the event may have grown, but the number of problems did not.
Sweet Home medics transported four patients to the hospital all at once Friday evening with help from Lebanon Fire District, said Sweet Home Battalion Chief Guy Smith. After that, things slowed down.
Overall, the Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District responded to 13 calls per day from Friday through Sunday.
Heat was the main problem, and medics assisted many who were having problems with hydration and heat exhaustion, he said. They also dealt with a couple of diabetic problems, which become more likely in the heat.
“I would say the event went well,” said Police Chief Jeff Lynn. “I don’t have specifics. We’re still working on them, but the call load was about what we anticipated.”
The total number of calls was down a little from last year, he said. Jamboree weekend has been most busy during the 2011 and 2013 events.
“Inside the Jamboree, I think, things went really well,” Lynn said. Friday was busy with security for the most part, and then everyone settled down Saturday and Sunday.
“Nothing major, thankfully,” Lynn said. The department’s sergeants said it was consistent with the past.
– Staff Writer Natalie Grove contributed to this report.