Keith Anderson’s 2008 single “I Still Miss You” has about 1.5 million YouTube views. In today’s country music climate -- where the most popular acts rack upwards of 60 million views -- that number may seem a mere shot poured from a very large whiskey bottle.
However, Anderson has certainly taken a swig from this proverbial half-gallon jug: his 2005 debut “Three Chord Country and American Rock and Roll” sold over 500,000 copies and netted four singles on Billboard’s Hot Country charts. He wrote the chart topper “Living in the Moment” by Big & Rich and helped write “Beer Run (B Double E Double Are You In?)” sung by country behemoths Garth Brooks and George Jones.
A decade later he is back with a new album and the Wildflowers and Wild Nights Acoustic Tour. These shows are unplugged, a presentation that Harry Askers, Anderson’s tour manager, believes will truly reunite listeners to this once promising artist.
“They’re going to walk out of this venue feeling like they know this guy through-and-through,” Askers said.
The 48-year-old Okie took some time off from performing earlier in the decade for personal reasons. It was when his friends from the group Nashville Unplugged came calling that he first got back on stage.
“That was a big moment in my music life,” Anderson said. “It got my passion back, focus back and got me excited about music.”
He says he says he will tour with a full band following this 25-date, 31-day acoustic romp. Fans at these shows can purchase a 15-track version of his latest release “I’ll Bring the Music” that Anderson released as a 6-track EP last May. The title track has received airplay on SiriusXM’s “The Highway,” Askers said. (It also has over 100 likes with no dislikes on YouTube.)
These acoustic shows are both fun and laid back for this rejuvenated artist. He can play the songs he’s feeling that night -- without the logistics of a backing-band -- while remaining close with his craft and the meaning of the songs he has written.
“At this point in the year I love going out with just the guitar to get that inspiration, make sure I’m doing this for the right reasons,” Anderson said, “It’s all about about a song and a story.”
They’re also highly visible, as Askers noted, and will showcase Anderson’s storytelling ability, humor and raw talent that is sometimes cloaked in a larger tour dynamic.
The opener for the night will be singer-songwriter Zach Hinson of West Valley, Wash., near Yakima.
Askers assures acoustic show skeptics that the night “is really going to be a party.”
IF YOU GO:
What: Keith Anderson Wildflowers and Wild Nights tour with special guest Zach Hinson.
When: 8 p.m. today
Where: Zone 208, 301 Second St., Lewiston.
Cost: $15 advance, $20 door. Advance tickets available at GNC Lewiston and Main Street Les Schwab in Lewiston.
