B6
CHIEF JOSEPH DAYS
Wallowa County Chieftain
Wednesday, July 27, 2022
Back Country Bash bigger than ever
Eight acts take
the stage over
for two days
BACK COUNTRY
BASH
When: Friday and
Saturday, Aug. 5-6
Where: Harley Tucker
Memorial Rodeo Grounds
By JEFF BUDLONG
Wallowa County Chieftain
JOSEPH — As the pop-
ularity of the Back Coun-
try Bash grows so does its
music lineup.
What began as a one-
day, three-act event in 2017
will become a two-day,
eight-act extravaganza with
four bands playing each
day, Aug. 5-6, at the Har-
ley Tucker Memorial Rodeo
Grounds.
The Bash is described as
a weekend of Americana and
Red Dirt music. Red Dirt is a
genre of country music that
gets its name from the color
of soil found in Oklahoma.
Many Red Dirt acts got their
start in bars surrounding
Oklahoma State University
in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
“People want to come
here, you just have to give
them a reason,” said Chief
Joseph Days director Ran-
dall Eschler, who along with
his father, Rusty, and fel-
low director Jake Thomp-
son plan much of the Back
Country Bash. “It is fun
to put on an event for your
community members and
say it is for them. We want
the community to come out
and enjoy something we
don’t have every day.”
The idea for the Bash
began as a way to use the
grounds more, but it has
been enhanced each year.
“Wallowa County is the
perfect venue for music,”
Eschler said. “People want
to come here and that is
why our motto is come
for the music, stay for the
adventure.”
Friday’s lineup has the
Read Southall Band, Kody
West, Austin Meade and
Them Dirty Roses. Satur-
day features Whitney Mor-
gan & the 78s, Bart Crow,
Tickets: Available online
$60 for one-day pass; $90
for two days
Website: www.back-
countrybashjoseph.com
Elkhorn Media Group/Contributed Photo
The Back County Bash is a two-day, eight-act extravaganza with four bands playing each day, Aug. 5-6, at the Harley Tucker
Memorial Rodeo Grounds.
Wallowa County Chieftain, File
Corb Lund, who has an authentic ranching background,
wows the Back Country Bash attendees with one of his ranch-
fl avored numbers.
Josh Meloy and Sam Mor-
row. Each day gates open at
4:30 p.m. and the music starts
at 5:30 p.m. Children under 8
receive free admission with
tickets costing $60 for one
day and $90 for both days.
“People buy their tickets
for the event, not a specifi c
act, but we have yet to have
anyone pull out,” Eschler
said.
Eschler said the music
may not be mainstream,
but it is “real music without
the autotune.” The sound is
Wallowa County Chieftain, File
Shane Smith, rocks out with his band, The Saints, as the
opening act of the 2019 Back Country Bash. Smith, whose
Thunder Room appearance was sold out, probably got as
much audience adulation as anyone who played the rodeo
arena on the following day.
better live than what some-
one hears on the radio on
streaming, he said.
The Bash also provides
an opportunity for area
musicians who set up on a
stage outside of the arena
and perform in between acts.
“We get Wallowa County
people to perform by the
food vendors,” Eschler
said. “They go for about 15
between sets.”
Last year’s event came
after 2020 was canceled
because of the pandemic
and people were still getting
used to the idea of gather-
ing in large numbers again.
Eschler said this year’s event
feels more similar to the fi rst
couple of years.
“Last year, it felt like you
were still looking over your
shoulder, but this year feels
totally normal,” he said.
The inaugural event
saw Cody Canada and the
Departed headline the all-
day music event plus per-
formances from Corb Lund
and Micky and the Motor-
cars. It drew about 600 peo-
ple, and this year around
1,200 are expected at the
campgrounds.
Eschler said people are
able to make a weekend of
activities out of their trip
to the Bash with nearly 40
acres of camping ground
available. Wallowa Lake
off ers plenty of activities
and a chance to view the
scenery, and shopping and
food are available in town.
“People turn it into their
own thing and just have a
great time,” Eschler said.
The event draws locals as
well as enthusiasts from Lew-
iston, Idaho; Walla Walla,
Washington; and those from
several states away.
FREE DELIVERY WITHIN WALLOWA COUNTY
Call 541-437-2054 to make special arrangements. Some restrictions apply.
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