John Michael Montgomery, Tonic and Green River Ordinance will headline the fourth annual Smoke on the Water — Ribs for the Red Cross event set for Aug. 5-7 in Downtown Toledo.

Proceeds from the weekend event in Promenade Park in Downtown Toledo will benefit the Greater Toledo Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Montgomery

Last year’s event drew 30,000 people and raised more than $65,000, said Red Cross Special Events Coordinator Stephanie Lent.

Green River Ordinance will headline Friday night’s concert. The Texas rockers have several hits, including “Come On” and “On Your Own,” and its songs have been featured on more than 20 TV shows, including “So You Think You Can Dance,” “The Hills” and “The Young and the Restless.” “Out of My Hands,” its Capitol/Virgin Records debut album, was released in 2009 to critical acclaim.

The group’s most recent album, “The Morning Passengers — Acoustic Sessions EP,” was released on iTunes only. It reached No. 3 on the Billboard Heatseeker list and No. 39 on the Billboard Independent charts.

Saturday night’s headliner will be Tonic, which stormed the charts with its 1996 platinum debut album “Lemon Parade” and its monster hit “If You Could Only See.”

Boasting six Top 10 singles, more than 4 million records sold, two Grammy nominations and the No. 1 most-played rock song of 1998, Tonic released its self-titled fourth album in 2010.

Montgomery will headline Sunday night’s concert. The country music superstar has sold more than 16 million records worldwide and produced more than 30 singles on the Billboard country charts, including two No. 1 country singles of the year: “I Swear” (1994) and “Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident)” (1995).

Five other singles have topped the country charts (“I Love the Way You Love Me,” “Be My Baby Tonight,” “If You’ve Got Love,” “I Can Love You Like That,” and “The Little Girl”) and 13 more have reached the Top 10. Montgomery has won four Academy of Country Music awards, three Country Music Awards and has twice been nominated for a Grammy. The native Kentuckian was inducted into the state’s Music Hall of Fame this year.

Known for its ribs, Smoke on the Water will feature a dozen rib vendors, Famous Dave’s pulled pork eating contest on Saturday and voting for people’s choice for ribs. There will be activities for kids, including a free play area 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday.

New this year, organizers are working with Imagination Station to offer activities and demonstrations for kids. Also new will be a corn hole tournament organized by a local corn hole group, said Event Chairperson Rachel Hepner Zawodny.

Tonic

Smoke on the Water covers all the bases for a great event, Lent said.

“It’s on the waterfront, it’s a family-friendly event, it’s reasonably priced, we bring in some great entertainment and the food is phenomenal,” Lent said. “People can arrive by car or bus or boat — that sets us apart. People can drive up to the dock in their boat, listening to music. It’s a great event in a great environment.”

The event will be open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Aug. 5-6, and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Aug. 7.

Admission is $5 for adults with kids 12 and younger free. Presale tickets are available by calling (419) 329-2619. Military personnel get free admission on Sunday with a military ID.

Sponsors include Columbia Gas of Ohio, KeyBank and Heidelberg Distributing. Toledo Free Press is a media partner for the event, with FOX Toledo and Cumulus Toledo stations K100, 94.5, 93.5, 106.5 The Ticket, Star 105, 1470 and 1560.

For more information, visit www.ribs4redcross.com.

Tags: Green River Ordinance, John Michael Montgomery, Red Cross, Smoke on the Water, Toledo Free Press, Tonic

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 19th, 2011 at 4:54 pm and is filed under Arts and Life, Featured, Smoke on the Water.
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