McCoy mixes it up in set -- and you gotta love that

Joey Shamp of Canfield was Neal McCoy's opening act.
By DEBORA SHAULIS
ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
CANFIELD -- Listening to country music star Neal McCoy was like bumping into an old friend at the Canfield Fair.
Few of us have acquaintances who have recorded five No. 1 songs and sold more than 5 million records. McCoy isn't the type of friend who dwells on past success -- and yes, it has been a few years since his songs have climbed country music charts. His accessible songs and easygoing attitude made it easy for he and faithful fans to pick up where they left off.
About 1,500 people attended his show Wednesday night in the grandstands on the fair's opening night.
Those who dismissed this as just another country music concert may have been surprised at some of McCoy's choices.
McCoy is famous for performing without set lists, and he doesn't confine himself to the country genre. Wednesday, McCoy's preference was for 1970s dance music. Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music," The Village People's "YMCA" and Kool & amp; the Gang's "Ladies Night" were songs he delivered with a wink, despite his band's easy shift into disco-era sound.
On the other hand, McCoy took "Fly Me to the Moon" seriously. He and his band performed a slightly country-fried version of this old standard, which was part of the late Frank Sinatra's repertoire. McCoy's smooth, cool vocal delivery was a sharp contrast to his natural Texas drawl.
Ditto "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," the late Judy Garland's song from the movie "The Wizard of Oz." Accompanied only by one guitarist, McCoy rendered a quiet, gentle, controlled version that was a nice contrast to Garland's famous big delivery.
McCoy devoted a rather long portion of his show to his seven band members, each of whom was introduced and invited to play abbreviated versions of various songs. Some went the country route, as in Conway Twitty's "Hello, Darlin'." Others chose rock, & agrave; la John Mellencamp's "Hurts So Good," further adding to this show's variety.
McCoy also dished some "Hee Haw"-style jokes and dug into his country songbook, pulling out "You Gotta Love That," "Wink" and other buoyant songs. Having recently started his own label, McCoy also performed something new, "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On," a playful tune about a guy who just wants to have fun while he's in a bar. It may be on the new album that McCoy expects to release next spring.
Local ties
McCoy was paired here with an old friend -- singer Joey Shamp, who toured with McCoy for five or so years.
"This is the biggest show of my life, because I went to Canfield High School," Shamp announced at the start of his 30-minute opening set with his band, Dangerous. Shamp's performance was equal parts experience and exuberance, as he slapped the hands of people seated at the front of the track and waded into the audience twice, singing all the while. ("I ain't gonna do crap," McCoy joked after taking the stage.)
Shamp is not only a showman but a singer with muscle, capping the Travis Tritt fist-pumping song "Put Some Drive in Your Country" with an especially strong finish.