Kenny Rogers rides crest of legendary career

Staff and wire report

The legendary Kenny Rogers, the newest member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, will perform holiday favorites and his classic hits when he brings his 32nd annual Christmas tour to Warren’s Packard Music Hall on Tuesday.

He will be joined by Grammy Award-winner Linda Davis.

Rogers, who was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Oct. 27, has enjoyed a 55-year-career that includes winning three Grammy Awards.

In an interview with the Associated Press just before the induction ceremony, Rogers reflected on the long path of his career and what the honor means to him.

“What I’ve realized is that success is not a happening — it’s a journey,” he said. “So as I run back through my history and look at all the things that happened to me and how I got to where I am, this is like the culmination of my career because I’ve done pretty much everything else. And I think without this, it would have been incomplete.”

Rogers helped push country music farther into pop-music territory than it had ever been. He could go deep country with songs such as “The Gambler,” “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town” and “Lucille,” but he also had crossover pop hits such as “Islands in the Stream” and “Lady,” foreshadowing today’s more pop-friendly country sounds.

Rogers remains a popular figure in the country-music world. Alison Krauss said of his induction, “Justice has been done,” and Garth Brooks gives him credit for taking him on the road on his first major tour as an opening act: “If there was an entertainer university, when it comes to Entertainer 101, I can vouch firsthand that Kenny Rogers would be the professor of that class.”

Amazingly, Rogers has charted a record within each of the past seven decades and scored a hit single in the past six. He received the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award at the 47th Annual CMA Awards on Nov. 6.

Rogers creates an inviting atmosphere at his Christmas shows.

It is the only place fans can hear Rogers sing traditional and original Christmas songs such as “Joy To The World,” “White Christmas,” “Mary, Did You Know” and “The Christmas Song [Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire]” — with the help of the Voices of Ohio choir from the Columbus area — alongside his big hits including “Lady,” “The Gambler,” “Islands In The Stream,” “Daytime Friends,” “Lucille” and “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town,” and many others.

Rogers released his latest album, “You Can’t Make Old Friends,” in October to critical acclaim. It debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, marking Rogers’ 22nd career top-10 country album.

On the 11-track recording, Rogers offers fresh takes on a surprising array of musical styles, including soul, folk, rock and even zydeco, and a new duet on the title track with Dolly Parton, his long-time friend and collaborator.

In a glowing review, Country Weekly noted, “You have to give Kenny a ton of credit for being willing to spread his wings in new directions — and even more for pulling it off.”

Rogers’ big year had other angles as well.

He performed on the main stage at the Glastonbury Festival in England to a massive audience on the grounds and around the UK, as it was televised on BBC.

His Through The Years World Tour included stops in Morocco, England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Switzerland, Canada and the United States.

A novel Rogers co-wrote with Mike Blakely, “What Are The Chances,” was released Sept. 3, and Rogers’ New York Times best-selling autobiography, “Luck Or Something Like It,” was released in paperback Sept. 27.

In addition, “Kenny Rogers Presents The Toy Shoppe Starring Billy Dean” — a show co-written by Rogers and Kelly Junkermann and featuring music by Rogers — began a run of performances at the Starlite Theatre in Branson, Mo., on Nov. 1. It will run through Dec. 21.