Temperatures are on the rise and outdoor activities are on the minds of all Clinton County and area residents as the calendar moves into the early portion of June.

The relavtively new Clinton County Tourism Commission is hoping that it’ first major event will bring people out to the Clinton County Fairgrounds in big numbers this Friday night for a concert featuring two well-known southern rock bands – Blackfoot and the main feature group, Molly Hatchet.

The Friday night concert will be hosted by the Clinton County Tourism Commission in an effort to not only provide a big-name entertainment event for local residents, but in an effort to promote tourism to the Albany and Clinton County area.

The event has been promoted across the region and a large crowd of both local and regional fans is expected to make the trek to the Clinton County Fairgrounds.

Molly Hatchet was formed in the mid 1970s and has released a host of top hits through the years, but are best known for its 1979 hit Flirtin’ with Disaster.

The band also had a host of other successful chart topping hits through the years, including Boogie No More (1979), Gator Country (1978), Bounty Hunter (1978), Fall of the Peacemaker (1983) and Whiskey Man (1979).

The concert is being billed by the Tourism Commission as the “Sing Into Summer” event.

Although many of the band members have changed since the group first formed in the mid-1970s, Molly Hatchet continues to be one of the most popular and most traveled southern rock bands still performing.

Last week, the group performed in Big Flats, New York, and the day after the Clinton County Tourism concert, they will play again in New York, this time in Lake George.

Later this month they will travel overseas for a concert in Abu Dhabi at the U.S. Air Force Base there.

Blackfoot plays a style of southern rock music that is also known to cross over into the hard rock music.

With several chart ranking songs, Blackfoot’s hits included Train, Train (1979), Fly Away (1981), Searching (1981), Teenage Idol (1983) and its best chart topping hit, Highway Song (1979).

Blackfoot is also a band that continues to travel and perform extensively, with upcoming shows following Friday’s performance here in Longview Texas, Wilmington, North Carolina and Clarksville, Tennessee.

Tickets to the concert are available through the Clinton County Ky. Tourism Facebook page at a cost of $22. Tickets will also be available at the gate the day of the event for $25.

Friday night’s concert will also be staged on the night before the official start of the 2017 Clinton County Fair, which runs June 10-17.

Concert goers should note that admission to the Fairgounds Friday night does not involve any reserve seating and that seating in the grandstands at the venue will be on a first come, first served basis.

The stage for Friday night’s concert will be positioned on the north end of the main fairgrounds ring, opposite of where the main concession stand is located.

Those who bring their own lawn chairs will be able to sit inside the ring, again on a first come, first served basis.

Blackfoot will take the stage at 7:30 p.m., followed by Molly Hatchet at 9:30 p.m. The gates to the fairgrounds will open at 4:00 p.m. and everyone entering the fairgrounds will be required to have a pre-purchased concert ticket or pay admission at that time.

No “pass-outs” to exit the fairgounds after entering will be allowed.

The Clinton County Tourism Commission has worked closely for the past several months with the Clinton County Fair Board to combine the efforts of the two local groups in order to bring Blackfoot and Molly Hatchet to a local stage.

In addition, extensive joint planning for Friday’s event has also involved close cooperation between the Commission and a host of other organizations, including with the Albany Police Department, Clinton County Sheriff’s Department, Kentucky State Police, Clinton County Emergency Services, The Kentucky National Guard among other various agencies.

Tourism Commission Chair Patrick Padron told the Clinton County News that this inter-agency cooperation has been a great effort, and, in fact, was one of the driving forces in the decision to bring a top-name entertainment group in a concert setting to Albany and Clinton County to begin with.

“The reason we decided to put on a concert was that we were looking for an event that would have far reaching results in itself and be a great kickoff event that would highten awareness of the Clinton County Fair by sponsoring a kickoff event for that schedule,” Padron told the Clinton County News in a telephone interview this week. “We were hoping to do something that would not only be enjoyed by our local community, but also an event that would bring in visitors to our area with the hopes that many of them would stay overnight, thus boosting business for our tourism industry.”

Padron also confirmed that it is the hope of the Tourism Commission, depending on the success of Friday’s concert, to make the “Sing Into Summer” series an annual event.

Those attending Friday’s concert are reminded that access into the Clinton County Fairgrounds is available from two directions, off of Hwy. 553 (Wisdom Dock Road), as well as from the Albany By-Pass (U.S. 127 By-Pass).