Rodney Atkins at Long Island’s Mulcahy’s Pub

Singer-songwriter, Rodney Atkins kicked off the weekend by playing to a packed house at Long Island’s Mulcahy’s Pub on Friday night (Mar 1). The country superstar delivered a nearly 75-minute set that was filled with his classic chart-topping hits along with brand new music that kept fans singing and dancing all night long.

Opening the show was Fairground Saints, a California-bred and Nashville-based trio. Tasked with warming up the crowd for the 2006 ACM Top New Male Vocalist, the group sang songs from their self-titled debut album along with their latest release “California”.

Just before 10:30 PM, as fans eagerly chanted “Rodney, Rodney!”, Atkins hit the stage to deliver an entertaining night of country music for the New York audience. Pumping up the crowd right from the get-go, Atkins opened with his current hit “Caught Up in the Country”, which is the lead single from his forthcoming album of the same name. Atkins kept the party going by performing “America”, “About the South” and “Farmer’s Daughter”.

Taking a break from the energetic set to introduce his bandmates, Atkins then left the stage while his band stole the show. Playing instrumental solos of familiar rock hits like Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” and Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train”, the musicians shined on their own.

Rodney Atkins at Long Island’s Mulcahy’s Pub

“We’re gonna play you a real country song”, Atkins announced as he returned center stage just before playing “Friends with Tractors”. After a stellar performance of Buffalo Springfield’s “Stop Children What’s That Sound”, Atkins played an unreleased song from his new album titled “Figure Out You”; a slow, love song that will feature his wife, Rose Falcon. He followed that with his one of his multiple number one singles, “These Are My People”.

The crowd-favorite “Watching You” was a memorable performance of the night as just when fans thought the song was over, Atkins began playing the chords one more time, pointing the microphone to the audience as the rowdy crowd yelled back every word of the popular chorus as loud as they could one last time.

Atkins thanked the audience and left the stage after performing his 2011 hit song, “Take a Back Road”. Returning minutes later, Atkins closed the show with “Cleaning This Gun” and “If You’re Going Through Hell”. Adding an intimate feel, Atkins handed off the microphone to several people in the crowd as they sang the chorus. A very cool ending to a very cool show.

Back in June 2018, NYCountry Swag caught up with Rodney Atkins at Taste of Country Music Festival on Hunter Mountain. “I learned a long time ago that this is actually the most authentic country fans of anywhere you go…” Atkins tell us as he discusses his love for New York country music fans which was evident in his show last night. Check out the full interview in the video above.

Atkins’ much anticipated new album Caught Up in the Country comes out on May 10th and is available for pre-order today. Atkins last album, Take a Back Road was released over six years ago. Based on the three songs we have already heard from the album, we think Caught Up in the Country will be worth the almost seven-year wait.

Atkins will continue his tour tonight in New Hampshire, but will return to the NY area March 8th in Poughkeepsie at the Chance Theater and on April 13th in Morristown, NJ at the Mayo Performing Arts Center. For tickets and more information, visit: rodneyatkins.com.

—————————-

Thank You for supporting Country Music in NYC!

Subscribe to our Weekly Round-Up here
for ticket giveaways, meet & greet contests, upcoming events,
and all things country music in the New York metro area and beyond!

+ Follow our country music adventures on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook: