Hunter Hayes and The Railers
September 13, 2014
York Fair, York, PA
The York Fair is one of the oldest fairs in the country and runs 10 day beginning the Friday after Labor Day. This year, country artist Hunter Hayes was chosen to close the grandstand performances.
Warner Music artist The Railers opened the show and received an enthusiastic reception. The Railers are definitely an up and coming band and worth seeing. Brothers Jonathan and Jordan along with Cassandra and drummer Tyler make up the band. They are getting ready to release their first single Kinda Dig the Feeling to radio in a few weeks. This band is extremely talented and showcases a variety of instruments including the violin, concertina, acoustic guitar and mandolin. Their set was energetic, warming the crowd up for Hunter Hayes.
The mostly young female audience was getting more and more excited as the time for Hayes to appear drew close. When the lights went down and Hayes appeared, the crowd erupted in deafening cheers. Wearing black skinny jeans and a white t-shirt, he opened the show with Storyline. This young star has come into his own, commanding the stage and his audience. He ran from side to side on the stage, standing on amps, jumping off amps while wowing the crowd with his guitar prowess. Early in the show, he even made sure to sign a few autographs while shaking hands with adoring fans. He told the crowd he had played outside the grandstand at the York Fair in 2011 at the Great Country Radio Stage and vowed to someday play the grandstand.
The band did a rousing version of Tattoo, complete with a flashing neon sign behind them with the words, “Your Name, Tattoo”. After 9 fast paced numbers, Hayes took the opportunity to slow things down. He dedicated the song Love Too Much to all of the servicemen and women serving our country; Hayes played piano while singing the heartfelt melody. The purple and blue lighting added to the beauty of this number.
Next was the song Invisible which is very personal to Hayes; he shared that he was always the geek and the star said he used to feel dumb for wanting to make music. He encouraged the audience to believe in themselves and told them “you are perfect just the way you are”. What a wonderful message to share with so many young people who are at an age where it is difficult to be yourself and not try to please others.
By this point in the show, the audience was putty in the performer’s hands. He sat at the piano and played Wanted. A few bars into the song, Hayes stopped singing, holding the microphone up to the crowd, and they responded with a beautiful rendition of the song. Hayes then joined in for the end of the song.
One fan had her dream come true when Hayes jumped down off the stage and asked her if she wanted to sing with him. When asked what she wanted to sing, she responded Proud of You and the two then sang together.
The Hunter Hayes party was now in full swing. The Railers joined Hayes on stage for a fun, energy filled rendition of Counting Stars. Next, lighted beach balls are thrown out into the audience as Hunter sings Light Me Up. The show wrapped up with an electric version of Crazy. The audience definitely wasn’t ready to let Hayes go yet as they begged for an encore. Hayes responded by playing a drum duet with the drummer. The entire band then joined them on stage, all playing drums then Hayes belted out Storm Warning.
After the lights came up, the young star spent at least 20 minutes signing autographs and taking pictures with fans at the front of the stage. Hunter Hayes put on a fantastic show and it is evident that he truly loves his fans.
Review by: Sharon Sipple
Hunter Hayes
The Railers
