Nothing but hits at Nashville Gold show in Prescott Elks Theatre

If there's any musical genre that has a storied history, it's country.

At 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 15, Tad Management presents Nashville Gold - The History of Country Music at the Elks Theatre and Performing Arts Center, 117 E. Gurley St., Prescott. Featuring the music of country music greats such as Willie Nelson, Brooks and Dunn, Conway Twitty and Garth Brooks, the show will take those who were around when the artists were just starting back to their youth.

This is the fifth year for the show, male lead vocalist Pete Williams said. He got into the show due to friends who were involved with Tad Management.

"The idea had always interested me in doing what they were doing," Williams said. "When they decided to put together a country show, my friends mentioned it to me and of course I was interested immediately ... I love music, I love singing, I love being on stage. To get the opportunity to do what I love and travel and get paid, to make a career out of it is just amazing. I think that's every musician's dream."

The show's drummer is who put the show together, Williams said. He and Williams came in at the same time and had an idea for the show, pitching the concept when he was brought in. They ran with it.

Nashville Gold presents about five decades of country music, starting in the '50s with Hank Williams Sr. and working all the way up to the '90s, Williams said. It covers 42 songs and all the biggest hits from the biggest artists, he said. Williams said he loves everything in the show, from the Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson duets to George Strait.

"He's just a classic country performer," Williams said of Strait. "To be able to perform his songs and have people enjoy my view on it, it's really great."

Though Williams isn't much of a Billy Ray Cyrus fan, the crowd does get a lot of enjoyment out of his songs, which is still a lot of fun, he said.

Tickets are $25 for adults, $22 for seniors and $30 for opera box seats and are available online at www.prescottelkstheater.com, by calling 928-777-1370 or at the door one hour prior to the performance.

People are always coming up after the show, William said. Sometimes they'll have suggestions to put in the show, with others mentioning they saw a specific artist in concert.

"It's great to be able to turn back the clock for people. A lot of times, we do play for people who were around when these artists were first coming out, so it's like taking them back to their youth," Williams said. "They have better stories than we do. We can tell them all the retrospective of everything, but they lived it and they can tell us how it was. I definitely learned a lot from doing the show, too."

By Jason Wheeler. Follow reporter Jason Wheeler on Twitter @PrescottWheels. Reach him at 928-445-3333, ext. 2037, or at 928-642-5277.