NIBROC loses ints Knack

British group The Knack, famous for the song “My Sharona” is off the 2006 NIBROC entertainment schedule, but a popular country music performer has been tabbed to take their place.
Bruce Carpenter, Executive Director of the Greater Corbin Chamber of Commerce and primary organizer for the annual festival, said Andy Griggs will take the main stage Friday, Aug. 11 in place of The Knack. The group was forced to cancel its tour due to “circumstances beyond our control,” a publicist said.
“I had a lot of folks that I ran into that were very excited about them coming … it was definitely something different,” Carpenter said. “The Knack really created more interest than I thought they would.”
The addition of Griggs, who’s released three albums as an RCA recording artist, doubles up the country slant to this year’s NIBROC. Up and coming group Trick Pony will also bring a boot-stomping country appeal to the festival on Thursday, Aug. 10. Carpenter says the abundance of country artists isn’t a bad thing.
“I like to have different genres of music playing each night so that everybody gets to hear something they like,” Carpenter said. “Having two country artists will be fine. There’s such a large country music base in this area … I think it will be fine.”
Griggs, best known for smoldering ballads like “Tonight I Wanna Be Your Man” and more raucous “I’ll Go Crazy,” is a crowd-pleaser and heartthrob, Carpenter said.
His 1998 debut album “You Won’t Ever Be Lonely” included his first two top 10 hits.
Carpenter also announced the lineup for the festival’s Gospel Night, Wednesday, Aug. 9. Popular family group The Hoppers will headline the official opening night of the festival. The award-winning quintet has enjoyed success for over three decades on the gospel scene and play to over 900,000 in numerous arena shows.
Opening for The Hoppers will be a local trio The Disneys and Shannon Bunch.