Restless Heart, Chris Knight to play main stage at NIBROC

The 2009 NIBROC Festival in Corbin will end this year on a decidedly country note as Restless Heart plans to close the festival Saturday, Aug. 16 when they take the main stage.

Corbin Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bruce Carpenter said Tuesday the band, which still has all its original members, is a good fit for the festival.

"I think it’s really amazing that the group is still together and that they have been doing it this long," Carpenter said. "I’ve gotten a lot of good feedback on them. They’ve probably had 15 or more top 10 singles so I think a lot of people will recognize their songs and enjoy watching them perform."
According to the group’s biography:

Restless Heart came together in late 1983 as the by-product of a project by famed writer/producer Tim Dubois. He soon brought to the team fellow Oklahoman Scott Hendricks to co-produce and engineer the recording project that quickly lead to a record deal. Restless Heart signed a recording contract with RCA Records in 1984.
With the release of their first album in 1985, the vocal style of Restless Heart became instantly identifiable – an intertwining five part harmony led by Larry Stewart, with Dave Innis on keyboards, Greg Jennings on lead guitar, Paul Gregg on bass and drummer, John Dittrich. They brought a new, contemporary sound to Nashville, a sound with a touch of pop – the sound which so strongly influences popular country acts of today like Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts and Little Big Town.
Restless Heart has put 26 hits on the country charts with six going to No. 1 and nine other singles the top 10.

Their initial self-titled album went gold in 1985 and the group had three more gold albums between 1986 and 1991. Another six albums were released before the group disbanded.

Restless Heart reunited in 2002 to tour.

This year, Restless Heart is celebrating its 25th Anniversary Tour and NIBROC will be part of the tradition.

"I’ve looked at bringing them here the past couple of years but it just seemed to work out right this year," Carpenter said. "I feel like our entertainment lineup is starting to line up to be as good as we’ve had in past years."

Opening for Restless Heart will be Chris Knight, back for a return engagement after playing on the main stage at NIBROC 2008.

Knight, a singer/songwriter from the small mining town of Slaughters, Kentucky, is often compared to Steve Earle and John Prine. His songs focus on small town America and he played regularly in the Nashville bar scene before releasing his self-titled debut in 1997. Since he has released four more albums: Pretty Good Guy in 2001, Jealous Kind in 2003, Enough Rope in 2006 and Heart of Stone last August.

Carpenter said he still plans to book a gospel music act for Thursday, the official opening night of the festival.

For more information on Restless Heart, go to www. restlessheartband.com.