Three Dog Night draws more than 2,000 with old hits

It was a night to turn back the clock when the venerable classic rock band Three Dog Night performed Thursday at the SEMO District Fair.

About 2,200 fans filled the grandstand at Arena Park to see -- and hear -- the legendary group, which kicked off their 17-song show with the classic "Family of Man," followed by the guitar-heavy "One Man Band."

"I know a lot of you want to go back to the 1970s," said Three Dog Night vocalist Cory Wells, which brought cheers from the audience. The cheers grew louder when the group played their No. 1 hit from 1972, "Black and White."

The band played a country version of "Never Been to Spain" and then slowed things down with "It's For You," a never-recorded song written by The Beatles. But when Wells said the next song was going to be "a bit old fashioned," cheers from the audience were heard across Arena Park when the group launched into "An Old Fashioned Love," a No. 4 hit for Three Dog Night in 1974.

The band next played "Leave Your Hat On," another song from 1974 that Wells said "fell through the cracks" and never became a hit, followed by "One," an ode to loneliness that gave Three Dog Night their first gold record in 1969.

The rest of the show was a walk down a musical memory lane, with the band giving the audience what they wanted with songs that included "It Ain't Easy," a lively version of their 1970 No. 1 hit "Mama Told Me Not to Come" and "Celebrate," which brought most of the crowd to their feet in hand-clapping unison.

Three Dog Night closed the show with their perennial favorite, "Joy to the World."

For some fans, the performance by Three Dog Night was an opportunity to hear songs from another time.

"It's music you can understand," said Kay Frank of Jackson. "You can understand the words and sing along. "

Frank said that she was excited to see the group and she couldn't have gotten to the show fast enough.

"It's worth the ticket price," she said. "I hope the fair brings in more bands like this in the future."

Kirk Buxton of Cape Girardeau said he has been a fan of Three Dog Night since the late 1960s.

"I'm glad they're here," Buxton said. "Their sound is nothing too heavy or too light. My favorite song of theirs is 'Joy To The World.'"

Three Dog Night earned 13 gold albums and had 21 consecutive Top 40 hits between 1969 and 1975, seven of which achieved gold status. The band sold more than 40 million albums during the height of their popularity, and they were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2000.

The fair also provided other musical entertainment Thursday with the country band Common Thread performing in the Activities Tent.

For more information about the fair's grandstand performances today and Saturday, visit semofair.com.

klewis@semissourian.com

388-3635

Pertinent address:

Arena Park, Cape Girardeau, Mo.