BY: DIGITAL WAX MEDIA STAFF

 

American country music group Rascal Flatts hit the road this month in celebration of their 25th anniversary, making a stop in the Mountain State for a special Valentine’s Day performance.

 

Making their way to West Virginia as part of the Life is a Highway 25th anniversary tour, Rascal Flatts took the stage at the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center for the second date for the run of shows – the band’s first 2019.

 

If there were any remaining rust on the gears from the Flatts’ hiatus of over half a decade, it was less than evident on Friday as the band delivery a deftly executed set featuring plenty of fan-favorites and plenty of crowd interaction.

 

Audience members were physically brought to their feet and mentally brought back to the Rascal Flatts’ mid-2000s heyday by way of hits such as “Stand,” “My Wish,” “What Hurts the Most,” “Me and My Gang,” and countless others.

 

Prior to the band’s Charleston, West Virginia amd Evansville, Indiana shows this week, members Gary LeVox (lead vocals,) Jay DeMarcus (bass, vocals,) and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, vocals) had not performed together since 2019, taking an extended break professionally after calling it quits in 2021.

 

During that time, band members pursued other projects, including Gary LeVox’s focus on solo material and DeMarcus’ work in the band Generation Radio featuring members of classic rock acts Journey and Chicago, among others.

 

Rooney notably dealt with personal and legal issues during the band’s time away, a matter which he addressed directly to members of the audience during Friday’s performance.

 

”Some of you might know, some of you might not know; September 9th, 2021, at 4am… I hit a tree. I had no idea at that moment, in that daze I was in, that it would change my life forever,” the guitarist revealed while perched atop a stool at the front of the stage.

 

“God’s grace and mercy truly helped me get the help that I needed. And if you’re struggling with something; if you know someone who’s struggling with something, talk to them. Lean on them, because I promise you somebody loves you way more than what you’re doing.”

 

 

 

 

Rooney then performed a solo rendition of “I’m Movin’ On,” the final single from Rascal Flatts’ eponymous debut album, accompanied by cello.

 

The sense of brotherhood between the reunited members was palpable throughout the performance, with plenty of on-stage interaction and genuine smiles to be had between the trio and their backing band.

 

Ever the showman, DeMarcus addressed the crowd jovially and frequently. Early on during Rascal Flatts’ time on the stage, the bassist would lead the crowd through a singalong chorus of a Mountain State favorite,  John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads.”

 

 

 

 

A second attempt at an audience singalong moment –  this time during a rendition of Neil Diamond’s 1969 single, “Sweet Caroline” on piano – would result in hilarity. The bassist, seemingly unaware of the Mountain State’s particular adaptation of the classic tune for WVU sporting events, feigned bewilderment when the refrain of  the“Sweet Caroline” chorus section was met with an eruption of shouts from audience members of a very specific recommendation for the University of Pittsburgh.

 

 

The group closed out the Valentine’s Day performance with the tune from which the current tour takes its title, Tom Cochrane’s “Life is a Highway.” Joining band members for the closing number were openers Chris Lane and Lauren Alaina, the latter of whom revealed during her opening performance that she is currently six-months pregnant, which seemed to do very little to impede the vocal powerhouse.

 

Rascal Flatts will continue to tour into the summer, with their next stop set to take them to the Choctaw Grand Theater in Durant, Oklahoma. A full list of upcoming Rascal Flatts performance dates can be found at the Life is a Highway 25th anniversary tour website.