The chart-topping country band Emerson Drive will appear in concert Saturday, March 1, in two shows at West Virginia University at Parkersburg.

Shows are at 7 and 9 p.m. in the college's multi-purpose room.

The group's self-named album features the hit singles "I Should Be Sleeping," "Fall Into Me," and "Only God."  Emerson Drive was named the 2002 Canadian Country Music Association's Group of the Year, and won the association's Rising Star Award.

The six-member band got its start in the western Alberta town of Grande-Praire.  They played small and large clubs to handfuls of people and packed houses, in tiny villages and big cities throughout Canada. When Emerson Drive hit Nashville after six years, they were ready.

"And as it turned out," reports fiddle player Pat Allingham, "DreamWorks heard us and offered us a deal, and it just felt like we were meant to be part of that family."

The result is "Emerson Drive," released in May 2002 and produced by DreamWorks label head James Stroud, with co-producer Julian King. ("Fall Into Me" and "How Lucky I Am" were produced by singer-songwriter Richard Marx.)  The album demonstrates the band's instrumental skills and edgy repertoire.  It also conjures the excitement that has made Emerson Drive so popular with crowds all over Canada and now, in the U.S.  The album is an auspicious moment in the history of a band that began with a high school talent contest.

Tickets for the concerts are available in the college's business office.  There are no reserved seats.  Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for WVU Parkersburg students, faculty and staff if purchased in advance.  WVU Parkersburg students may purchase two $5 advance tickets.

The concerts are sponsored by the college's Student Activities Association.  Additional information is available by contacting Tom Yencha, director of student activities, at 424-8309, or the college's business office at 424-8223.

cd012103

For additional information, contact:
Connie Dziagwa
Director, Communications and Public Relations
WVU Parkersburg
(304-424-8203)

Home | Faculty/Staff Directory | Office Directory | Contacts | Course Schedules | E-Mail | Search | Web Site Index | WVU