Washington County Fair in Abingdon

County fairs typically offer early peeks at rising music stars.
Abingdon’s Washington County Fair certainly has and does.
A bevy of acts new and not so new from the country music field will appear during this year’s fair, which opens Sept 14 with Bomshel and concludes on Sept. 19 with Jake Owen.
Sandwiched acts include Carter’s Chord on Sept. 15, Lonestar on Sept. 16 and former Trick Pony lead singer Heidi Newfield on Sept. 17.
Add to that such fair standbys as a Ferris wheel, corn dogs, and a midway. Come and see families, kids with cotton candy smiles and old folks being more like young folks once again. That’s the fair.
“I think it’s one of the best years we’ve had,” said Sammy Campbell, Washington County Fair entertainment chairperson and publicist. “We’ve come a long way.”
Boy howdy.
Superstars fill the list of those who have performed at the Washington County Fair. They include Garth Brooks, George Strait, Kenny Chesney and The Beach Boys.
“Garth Brooks was my crowning achievement in my 31 years with the fair,” Campbell said.
Perhaps he will someday say that about Carter’s Chord.
Three sisters – Becky, Emily and Joanna Robertson – comprise Carter’s Chord. They named their trio after their mother Carter Robertson, who along with husband Barney, sang in legendary country singer Waylon Jennings’ band for years.
Jennings also gave the three daughters their first shot at music, when they sang as little girls on his children’s album from 1988, “Cowboys, Sisters, Rascals and Dirt.”
“We remember Waylon being so excited about that, and we had so much of a blast doing that album,” Becky Robertson said by phone from Nashville, Tenn. “We also did some TV shows with Waylon for that album. He was larger than life. Waylon was with us, and we thought we were rock stars.”
Carter’s Chord may not sing those songs now, but lessons learned from the late Country Music Hall of Fame singer still ring loudly as they work to become stars, too.
“He was really, really encouraging,” Emily Robertson said. “He offered advice on staying true to our music. He told us to follow our dreams, to keep at it.”
They do indeed follow their dreams. First step, moving from their native California to country music central, Nashville, Tenn. Second step, get your music heard.
“We made a demo album with our dad,” Becky said. “We passed it around town to everyone we knew.”
After multiple crossings of desks, the Carter’s Chord demo album landed on Toby Keith’s desk about four years ago. He had formed a new record label, Show Dog, and was looking for talent to sign.
“We got a call one day that Toby Keith wanted to see us in a showcase,” Emily said.
A showcase features a new band playing music in a live setting before a small crowd of record industry executives. And so, Carter’s Chord had a showcase to play for Toby Keith, record executive.
“We played for about 45 minutes,” Becky said, “and he offered us a record deal.”
One digitally released album, two singles and one on the way later, and Carter’s Chord continues its climb toward country music stardom. A new single, “You Knock Me Out” is set for release in January. A new album will probably materialize next year.
“We want to play music non-stop, write music non-stop, record music non-stop,” Becky said. “We want to do this for the rest of our lives.”

IF YOU GO
What: Washington County Fair
When: Sept. 14-19
Where: Washington County Fairground, 17046 Fairground Drive, Abingdon, Va.
Daily admission: $10 for adults, $2 for children ages 6-12, children ages 5 and under admitted free. Fair admission includes concert, though a select number of reserved seats are available for an additional $5.
Info: (276) 628-6222 or (276) 628-6233
Web: www.washcofair.com
Also: www.carterschord.com
ENTERTAINMENT (all shows at 8 p.m.)
Sept. 14: Bomshel
Sept. 15: Carter’s Chord
Sept. 16: Lonstar
Sept. 17: Heidi Newfield
Sept. 18: Keith Anderson
Sept. 19: Jake Owen

TOM NETHERLAND is a freelance writer. He can be reached at features@bristolnews.com.