ASHLAND, Ky.

Monday, January 21, 2002

ASHLAND, Ky. – She brought her Gibson Les Paul signature guitar; and she brought down the house.

Wynonna Judd came home to Ashland, for the grand reopening of the Paramount, her first public performance in her home town since the city’s Summer Motion event in 1993.

After all of the political rhetoric and backslapping that came before the concert during the reopening ceremony and after the opening performance by Julie Reeves, concert-goers got down and dirty with the hometown girl they all came to see.

And what a show.

Wynonna opened up with her signature style music -a mixture of country western-meets-rhythm and blues – at a hundred-miles-an-hour that brought the crowd to its feet and kept them there all night long.

Bathed by the blue, purple, and gold stage lights that swirled like a technicolor kaleidoscope, and set against Greco-Roman columns in the background, Wynonna and her band took the audience on a tour of emotions from upbeat, toe-tapping music, to slower-paced songs that continue to explore the experiences of life.

And when the crowd responded with standing ovation after standing ovation, Wynonna quipped off with her solid attitude, "thank you very much, you may be seated," which kept the crowd going for more.

As a prelude to the Eric Clapton’s song, "Change the World," Wynonna told the audience about her life -born at King’s Daughters Medical Center, growing up financially strapped in Ashland, singing along with her mother in their tiny Berea, Ky., home and, finally reaching country music star status with her mother as the Judds, and keeping the music alive on her own.

She gave the crowd a message of hope, "We’re all the same," she told the audience, "if I could do it, so can you." She added that no one can take away dreams and it’s important to not give up on dreaming. And then she added a touch of Wynonna attitude, "If you do (give up your dreams) let me know so I can kick your butt…you’ve gotta jump out of the bleachers and get in the game."

The performance’s tone shifted gears after Wynonna came back on stage for an encore. She and her backup singers sat around on wooden stools and gave a come-to-Jesus-meeting’ performance of the hymnsong "How Great Thou Art."

Then came the family.

"Thanks neighbors," Naomi shouted as she waltzed across the stage in a shiny turquoise number and pranced around the stage in classic Judd style, "Saturday night at the Paramount," she said as she reminisced about her experiences in Ashland and at the Paramount.

Ashley Judd also got in on the act, bringing a pair of black tap shoes her mother wore on the Paramount stage as a child.

Despite the late hours, the concert ran well over its scheduled time, concert goers got their fill as the Paramount kicked off it’s new life and new year.

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