As the final part of the Concerts in the Colony series, Suzy Bogguss, with special guest Morgan Myles, will be performing in historic Bishop Hill on Saturday August 5, 2023.
The free family-fun concerts will be held at the Village Park, rain or shine, unless dangerous conditions arise. Guests are asked to bring lawn chairs. Golf carts will be providing rides to the park.
The afternoon starts at 1 p.m. with a performance by Morgan Myles. The main concert with Suzy Bogguss will follow, with everything wrapping up by 4 p.m.
The town of Bishop Hill is a state historic site and a National Historic Landmark. Attendees are invited to come before the concerts and visit the seven museums and shop the 12 unique stores that include a bakery, a broom maker, and potters.
Refreshments will be offered by the three Bishop Hill restaurants, local organizations and food trucks will be set up to provide additional food and drink options at the northwest corner of the park by the baseball diamond. Some vendors are cash-only.
During the creative explosion that was country music in the 1990s Suzy Bogguss sold four million records with sparkling radio hits like “Outbound Plane”, “Someday Soon”, “Letting Go”, “Drive South”, and “Hey Cinderella”.
But you can’t peg Suzy that easily. In the midst of her country popularity, she took time off to make a duets album with the legendary Chet Atkins. In 2003 she made an album of modern swing music with Ray Benson of Asleep At The Wheel. An album of original music in 2007 landed her at number 4 on the jazz charts.
Her folk music roots show through in her frequent appearances on public radio’s A Prairie Home Companion, in the Grammy she earned for her work on Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs of Stephen Foster, and in her critically acclaimed album and book project from 2011, American Folk Songbook.
In 2014 she released Lucky, a collection of songs written by Merle Haggard and interpreted through Suzy’s crystal vocals from the female point of view. Her latest offering, Aces Redux, is a re-recording of her platinum selling album Aces produced by Suzy with fresh arrangements and her signature sparkling vocals.
She continues to tour the world, both on her own and with fellow country radio divas Terri Clark and Pam Tills as “Chicks With Hits”.
Believing it’s her mission to help people through the power of music, Morgan Myles is a full-time touring musician having opened for artists like Luke Bryan, Rick Springfield, Hank Williams Jr., Old Dominion, Jake Owen, and Kane Brown. She also recently sang back up on Cody Johnson’s radio single “Nothing on You.”
In 2020, Myles won Artist and Record of the year for the Nashville Industry Music Awards for her debut album “Therapy,” receiving praise from Rolling Stone, Billboard, and American Songwriter. Recently Myles got a cut on Ty Herndon’s new record as a songwriter.
Myles’ songs are shaped from her many years as a nanny to a mother diagnosed with ALS. Recently, Myles lost her close cousin to brain cancer. Not too long after, their grandfather passed away from a brain tumor.
Myles recently competed on season 22 of ‘The Voice’ on NBC, where she received a four-chair turn in four seconds singing her rendition of “Hallelujah.” Her views add to over 30 million for her performances on the show. Myles finished in the Top 3 of the competition. After her performance of Lady Gaga’s “Always Remember Us This Way” dedicated to her late cousin and grandfather, the Glioblastoma Foundation named her the National Ambassador of the Foundation in February of 2023.
Myles was invited to make her Opry debut this past January, where she received a standing ovation from the audience after performing two original songs, “Sanctuary” and “Woman of My Word.” You also may have seen her walking the red carpet at this year’s Grammy Awards.
The Bishop Hill Heritage Association is hosting this free August 5 event. American Rescue Plan Funds from Henry County, approved by the Henry County Board, were used to help finance this event. For more details about this concert, contact the Bishop Hill Heritage Association at 309 927-3899 or bhha@mymctc.net . Check out visitbishophill.com for more information about historic Bishop Hill.
