January 14, 2007, 7:00pm. That's when we raise the curtain on the 12th Annual K92FM All Star Acoustic Jam. After all these years and all the artists (Clint Black, Rascal Flatts, Sara Evans, Trace Adkins, Clay Walker, Terri Clark, Lonestar, Tracy Byrd and dozens more), it's hard to believe that the Jam began life as sort of an afterthought...by, of all people, Kenny Chesney.
Photos: 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003

That's right. According to long-time K92FM Music Director, Shadow, it was Kenny Chesney's idea all those years ago....
I visited with Kenny Chesney at Cowboys (then known as Sullivan's) prior to his concert there in '95. While on his bus, I invited him to come down and golf in our Celebrity Golf Tournament that was coming up in early February '96. He accepted the invitation and made a suggestion that since we were having so many country stars in town that we should do a little "jam" with the artists after the tourney. It made a lot of sense - but without much time to put it all together, we simply had a small outdoor platform outside the Orlando World Marriott, next to our tent area which served as our hospitality suite. Lonestar, Ricochet and a few others sang a few impromptu numbers to a small crowd. Kenny had just finished his round of golf and didn't make it back down after refreshing in his room. At the time this little jam didn't seem like a big deal - but we did see the possibility of making it a major show. The next year, we moved the show inside - to :08 - named it the All Star Acoustic Jam and crossed our fingers with hopes that it would be well attended. When I drove up to :08 that night, I'll never forget seeing the line of people all the way down the sidewalk! Central Florida supported that first "real" jam in a huge way - and when James Bonamy hit the stage as our first artist to perform we knew we had something special.

The first very informal Jam featured Ricochet, Lonestar, Mark Wills and others. When Shadow and the other folks here at the time recognized the potential, they booked the downtown country nightspot :08 for the following year. The first "official" Jam had Ricochet back (and for many years to follow), along with Lari White, James Bonamy, Chad Brock (now a staple), Neal McCoy and Tracy Byrd.

After several years at :08, the event outgrew its downtown home (plus, :08 went out of business, which made the decision to move even easier), and moved to the Hard Rock Live at Universal CityWalk, where it will be held for the 4th consecutive year in 2007.

Special mention should be made of a number of artists who have made the return trip to Central Florida for the annual Jam: Chad Brock holds the record for most appearances at the Jam with 8. In fact, the only year he's missed since 1998 was the 2005 Jam, and only because of the birth of his child. Chad's a radio star now in Tampa-St. Petersburg, but he always graciously agrees to make the drive over for the Jam.

Mark Wills was part of the first Jam, and has now appeared 6 times, most recently at last year's Jam.

Ricochet has appeared 6 times, most recently in 2002, and for many years they were the unofficial "house band" of the Jam, especially in the old days at :08.

Others with multiple appearances include Tracy Byrd (4 appearances), Rhett Akins (3), Blake Shelton (3) and Joe Diffie (3). Joe met his wife, Theresa, at the 1999 Jam.

For those who have never been to the Jam, the most frequent question is, "What's it like?" The answer is tough, because every year is unique and special. We very often describe it as "controlled chaos." You just never know what's going to happen. At its most sedate, the Jam is a free-for-all.

For example, Dr. Elmo (of Patsy and Elmo fame, "Grandma Got Runned Over by a Reindeer") came to the Jam from 1999 through 2002, and the highlight of the evening was seeing all the big Country stars rush the stage to help him sing his Christmas "classic."

The 7th Jam in 2002 is one that's frequently talked about by folks around K92FM-- Emerson Drive, Rascal Flatts, Trick Pony, Tracy Byrd and all the other artists for that year with one of the biggest End-of-the-Night Jams ever. Incredible musicians (the guys in Emerson Drive and Rascal Flatts...just hard to describe in words) doing everything from ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd to George Jones and Charlie Rich.

The 2004 Jam was the first at Hard Rock Live and featured superstar Clint Black. We literally had to pull him off the stage at about 1:00am. Perhaps the most memorable moment of the night was an impromptu duet between Clay Walker and Sara Evans with a terrific version of the David Frizzell and Shelly West classic "You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma" (although another fine moment was the group Pinmonkey backing Sara Evans on the Doobie Brothers "Long Train Running").

And, last year brought a special surprise guest performance by Country legends the Bellamy Brothers. The Jam at the end of the night featured them, along with Blake Shelton, Tracy Byrd and Craig Morgan.

What will happen this year? No one can predict. As we said, every year is unique, and every year is special. What we can predict is that you'll have a great time. Plus, as has been the case every year since 1998, a portion of the proceeds benefit the Ronald McDonald Houses of Orlando. We're proud of our relationship with this great organization, and very proud of the more than $500,000 we've been able to give to the Houses.