Brad Paisley Plays His Most Important Show

Brad Paisley photo by David McClister, courtesy of Arista Nashville

August 9, 2007 — Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler and Taylor Swift took an unannounced detour from the Bonfires & Amplifiers tour on Monday to entertain 35,000 soldiers and family members at Fort Campbell, Ky., home of the 101st Airborne "Screaming Eagles."

Brad staged the concert in appreciation of our troops and the sacrifices made by their loved ones. He told the crowd, "This is the most important concert I will play all year. We wanted to bring a little party to you before your next deployment."

Most of the soldiers now at home at the post will be deployed to Iraq early this fall. "That just blew my mind, thinking about what they'll miss, especially leaving in September," Brad said. "I also found out that a lot of them are [deploying] their second time at least. I thought, while we are in Nashville, if we can find a day, we ought to just set this up and play for them before they leave as a thank you and an opportunity to let their families take their minds off of it. It's the least I could do. What they are doing is so amazingly selfless as far as a career goes."

For his efforts, Brad received a special plaque featuring a panoramic photo of the soldiers signed by the commanding general, Major General Jeffrey J. Schloesser. Included with the plaque were a couple of the officer's rare coins, which are specially minted pieces that he can give out for "acts of exceptional service, achievement or special recognition of a job well done." Kellie and Taylor also each received a souvenir of gratitude from the commanding general: a mounted sculpture of a perched eagle.