A night of female-led country music will open Poway OnStage’s 35th season when Wild West performs on Saturday night.
Khristina Kay, Cathie King, Lele Rose and Jennifer Oberle will present “Wild West: A Tribute to The Lady Superstars of Country.” The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14 in the Poway Center for the Performing Arts, 15498 Espola Road.
The two-set concert will feature songs by Shania Twain, Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, The Chicks, Sara Evans, Lee Ann Womack and other female country singers and songwriters.
“We are not impersonating them, we present as our own selves, but we are trying to sing exactly like they do on their records,” Kay said.
Kay, Rose and Oberle will rotate on lead vocals. Each also plays an instrument — Kay on fiddle, Rose on keyboard and Oberle on bass with King also on fiddle. Kay said all the women are wonderful musicians and they also sing harmonies for the various songs.
“The three-part harmonies are just beautiful,” she said. “That’s what makes the difference. It is not just the instruments, but the harmonies.”
Four additional musicians accompany them as the band — Jeff Ballew on lead guitar, banjo and mandolin; Dave Bennett on background vocals, acoustic guitar and keyboards; Paul Haaker on steel guitar and dobro; and Robbie Goodwin on drums.
“We are all very blessed to have each other,” Kay said of the eight musicians in Wild West.
The songs selected for the concert are based on a couple factors, according to Kay. They fit the vocal ranges of the four women and they are the more complicated songs among the original singers’ and songwriters’ repertoires.
“We looked for the eccentric parts, the complicated songs,” Kay said of their selection process. “These are the most difficult that the tribute scene do not pull off well. This is how we set ourselves apart.”
Examples she gave are Womack’s “Last Call” and Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” Others are McBride’s “Where Would You Be” and “Independence Day” along with Underwood’s “Cowboy Casanova” and “I Hope You Dance.”
Kay said she formed Wild West a few years ago with Ballew, one of the group’s musicians. At the time she had just concluded a 20-year run performing Pat Benatar music.
“I had stepped away after 20 years of rock and roll,” Kay said. “There had been a shift in the country music industry and I wanted to do something different and complicated.”
She said the Wild West members are all very talented. Some of the women are newcomers to the group, and they are “pretty excited” about the upcoming shows, she said. This is her first time performing in Poway.
“I’ve been singing my whole life,” the California native said. “I started in church, for which I’m very thankful.”
Kay said she attended Point Loma Nazarene University on a music scholarship and played in a junior philharmonic in Fresno.
“What I enjoy about singing is the challenge for me,” Kay said. “I love choosing songs with heart, that express a message. … Also, I love bringing a group together for an audience. It is an incredible experience. What is most fun is pulling a crowd in.”
With many classic country songs in the program, Kay said the audience typically knows the lyrics and often sings along.
“It seems like more of the songs are those that people in their 40s and 50s know better,” Kay said. “These are not the newer songs, but the classics.”
Tickets are $37 to $53 for adults; $33 to $6 for seniors (65-plus), active military and students (ages 13 to 21); and $23 to $31 for youths (12 and under). Buy at powayonstage.org or call the box office at 858-748-0505.