New interview: Bucky Covington in Yakima, fun video from Baltimore, fresh concert dates via Buckytown and more..

Bucky Covington has a good time with the Iowa State Fair crowd in this classic shot by the very kind Judy Lang--thanks! Bucky and his excellent band return to Iowa on October 22nd; click here for info on the Stockyard show, and click the image to find Bucky's tour dates at his official site.

Here's a quick heads-up about a substantial, musically-focused Bucky Covington interview just posted at Yakima-Herald.com. The Herald-Republic's Patrick D. Mure had a thoughtful conversation with Bucky about life before his current successful singing career, country music's heart, the legacy of Idol and the road ahead:

There's an emotionally manipulative streak in country music; it's often designed specifically to pull at our heartstrings one way or another. We generally find a way to forgive it that because, well, that's sort of why we came to it in the first place. So when a guy like Covington releases a Hallmark card of a song like this year's single, "A Father's Love (The Only Way He Knew How)," its success hinges on whether a listener believes in the performer. And Covington is easy to believe in; you can practically hear the clang and bang of his dad's body shop in his voice.

"When I hear a song, it just has to register to me," Covington says. "I like country music with a little bit of soul to it. You should really be feeling something."

Definitely a must-read! Bucky and his excellent band will perform at the Central State Washington Fair in Yakima on Saturday evening; tickets are available online through TicketsWest.

Our good friends at Buckytown USA just posted some brand spankin' new concert dates, via Bucky's iLike profile--Bucky and company will warm up the fall weather at these lucky venues:

• October 22nd: The Stockyard in Wayland, Iowa (tickets available online or call Bob at 319- 548- 1999--directions here)
• October 29th: Venue TBD, Danville, Virginia (check with Buckytown daily for updates!)
• November 5th: Kirby's Cypress Saloon, Cypress, Texas (directions)
• November 6th: Salute to American Heroes, The Colony Five Star Complex, Colony, Texas (directions)

Rocky Covington and Bucky Covington share a smile on stage in Belvidere, IL--thanks again to the very talented Judy Lang for the photo.

Finally, a couple of fun items you might have missed--we tweeted this link to KGRT's always-awesome Great Country Blog when the entry on Bucky's Albuquerque show first appeared, but we weren't able to catch up with our own blogging until today--enjoy! And if you're in for a big smile, check out this funny video from Bucky's interview with WPOC's Michael J. It happened backstage before the Sunday in the Country show in Baltimore last week..and if you're a lady from Baltimore, consider yourself officially complimented.

More soon--have a great week!