Luke Bryan lights up Hoedown at Pine Knob, pays tribute to slain Oakland County deputy

A dependably high-spirited set from Luke Bryan at Pine Knob Music Theatre on Friday capped the first of two days for the WYCD Hoedown.

But amid the seasoned showmanship and the party anthems that bookended the evening (“That’s My Kind of Night,” “Country Girl [Shake It for Me]”), there was one poignant moment: Seated at a grand piano with the lights low, Bryan told the audience he was dedicating his next song to late Oakland County Sheriff's Deputy Bradley Reckling and his family. Reckling had been laid to rest hours earlier in nearby Auburn Hills, six days after being fatally shot on duty.

Bryan proceeded into a solo performance of “Drink a Beer,” his 2013 ballad about the death of a loved one, which stands among the country star’s career-defining songs.

It was a quiet moment on a night otherwise defined by its loud and rambunctious ones delivered for an amped-up Friday crowd that arrived with its party boots on.

Though Bryan seemed to be fighting a cough, it was otherwise quintessential stuff from the 47-year-old Georgia native — plenty of production sizzle to go with the thick guitar licks and big drums that accompanied hits steeped in truck tailgates and fishing boats, margaritas and beers.

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

Friday’s sold-out show was the seventh night of his Mind of a Country Boy Tour, and the 15,000-capacity Pine Knob made a relatively intimate metro Detroit venue for Bryan: His shows here the previous decade were all headlining spots at Faster Horses and at Ford Field, where he created a Halloween-week tradition during the 2010s.

Onstage Friday, backed by his six-piece band, Bryan served up nearly two hours’ worth of hits, manning the stage up front and prompting screams with every shimmy of his hips on songs such as “Knockin’ Boots.” There were tropical touches (“One Margarita” paired with a cover of Kenny Chesney’s “When the Sun Goes Down”), extended jams (“Huntin’, Fishin’ and Lovin’ Every Day”) and an acoustic solo stretch that included a rendition of the late Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue,” which ignited “U-S-A!” chants in the crowd.

Bryan seemed loose and chatty, noting he’d played golf that day at Oakland Hills Country Club, which he called a tough course (“I had to get into an ice bath” afterward, he said) and at one point dodging a red bra tossed onstage by a blonde fan down front. (“I hope your dad isn’t a preacher,” he cracked.)

Bryan’s tour stop also served as the marquee set for the 2024 Hoedown, now in its fifth decade after starting life as a free downtown Detroit festival. The event, now under the purview of WYCD-FM, moved to Pine Knob in 2016.

“American Idol” alum HunterGirl, playing one of the biggest shows of her budding career, displayed a powerful voice and keen songwriting sensibility in a set that included her own “Red Bird” and a spiky cover of Pink’s “So What.”

A second stage hosted afternoon acts including Annie Bosko, John Morgan and Drew Baldridge before Bryan’s supporting tour cast picked up the action inside the amphitheater.

Bespectacled rising Nashville act Chase Matthew offered a hit-and-miss performance that included the breakout hit “County Line” and his own dedication to slain deputy Reckling. Alana Springsteen, quickly shooting up the ranks, impressed with a 25-minute opening set that included her Chris Stapleton collaboration “Ghost in My Guitar.” All three openers returned later to join Bryan onstage for a romp through “This is How We Roll.”

The Hoedown will be reprised Saturday at Pine Knob, this time featuring a second stage lineup of Tyler Braden, Kelsey Hart and Matt Stell, with Bryan and his tour openers doing it again on the main stage.

Contact Detroit Free Press music writer Brian McCollum: 313-223-4450 or bmccollum@freepress.com.