Aug 2, 20221 min read

Playboy Scouts Bring Honky Tonk Revue to The Rialto Theatre

Cory Grinder and the Playboy Scouts headlined an evening of honky tonk at The Rialto Theatre with special guests Michelle Billingsley and Wild Earp on Friday, July 29, 2022.

Chicago-based folk singer and songwriter Michelle Billingsley started the night off performing songs off her debut album 'Not the Marrying Kind', bringing Wild Earp (also of Chicago) on stage to sing a duet entitled, "Once in a While." After enchanting the audience with her "Emmylou that went through the looking glass" vibes, Wild Earp took over with the Free For Alls and performed "old school, new-fangled, funky country western rock'n'rollabilly" songs from albums including, 'Dyin' for Easy Livin' and 'I Wanna Go'. After inviting Cory Grinder on stage as a guest fiddler and Michelle for another duet, it was time for Akron-residents Cory Grinder and the Playboy Scouts to shine. The honky-tonk quartet played an impressive set with a variety of songs from their catalog, including the newly-released album 'Snacks' (I was fortunate to be the one to photograph the cover). Cory and the guys went on tour at the beginning of the summer to promote the album along the west coast and throughout the Midwest - from New Orleans to Austin and San Diego to Chicago. It's always a pleasure watching your friends do the things that make them happy, and I'm so thankful they let me tag along for the ride.