
CUMMING — They’ve won five Grammies, sold more than 41 million albums, had some 30 Top 10 hits and this Friday The Oak Ridge Boys will be in Cumming. The 2014 Cumming Country Fair & Festival kicks off its concerts with the legendary group at 8 p.m. Richard Sterban, bass singer, said the band is looking forward to being back in town“Over the years we have played Cumming, and we played [the former] Lanierland. For many, many years that was one of our regular stops, so we’re familiar with the area,” Sterban said. “It’ll be a little bit of a change to play at the fair this year, but hopefully we’ll have some good weather.” The band is slated to play songs across genres, from country and patriotic songs to gospel and a cover of the Allman Brothers’ Band’s “Ramblin’ Man.” But Sterban said he knows that fans expect certain songs when they take the stage.“People expect to hear the hits, and that’s what our show will consist of,” Sterban said. “’Elvira,’ of course, ‘Thank God for Kids,’ ‘Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight,’ ‘Dream on’ — the songs that have made us who we are over the years.” Sterban said that the band prides itself on a show the whole family can enjoy.“Family entertainment is really what we’re all about,” he said. “There’s something for every member of the family, from grandma and grandpa on down to the young kids. We encourage parents to bring their kids. We look out in the audience and see little kids dancing to ‘Elvira’ and singing, ‘Oom Poppa Mow Mow.’” Sterban, who turned 71 this year, said he and his bandmates don’t plan on calling it quits anytime soon. In fact, they still play about 150 shows each year.“We love performing, even after all these years,” he said. “At this point, none of us plan to retire. We’re still having fun doing this, so we plan to do this as long as we possibly can.” Leading up to Friday they planned to continue work on their latest project, a gospel album. It’s early in production and doesn’t yet have a name or release date.“It’ll be … more than just a gospel album,” Sterban said. “It’s an album of hymns, old hymns.” Even though leaves on trees are just beginning to turn, the group is also gearing up for a holiday project.“We’re going to have a Christmas special with the American Legion,” Sterban said. “It primarily features The Oak Ridge Boys singing Christmas music, and encouraging people to get involved with the American Legion. We believe that they really are a good organization … doing good work.”