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February 28, 2013

Jepsen, Train to headline Scout Jamboree music concerts

By C.V. Moore Register-Herald Reporter

GLEN JEAN — In a shout-out video on YouTube, singer Carly Rae Jepsen says she “can’t wait to see you all at the Boy Scout Jamboree in July.”

“It will be a lot of fun,” she assures.

“We’re psyched to see you at the 2013 National Scout Jamboree in July at The Summit in West Virginia,” says Pat Monohan, lead singer of Train, in another.

Jepsen and Train will headline two separate concerts at this summer’s big event near Mount Hope.

The concerts will both take place at the Summit’s AT&T Stadium, a grassy amphitheater that seats 80,000 on the ground.

Big name guests are nothing new for the Jamboree. Entertainers from Bob Hope to The Beach Boys have taken part. Presidents from Harry Truman to George W. Bush have also been welcomed as guests.

The BSA hopes that President Barack Obama will make a visit to West Virginia this year, and expects to extend an invitation. His attendance most likely won't be confirmed until a month or two before the Jamboree.

Jepsen will star in the “Welcome to the Summit” show on the morning of July 16, which is for Jamboree participants and staff only.

The Canadian singer’s single, “Call Me Maybe,” won MTV’s Best Song of 2012 and has been viewed on YouTube more than 413 million times. She was nominated for two Grammy awards this year.

An amateur video shot at last year’s National Order of the Arrow Conference shows thousands of Scouts bobbing and singing along to Jepsen’s big hit.

On the evening of July 20, three-time Grammy winners Train will perform for visitors and Scouts alike at the Jamboree’s closing show, being billed as a “Celebration of Scouting.”

The San Francisco-based group that includes Pat Monohan (vocals), Jimmy Stafford (guitar) and Scott Underwood (drums) started playing together in 1994.

Since then, they’ve generated many hits, including “Drive By” and “50 Ways to Say Good-bye” from their sixth studio album, “California 37.”

A 30-minute fireworks show by the renowned Zambelli family will follow up Train’s performance.

Don Wendell, a volunteer with the Scouts who is heading up stadium show efforts, anticipates that the fireworks will be “very large and very spectacular” and welcomes visitors to attend.

“We’d love to have visitors. We’ve got a great series of acts for the Scouts throughout the Jamboree, and visitors are certainly welcome to attend and they’ll have a wonderful experience,” he says.

The closing show, which is open to visitors, starts at 8 p.m. on Saturday. Train will be preceded by some other activities, including a video of footage from the week-long Jamboree.

Visitors will be in a seating area of their own, separate from the tens of thousands of Scouts who plan to attend.

Visitor day pass tickets to the Jamboree on Saturday will include admission to the concert. The ticketing process is not yet finalized, and details will be released at a later date.

Along with being available and affordable, headline entertainment at the Jamboree had to be “Scout-friendly,” said Wendell.

“These performers have agreed to provide a family-friendly performance,” he says.

The BSA hired a production company, PRG, to organize the stage shows. With the “Scout-friendly” criteria in mind, they came up with a list of possible performers for the BSA, which narrowed it down from there.

Announcements of the shows were made last November and December on Scout-related blogs, Facebook sites and websites.

“The reaction has been positive,” says Wendell.

— E-mail: cmoore@register-herald.com

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