Diamond Rio, which plays The BayCare Sound in Clearwater, Florida on April 5, 2024. Credit: diamondrio.com

Until two years ago, Diamond Rio—the Nashville-based country outfit that sent “Meet In The Middle” straight to no. 1 upon its 1991 release—hadn’t had a lineup change since the year Taylor Swift was born.

Fiddler Gene Johnson and drummer Brian Pout both retired from the group in 2022, the former being replaced by Carson McKee, the first female to be given an official “band member” title in Diamond Rio. Though we’re not expecting any new material from it anytime soon, the band opens for Alabama in Coachman Park this weekend.

Diamond Rio and Alabama play The BayCare Sound in Clearwater on Friday, April 5, and tickets are still available starting at $53.

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This article appears in Mar 21-27, 2024.

Josh Bradley is Creative Loafing Tampa Bay's calendar editor. He started as a freelance music writer in 2020 at the age of 18, and after spending years covering, announcing, and previewing concerts in...