Jack Ingram Comes to The Dell Diamond

The St. David's Round Rock Express Summer Concert Series presented by Dell returns Saturday as the Express host the Omaha Storm Chasers. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. CDT. The concert will begin approximately 30 minutes after the game's conclusion.

Noted country music sensation Jack Ingram is this month's artist. He will perform many of the songs that have taken him to Nashville and Texas country fame.

"We're excited to have Jack Ingram as the second artist in the series," Ryan Sanders Entertainment Executive Vice President J.J. Gottsch said. "Asleep at the Wheel did a great job leading [the concert series] off, and we've made some changes for this show in terms of sound and lighting that should make it even better."

A Houston native, Ingram never had aspirations to be a singer. But fulfilling a requirement in high school, Ingram took a drama class and felt the rush that being on a stage provides. He enjoyed the pressure of having to deliver right then and adjusting to anything that came his way.

While attending college at SMU, Ingram learned two Willie Nelson songs and took them to a local Dallas open-mic night. Soon following that night, Ingram started to play with a band he assembled at other Dallas and Fort Worth bars.

Ingram started to get notoriety around DFW and Houston as a great songwriter and performer. He started opening for Mark Chesnutt and any other act that had an opening. He released his first album, self-titled Jack Ingram, in 1992 on the record label Rhythmic. After a few more years of touring around Texas, he released his second album Lonesome Question in 1995.

In 1996 Warner Bros. Radio took notice of Ingram and signed him to a record deal. They released a live album entitled Live at Adair's and later re-released his first two albums.

In 1997 Ingram released his fourth album Livin' or Dyin', this time with Rising Tide Records. The album featured "Flutter" - his first chart single, which peaked at No. 51 on the country charts.

Ingram signed with Lucky Dog Records, a boutique label of Sony Records, in 1999 and released Hey You. He had one country single on the album, "How Many Days," that reached No. 64 on the country charts. Ingram's second album on the label Lucky Dog - Electric - was his first album to enter the Top Country Charts. After a couple live albums, Ingram released Young Man in 2004 for Columbia Records.

In 2005, Ingram signed with the independent record label Big Machine Records. He released his next album - Wherever You Are - under the new label. The title track became his first Top 40 hit. "Wherever You Are" reached the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs charts No. 1 spot. It was his first No. 1 hit, as well as Big Machine Records first song that climbed to the top of the charts. "Love You" was Ingram's second single on the album, and it peaked at No. 12 on the charts.

Ingram released a cover of "Lips of an Angel" in 2006, a song made popular by the band Hinder. Ingram's version climbed to No. 16 on the country charts. "Lips of an Angel" was Ingram's first single from his second album for Big Machine Records - This Is It. He had two other songs from the album reach the country charts: "Measure of a Man" peaked at No. 18, and "Maybe She'll Get Lonely" peaked at No. 24. This Is It reached No. 4 on the U.S. Country Charts.

Ingram released his latest album in 2009 - Big Dreams and High Hopes. It has peaked on the U.S. Country Charts at No. 21. He has had five singles on the album. "Barefoot and Crazy" has been the most popular single, reaching No. 10 on the U.S. Country Charts and No. 64 on the Billboard Charts. Other singles include "That's a Man," "Seeing Stars," "Free" and "Barbie Doll." All five singles from the album have appeared in the U.S. Country Charts.

Ingram won the 2008 Academy of Country Music award for "Best New Male Vocalist." Ingram finally was recognized in Nashville.

The concert series gives Round Rock a taste of four different genres of music: Lou Gramm of Foreigner (July 2), and Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights (Aug. 6).