HAMPDEN, Maine — Grab your cowboy hat and favorite pair of boots. It's time for the 45th annual Maine Country Music Hall of Fame induction show and ceremony.
The event is Sunday, May 15, and a new face will be among the performers on stage: Owen Field — a junior at Hampden Academy.
“I started playing electric [guitar], and then I just played through all the middle school groups," Field told NEWS CENTER Maine. "Then obviously in high school, and it’s just kinda been my thing.”
Field entered the first guitar competition put on by The Maine Country Music Hall of Fame earlier this year.
"You had to play three songs," he explained. "It was all guitar. So, no singing, just guitar, which is a good thing for me."
“It was open to all high school students in the state, and he entered and won," Hampden Academy music instructor Patrick Michaud said.
The contest reward is a Martin guitar, which Field will receive at the event. There he will also get to perform on stage.
"The song I'll be performing is 'Working Man Blues,' which is one of the songs I auditioned with," Field said.
“He was the type of student that I featured regularly with the band because he just had a really great way of expressing himself on his instrument," Michaud explained. "Owen, as far as guitarists, has probably been one of the finest guitarists I've ever had in my 36 years as a music instructor. He always brings the house down. He always does some pretty beautiful things."
The Maine Country Music Hall of Fame's induction show and ceremony is Sunday night. The event kicks off at 1 p.m. at The Silver Spur in Mechanic Falls.
Country singers Peter Allen, Don Campbell, and Bobby Reed will be inducted into the hall of fame this year.