Trailer Choir, best known for “Rockin’ the Beer Gut,” will take the stage at Moody Gardens tonight, singing the praise of six-pack abs — the kind you get from a bottle, not from intense sessions of crunches.
The band is part of the inaugural Concerts on the Gulf, a new event of the Lone Star Rally weekend, as an opening act for Pat Green.
Emcee/lead singer Butter said the band’s name is a perfect definition of the group.
“We almost sing along like we’re in a choir,” he said. “If you hang around us for more than three minutes, you’ll understand where the trailer comes in.”
He and band member Big Vinny, a 400-pound guy who throws himself on the ground then does the “worm pop,” formed the group in 2004 after meeting in Nashville, Tenn. They then began playing at frat parties and touring the SEC university circuit. After gaining popularity there, they decided to put together an original show for local venues in Nashville.
During one of those Nashville shows, an audience member — Crystal — hopped on stage and became part of the act.
“She jumped up on the stage one night and took over Big Vinny’s mic and started singing along,” Butter said. “She said, ‘I’m with the band from now on.’”
The impromptu audition must have worked.
“We were like, ‘You sure are,’” Butter said.
The band must have good luck with audiences. In 2007, country music star Toby Keith approached band members after seeing their Nashville show.
A few weeks later, they were offered a contract. They signed on a Tuesday and were on a bus that Thursday.
They’ve been on the road ever since, opening for country icons such as Keith, Merle Haggard and Alan Jackson.
But tonight, Trailer Choir will bring their “backyard barbecue in high definition” to the island.
