Third Town mixes it up with rock and country

By Allison Duck

Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2009 | 2:31 a.m.

Third Town is the embodiment of Donny and Marie’s “I’m a Little Bit County” as dual lead singers Jeff Fairchild and Tony Mosti perform a little bit of country and a little bit of rock ’n’ roll. The duo gained national attention last year after becoming finalists in the Nashville Star competition which piped them into the homes of millions of people.

Before that, the group had actually entertained international audiences with their tours as celebrity impersonators in the Legends in Concert tours, though Star helped put them gain widespread fame. The band, so named because Las Vegas is the third town they’ve performed in after San Antonio and Pigeon Forge, has performed locally in Legends in Concert and American Superstars. When they’re not performing the hits of the Blues Brothers or Big & Rich, Mosti and Fairchild write original country tunes like their current single, “Let Me Catch My Breath.” After a string of successful gigs at Palace Station, Third Town has moved on to two new residencies.

They will be spending their Friday nights at Aliante Station doing a set before Yellow Brick Road and Saturdays at the Las Vegas Country Saloon downtown. Starting in September, you can also catch the duo in Primm, showing you how to “Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy” as they impersonate Big & Rich in the Country Superstars show. Read on to see what the band has to say about their country roots, impersonations and how they like their new residencies.

What brought about your move to Las Vegas?

Jeff Fairchild: Well, a long long time ago my older brother became a Garth Brooks impersonator and he was working for a company called Legends in Concert. I went to Branson, Missouri, to see the show and I looked up at my brother on stage and thought who could I be? After that, the company manager showed me the photos of the other acts that they have and the Blues Brothers was one of them. So I got with Tony and we put a Blues Brothers act together and started working for Legends. I perform as Elwood Blues and Tony performs as Jake Blues. We also worked for American Superstars over at the Stratosphere.

Tony Mosti: Back in San Antonio, we were writing and performing our own country music. It was what we really wanted to do. But that isn’t what brought us to Vegas. Impersonating brought us to Vegas. Jeff and I have known each other since 1994. We’ve done all kinds of music together, but country music was our goal and we started recording but then we got the impersonating gigs. It was just so lucrative and sexy to say, “Yeah, we’ve been to Greece and Italy.” They send you all over the place!

What is it like getting into character when you’re doing impersonations?

JF: We used to impersonate Big & Rich, too. Probably back then I would have said the costumes were weird but now it’s just normal. We’re so used to it now and it’s fun because we are incorporating our impersonations into our Third Town show. People who come see our show will get Third Town, Big & Rich and the Blues Brothers.

How has your act changed as you moved from Palace Station to Aliante Station?

TM: At Palace Station, we really read the crowd and it was more of a pub feel but at Aliante Station we turn it into more of a show and it really feels like you’re at a real Las Vegas show. Now you’re going to see a full-scale performance.

JF: At the new show, people can still dance to every song we play. There’s a huge stage up front and a huge dance floor in front of that. There’s a lady who comes frequently and teaches line-dancing lessons.

TM: Her name is Theresa Noble. She teaches dance at Sun City Aliante. She and her crew get all these people to line up and start dancing and it really creates a lot of energy and that’s what we love. We’re not avid line dancers ourselves, but we love to promote line dancing. We are great at the Electric Slide!

What can you tell me about your new original music?

TM: Jeff and I were in a show in Arizona called Showstoppers Live and when we were there, it just kind of came to us and we wrote a song called “Let Me Catch My Breath.” We thought it would be a great single to show off our new style after Nashville Star so we went into the studios right after the show and we released it and we’re getting a lot of downloads.

What was it like changing venues from Palace Station to Aliante Station?

JF: It was amazing. As I told Tony, it felt like being on Nashville Star. I felt that way because there were all of these techs that were working there, running around asking if you need anything, is your monitor loud enough, should we turn up your in-ears? There were like 20 techs there at our beck and call bringing us water, bringing us towels. It was just wonderful.

JF: Every Saturday night we’re at the Las Vegas Country Saloon. It’s a lot of fun; it’s really country. They have a big bull in there and you can do bull rides. We’ve also worked in Toby Keith’s bar and we’ll be back there this year.

How did you feel about the whole reality show experience with Nashville Star?

JF: It was one of the best things that we have done as Third Town. That’s how we really took off. It was our first national performance as us performing as ourselves. There is a girl that comes out to hear us play every gig here in Vegas and she this past weekend she came up to us and said, “I just wanted to tell you that my uncle watched you on Nashville Star and he thinks that you guys are extremely talented.” I thanked her and she said, “I didn’t tell you, but my uncle is Randy Travis.” When you’re on national television, you never know who’s watching!

Besides your new residencies, what is next on the horizon for the band?

TM: We are going to be opening up for Aaron Tippin on September 26th at the Henderson Super Run. It’s a big car show that will be taking over all of Water Street with up to 5,000 people in attendance.