More than a few eyebrows were raised when the George Strait Country Music Festival became the highest-grossing festival tour of 1998, beating out Lilith Fair and the Rolling Stones.

Attending the country festival has become to country music fans what attending the All-Star game is to baseball or basketball fans. It is a rare chance to see a cluster of the most popular country stars on the same stage in a single day.

Last year, nearly one million people attended the concerts. This year, during an 18-city tour, country music star George Strait is hoping to top that number.

The festival is performing in stadiums across the country, with the smallest venue’s capacity at 33,000 people.

For the 1999 festival, Strait has brought together six of the hottest acts on the country charts, including the Dixie Chicks, Kenny Chesney, Jo Dee Messina, Mark Wills, Asleep at the Wheel, Tim McGraw and, of course, himself.

The festival will roar into Ames Saturday at Jack Trice Stadium. Beginning at 1 p.m., the show will last until about 10:30 p.m.

More than 40,000 tickets had been sold for the concert as of Wednesday, according to Sara Huber, advertising coordinator for the Iowa State Center. The stadium normally seats 50,000.

The tour includes a huge festival area called Straitland that will feature recreational fun, games, side-stage performances, autograph-signing sessions and booths selling everything from George Strait Signature boots to carnival-style food. The festival will be set up at the south end of the stadium in Ames and gates will open at 11 a.m.

It takes 80 people and five days to set up the entire festival area, which is the largest that has ever been associated with a concert. The main stage area includes three Jumbotron screens; two on the sides and one behind the stage. Tour officials say the festival uses enough electricity to power a 10- to 15-block neighborhood.

Though all the performers on the tour are country music performers, each brings a very different music style and experience to the tour.

Strait, a tall soft-spoken Texan, is known for his laid-back style and mellow voice. For the last two decades he has dominated country music, releasing 24 albums since 1981. His 24th album, “Always Never The Same,” hit store shelves in March.

Strait doesn’t talk much during his concerts and doesn’t hop around a lot either. He says fans come to hear him perform their favorite songs, not listen to him make conversation.

Tim McGraw is one of the most popular touring acts in country music. He is also half of country music’s most famous couple, his wife being country diva Faith Hill.

McGraw’s fourth album, “Everywhere,” has sold almost four million copies since its release in 1997. His fifth album, “A Place in the Sun,” is due out May 4. Since his debut in 1994, McGraw has had 11 No. 1 hits.

Like Strait, McGraw is not flashy, but is filled with energy. The singer rarely stops moving during his concerts and likes to make use of the entire stage — as does his band.

McGraw also tends to get a bit rowdy when singing hits like “Indian Outlaw” and “Down on the Farm.”

Another lively act on the bill is the Dixie Chicks, whose album “Wide Open Spaces” has gone quadruple platinum and produced three No. 1 singles, including the most recent “You Were Mine.”

Country’s hippest trio, Emily Erwin, Natalie Maines and Martie Seidel, chose to postpone plans to headline their own tour until 2000 so they could join the festival.

Maines said the tour has great camaraderie and though the the group’s fan base is diverse, the exposure is giving the Chicks a chance to get its music to a wider audience.

Also performing is Kenny Chesney, who has spent the last six years inching his way to the top of the country charts.

His latest single, “How Forever Feels,” recently became his fourth No. 1 hit. Chesney’s most popular hits are a mix of lyrical ballads like “Me and You” and up-tempo love songs like “She’s Got It All.”

Chesney says he loves the big stadium crowds on the tour for the energy they give him while he performs.

Jo Dee Messina waited so long between her first and second albums that many fans wondered what had happened to her, so she titled her sophomore effort “I’m Alright.” The album went gold and has produced three No. 1 hits, including “Bye Bye.”

But the freshest face on the tour is Mark Wills. In the past year he has had two No. 1 hits with his album “Wish You Were Here,” including the single “Don’t Laugh at Me.”

Legendary country group Asleep at the Wheel is scheduled to open the tour. Over the past 30 years the group has won six Grammy awards.

Local country music night club Hunky Dory’s is sponsoring contests each night until the concert in honor of the festival.

Linda Dedecker, who works at the club, said tonight there will be a Dixie Chick and George Strait look-alike contest, with a pair of tickets to the concert and a Bud Light jacket as prizes for both winners.

Friday night is Tim McGraw night with concert T-shirts to be given away as door prizes.

More prizes will be given away after the concert Saturday, including a Jack Daniels Grill and an inflatable Bud Light Chair.

“We plan to have a good time leading up to the concert — and party afterwards,” Dedecker said.

Tickets for the George Strait Country Music Festival are on sale at the Iowa State Center box office or through any Ticketmaster outlet.

Prices, including fees, are $50.75 for floor seats and the lower deck, $40.75 for upper deck seats and $30.75 for hillside seats. The box office will open Saturday at 10 a.m.

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Mainstage schedule

1:00 – Asleep At The Wheel

2:00 – Mark Wills

3:00 – Jo Dee Messina

4:05 – Kenny Chesney

5:25 – Dixie Chicks

6:55 – Tim McGraw

8:40 – George Strait