India.Arie, Sheryl Crow, Los Lobos and Wynton Marsalis are among the acts lined up to perform on In Search of America: A July 4th Musical Celebration, an ABC television special that will air on July 4th. The musical performances will be beamed from various locations, including the New Orleans Essence Festival and the Boston Fourth of July celebration. The special will also include segments that honor various genres of the country's musical traditions.

The event will feature a number of Nashville-based musicians, including Brooks and Dunn, and Gillian Welch. Hank Williams Jr. will kick off the telecast with "America Will Survive," a recasting of his hit, "A Country Boy Can Survive," which appears on his latest album, The Almeria Club. The opening selection has already been a point of controversy. New country star Toby Keith was initially scheduled to perform, but producers felt that Keith's new song, "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)," was, as the title suggests, more angry than celebratory and not of an appropriate mood for the telecast.

ABC anchorman Peter Jennings will serve as host for the three-hour event, which will air on July 4th at 8 p.m. (ET). Music folklorist Nick Spitzer will join Jennings to discuss the roots of different genres of American music.

ANDREW DANSBY
(June 17, 2002)