It was cowboy hats and boots at the Corel Centre last night where the all-American Keith, who means what he says and says what he means, took the stage in front of 5,000 fans.

Whether they were waving American flags or foisting their suds cups high into the air when Keith launched into the down-home chorus of Beer for My Horses, a tune he recorded with Willie Nelson for his last album, Unleashed, that message came through loud and clear.

The man who counts Dubya himself as a fan drew lots of attention for his post-9/11 anthem Courtesy of the Red White and Blue (Angry American), a tune he was invited to croon with freed Iraqi prisoner of war Patrick Miller during his homecoming last May. It was the least he could do, really, since Miller sang the tune to his Iraqi captors.

Last night Keith saved it for second-to-last during a rousing encore, delighting the crowd even further when he turned over his stars-and-stripes emblazoned acoustic guitar to reveal a bright red maple leaf.

MAINES EVENT

But this is one good old boy who, despite fostering new talent by bringing the likes of opening act Blake Shelton along for the ride, just can't bury the hatchet with Dixie Chick Natalie Maines. Their war of words hit a new level with an opening video during which he speaks the words "mouthy" and "blowhard" over Maines' head shown superimposed on a frog.

The feud began when Maines criticized Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue and escalated when Keith showed a mockup shot of her with Saddam Hussein at his concerts. Maines shot back by wearing a T-shirt with the letters "F.U.T.K." to the 2003 Academy of Country of Music awards. Ottawa country fans could just be in for another anti-Keith volley when the Dixie Chicks stop at the Corel Centre Aug. 7.

Ottawa was the second night of Keith's 60-date Shock N Y'all tour, which kicked off Friday night in Toronto. His new album is due out this fall and Keith got a good reception to the first single, I Love This Bar, set to hit the airwaves within weeks.

REACHES BACK

Keith's booming baritone and laid-back stage style played well throughout the night, particularly when he went all the way back to his self-titled 1993 debut for Should've Been A Cowboy. Backed by a 10-piece band and fierce horn section, he entertained for almost two hours with a variety of hits from seven studio albums, including the uplifting My List, the romantic ballad You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like That, honky-tonk Who's Your Daddy and cheeky hits like Let's Talk About Me and I'm Just Talkin' About Tonight.

He closed a big encore with the title track of 1999's How Do You Like Me Now and inserted Ottawa references into a number of his songs, including When Country Comes To Town, played early in the show.

The Oklahoma native and Ford pitchman (a montage of his ads was included in the funny redneckish opening video feature Keith as a lusty bulldog) was the top-selling country act of 2002, so he should draw much larger crowds south of the border.

But if his fan base is a little smaller here, it is diverse, from the salt-and-pepper crowd to an enthusiastic crew of 19 and 20-year-old Lanark boys singing along behind me.

JAM! Rating: 4 out of 5