TERRI, BILLY RAY & WAYLON AT THE FAIR

In the definitive history of country music, Waylon Jennings' name will be written right beside Willie's, Johnny's, Loretta's and George's.

He was an outlaw when outlaws weren't cool. He is a craggy-faced sinner/saint with the soul of Buddy Holly, Hank Williams and B.B. King rolled into one.

Jennings performs Saturday at the SEMO District Fair in the climax of a glittering concert lineup that begins tonight with Terri Clark and continues Friday night with Billy Ray Cyrus.

All shows are at 8 p.m.

In a town where most male singers wear cowboy hats, Clark is known for being Nashville's only female singer who wears one.

The hit single "You're Easy on the Eyes" off her latest album, "That's How I Feel," is Clark at her struttin', brassy best, but she also has gotten in touch with her torchy side on tunes like "Me Not Loving You" and "Now That I've Found You."

After bursting on the scene with the catchy dance hit "Achy Breaky Heart" and following with the patriotic anthem "Some Gave All," Cyrus has spent the ensuing years trying to change his image from crowd-pleaser to artist.

The 1996 album "Trail of Tears" earned the Flatwoods, Ky., native some of the respect he sought, the single winning Single of the Year honors from the TNN/Music City News Country Awards. His hit "It's All The Same To Me" on the greatest-hits collected "Cover to Cover" took him further in the same direction.

"Shot Full of Love" is his latest album.

Born in Littlefield, Texas, in 1937, Jennings had a band at age 12 and was a disc jockey at 14. He met Holly at the radio station and played bass in the rock 'n' roller's band. Jennings would have been in the plane crash that killed Holly and Ritchie Valens if he hadn't given up his seat tot the Big Bopper at the last minute. The Big Bopper also was killed in the crash.

Jennings went on to record hits but made his reputation with the albums "Lonesome, On'ry and Mean" in 1973 and "This Time" in 1974, the latter co-produced with Nelson.

In 1975 he was named the Country Music Association's Male Vocalist of the Year. The following year, Jennings and wife Jessi Colter teamed up with Nelson and Tompall Glaser to record "Wanted: The Outlaws," an album that became the first platinum disk ever recorded in Nashville.

The hits -- "Luckenbach Texas," "Are You Sure Hank Done it this Way," "I've Always Been Crazy," "Amanda," "Ain't Living Long Like This" kept on coming. He won his second Grammy for country duo performance with "Mammas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys," teaming with Nelson again.

Since the mid-1980s, he and Nelson have been part of the superstar foursome that includes Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson.

Jennings dropped out of school in the 10th grade but went back to earn his GED in 1989.

"Every business has its system that works for 80 percent of the people who are in it," he has said. "But there's always that other 20 percent who just don't fit in."