FOXBORO - He rose from the middle of the crowd in an entrance reserved only for superstars; and that's exactly what he is.

Kenny Chesney opened his sold out Poets and Pirates tour to deafening applause. Despite the country heavy-hitters who preceded him, he was clearly the man everyone came to see, and he didn't disappoint.

Playing an impressive set list of over twenty songs, he kick off the show with "Live those songs" and "Summertime" and the crowd went wild for his 2005 hit "Beer in Mexico" And this was just the warm up.

Making sure to please his fans, Chesney threw in the crowd favorites "Big Star," No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems," and "Guitars and Tiki Bars."

We also got a glimpse of his softer side with "Don't Blink," a song he says is about "living life and never taking it for granted" and "Never Wanted Nothing More" both hits off his current album, "Poets and Pirates." Surprisingly the biggest hit of the night wasn't the song "Back Where I Came From," but the entourage of Patriot players that graced the stage during the performance. Teddy Bruschi and Mike Vrabel were a among the crowd of players who joined Chesney on stage while a montage of Boston sports moments sent the crowd into a frenzy.

Chesney might have been the man everyone wanted to see, but brand new dad Keith Urban got the crowd on it's feet. Leading off with "Days Go By" Urban looked comfortable and confidant on stage. He played a jampacked hour long set that included the hits "Stupid Boy," "You're My Better Half," and "Raining on Sunday," which happened to be the only mention of Sunday, also the name of his new daughter with wife Nicole Kidman.

Urban closed his set with "Somebody Like You," a 2002 hit off of his album, Golden Road.

Leann Rimes was the surprise of the evening. She came out and owned the stage with her current hit "Nothing Better to do." Her vocals were strong and her superstar power got everyone's attention, along with the number 12 jersey she decided to wear halfway through her set.

After kicking off her heels and pulling her hair back, Rimes let loose with a set that included "Can't Fight the Moonlight, " "Something's Gotta Give,"and "I Probably Wouldn't Be This Way."

"I love rock 'n' roll, I love, love, love it," Rimes exclaimed to the crowd before she covered Janice Joplin's "Summertime" and Cheap Trick's hit "I Want You to Want Me."

Red Rocker Sammy Hagar almost made you forget you were at The Country musicfestival. Rocking out to hits such as "I Can't Drive 55" and "Finish What You Started" the crowd showed him some love as they sang along to the old Van Halen hit. Hagar showed the love right back by playing country hit "I Love this Bar," to wild cheers from the crowd.

Gary Allan played for the die-hard country fans who packed up their tailgating early and made their way into the stadium while the sun was blazing. Playing a quick set, Allan did little to engage the crowd and moved right from one song to the next. His energy picked up about halfway through when he covered Vertical Horizon's song "Best I Ever Had."