Tonight’s headliner at the Puyallup Fair & Events Center grandstand was the amiable Clint Black, who ran through an energetic, hit-filled set. He kicked things off with “The Shoes You’re Wearing,” “A Good Run of Bad Luck” and “State of Mind.” And his early set also included “The Strong One,” a new ballad dedicated to single mom’s that is also the lead single from his forthcoming album.

“(It’s) a CD that is very good, according to me,” he joked. “Pick up two copies because they’re CDs, and they wear out.”

Shortly thereafter, Black kicked off the acoustic portion of the set with a number he said he used to play to a nearly empty house during his early career, when he often just played for the bartender. It was a faithful homage to Willie Nelson’s “Time of the Preacher,” followed by a funny story about being invited onto Willie Nelson’s tour bus. (If you’ve heard Toby Keith’s set staple “I’ll Never Smoke Weed with Willie Again,” you know the gist of this one.)

“They’d burnt some toast because it was really smoky,” he said. “And all of a sudden, Willie emerges from the smoke like a firefighter and offers me some – toast.”

And itt was the second night in a row that an “American Idol” grad had graced the grandstand, as the perky Kellie Pickler from the 2005 season opened. Her set included most of her debut album “Small Town Girl,” with the title track and set closer “Red High Heels” getting especially good responses. And she also paid homage to the legendary ladies of country with covers of Patsy Cline’s “Walkin’ After Midnight,” Tammy Wynette’s “Stand By Your Man” and Dolly Parton’s “Nine to Five.” (Of those, her voice seemed best suited for the Parton number, which she dedicated to the fans who had supported her and voted for her on “Idol,” thus helping her escape her job as a roller skate girl at Sonic.)