Chesney Gets Kick Out Of Fans' Fun

(CBS)  Kenny Chesney is the only performer, in country, rock, pop, or rap, to play for more than 1 million concertgoers every year for the last five years.

No one, not U2, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, or even the Rolling Stones, can say that.

To say "thank you," he's put out a new CD, dedicated to his fans, called "Kenny Chesney Live: Live Those Songs Again," recorded at concerts during those past five years.

The country music superstar told co-anchor Hannah Storm on The Early Show Wednesday that fan reaction is paramount in his mind as he performs.

"You go into a studio with a song," Chesney said, "and you hope that people are gonna like it. You hope it touches somebody in a way, and you hope they can more than not just hear it on the radio, but you hope they live their life with it in some way. Luckily, we've had a couple of those songs to do that."

Storm observed that his concerts are "events," with people tailgating in parking lots, as they do at football games.

"Yeah, it's a lot of fun. People are crazy out there! … I've always said, especially in the last couple of years, it seems to me that the real show was in the parking lots before we even go on stage. It's unbelievable. The passion that they have for us and what we're doing on the stage and our music is unbelievable. And sometimes, we go out and I've gotta see it for myself. (I go into the tailgating crowds in a golf cart)… It fires me up and it fires the band up to see how much fun people are having with our music. We love it."

Chesney agreed with Storm's assessment that audience participation is almost as important to him as the music at his concerts.

"When I'm on stage, I am thinking that there might be a kid in the audience that's never been to a concert, and if I do my job right and if I am in the moment, I might be able to change that kid's life forever," he told Storm. "He may love music for the rest of his life because he had fun at one of our shows. That's what I'm thinking about when I'm on stage."