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FOXBOROUGH - Four years ago, while onstage at Gillette Stadium, Kenny Chesney coined a name for the teeming masses who fill huge venues summer after summer in hopes of sharing in his tales about the good life - "No Shoes Nation." Sure, he might have a song where the central metaphor is a pirate flag, but No Shoes Nation comes in peace; its tenets, as Chesney sketched out, include working and playing hard.

Playing hard was no problem for the fans in attendance at Friday night's show; the Knoxville-born Chesney and his muscular band took care of the working hard part. Chesney codes as country; pristine vocal harmonies and fiddles give his music a Nashville flair, and the stiff-brimmed cowboy hat he sports onstage adds a down-home vibe to his beach party. But it resembles big-tent arena rock a lot, too. The dreamer's tale "Big Star" opens with choppy guitars that recall Texas teasers ZZ Top; "Somewhere With You" has a dark charge that recalls the more anthemic side of the Canadian collective Arcade Fire; and the nostalgic "Young" boasts riffs that recall its namesakes Angus and Malcolm, the twin guitarists of Aussie hard-rockers AC/DC.

Chesney's aesthetic is probably best summed up by the hybridized cover of Steve Miller Band's teasing bounce "The Joker" and Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds," specifically the part about everything being all right. Chesney's world - and the promise of No Shoes Nation - is one where things are OK enough that one can jaunt off to the islands to find a new life (as recounted in the slow-burning "Boston," which he dedicated to the local crowd), and where wearing no shoes and no shirt can, indeed, pose no problem.

Modern country shows, even when their headliners are tackling weighty topics, deal heavily in gratitude; to fans, to country radio, to fate. Chesney, who has been touring stadiums with rotating casts of Nashville up-and-comers for years, extended that gratitude to his openers during his set. Miranda Lambert, whose spunky performance included feisty covers of classic rock staples "Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo" and "Mississippi Queen" alongside white-knuckle gems of her own like "Vice" and "Gunpowder and Lead," came out for the bad-love ballad "You and Tequila," and the chemistry between the two recalled Nashville duets of yore. Two members of the slick fivesome Old Dominion, who opened the day, came out for Chesney's 2015 track "Save It For A Rainy Day," which they co-wrote.

But what Chesney, whose animated performance fired up the already-thrilled crowd, was most grateful for was New England - Saturday night's tour-closing concert will be his 15th time headlining Gillette Stadium, and he made no secret of his clear affection for the fans from the region who have packed it again and again. Perhaps his most pointed tribute was when he gave "Boys Of Fall," a meditation on football, its tour debut; while it was bittersweet in that it was a sign that the promise of an endless summer offered by Chesney's tour was about to come to an end, it was capped by Chesney stalking the stage with a Patriots helmet, which he then presented to a young female fan while offering a hug. It was a sweet moment that capped off a feisty, optimism-fueled night.

KENNY CHESNEY

With Miranda Lambert, Sam Hunt, and Old Dominion.

At Gillette Stadium, Aug. 26.

Maura Johnston can be reached at maura@maura.com.

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Everything was all right for Kenny Chesney at Gillette - The Boston Globe

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FOXBOROUGH - Four years ago, while onstage at Gillette Stadium, Kenny Chesney coined a name for the teeming masses who fill huge venues summer after summer in hopes of sharing in his tales about the good life - "No Shoes Nation."

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As someone from boston, I really love this song. I heard it for the first time at a beach on the Cape and everytime I hear it, it reminds me of that time

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One of my favorites. From the album Be As You Are I don't own anything.

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Another song that my mom loved and that has since become one of my favorites

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Colbie Caillat - Bubbly (Official Music Video)

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This song was played at my dad and stepmoms wedding and has become one of my favorite songs ever since.

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Santana - The Game Of Love (Video) ft. Michelle Branch

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Landslide is a song that my mom used to play all the time when I was little, so every single time I hear this song it reminds me of her.

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This song I think perfectly describes the funny concept of time, specifically to high school

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Luke Bryan - Fast (Official Music Video)

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Wild Child is my favorite song

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Music video by Kenny Chesney performing Wild Child. (C) 2014 Blue Chair Records, LLC, under exclusive license to Sony Music Nashville, a division of Sony Music Entertainment