As popular music, country has grown to resemble a giant umbrella that encompasses a variety of genres, personas and personalities. And the two artists that came to St. Joseph Thursday night couldn't be on more opposite sides.

Joey + Rory are the saccharine-sweet husband-and-wife duo getting some welcome initial exposure, widely known for their simply touching tunes, plenty of P.D.A and their appearances on CMT's "Can You Duet" and Overstock.com commercials. Blake Shelton is an on-the-rise superstar, a fun-loving country heartthrob/outlaw who drinks beers with the boys and sells souvenir ladies undergarments with his name on them. But when the two are put together, like Missouri Western did for their annual Spring concert at the Civic Arena, Blake Shelton and Joey + Rory delivered a mixed bag of moments, mostly strong songs and a few welcome surprises.

Joey + Rory, and just Joey and Rory, came on stage hand-in-hand in the spotlight before breaking into their Top 40 hit "Cheater, Cheater," which bookended their 45-minute set. Actually, it was a pre-recorded instrumental arrangement that kicked things off that the couple sang and played over for this and several other songs. The fact that they didn't have a band (which they couldn't afford, they later revealed) had a noticeable effect on some audience members, with a reaction that said "Really?" It came off as a bit of glorified karaoke for the 2,500 that showed up, many in support for Rory given his local roots (he was born and raised in Atchison, Kan.) To make matters worse, sound troubles stalled the show for a bit when a high-pitched whoopi cushion sound was heard from one of the house speakers, which was mostly humorous but mainly annoying.

Once that was fixed, what people came to see shined through for the remainder of the set: A PG-rated Johnny and June. A couple with undeniable chemistry, effortless harmonies and songs on country life and love backed up by some homespun acoustic melodies. When they kept it simple, even with moments of sweetness that bordered on diabetic shock, it was hard to resist.

It wasn't all a love fest. Joey showed off her scorned and forceful side with the new song "God Help My Man If He's Foolin' Around." And the couple definitely has a sense of humor. Rory, donning his now trademark overalls and sandy red flattop, acknowleded, "I give hope all to all men out there," when referring to courting his beyond-attractive wife. A few songs also got the crowd laughing, like the honkey tonk tune "Granny's Got Her Daisy Dukes On" and the shamelessly promotional "Buy Our CD." Despite any hiccups, their talent was undeniable and the crowd was in the couple's corner. But they wouldn't be duet to get love from the crowd. More on that later.

Compared to Joey + Rory's spartan performance, Blake Shelton's was larger-than-life, at least by Civic Arena standards. Shelton emerged in towering silouette behind a white curtain pulled up to reveal him with guitar in hand (cue every woman in the place going nuts). He was ready to break into "Country Strong" off of his new album "Startin' Fires" with his tight but unobtrusive five-piece band comprised of drums, guitar, bass, keys and pedal steel. They mostly laid back, as if to say "the good-looking guy front-and-center, keep your eyes on him." While Joey + Rory was more for the older crowd in the seats, Shelton was tailor-made for the college kids on the floor (a guy with a cowboy hat made out of beer cases was nodding in approval).

His 85-minute set was a showcase of Shelton's powerful tenor and his two personas honed over five studio albums. The humourous, party boy known for "drinkin' beer and raisin' hell" showed up on songs like the ode to excess boozing "The More I Drink," the Van Morrison tribute "Playboys of the Southwestern World" and the Rory Feek-penned, Jimmy Buffet-inspired novelty hit "Some Beach."

As a counterbalance, Shelton's softer side came out on lovelorn heartbreakers and ballads like "Austin," "Goodbye Time" and the touchingly sad narrative "The Baby." The crowd would get a heck of a surprise during his Michael Buble-song-turned-country-hit "Home" when his girlfriend and country starlet Miranda Lambert strolled out for a duet, which sent the crowd into a screaming frenzy grabbing for their cameras and camera phones to capture the moment.

Shelton's tunes, while pleasing and effective overall, didn't seem to ever break the stride of mid-tempo and as a performer, he pretty much confined himself to center stage. But these transgressions were overtaken by the star's natural charisma and playful banter, which at times lead to him playing a FreeCreditReport.com jingle, talking about dropping his "G's" when speaking and pointing out how everything makes him think about drinking (including big boobs).

The encore turned into an entertaining showcase. After "Redneck Girl," Miranda Lambert came back to ignite the crowd with her hit "Kerosene" and Shelton humorously let his guitar tech take the mic for a medley of Steve Miller Band's "The Joker," Shaggy's "Angel" and Sublime's "Smoke Two Joints," which went over like gangbusters for the crowd that stuck around. After closing with the dusty outlaw rocker "Ol' Red," all parties involved made an exit to rattling applause. It was the best show the Civic Arena had seen in years and probably will see for a few more. Even with its inconsistencies, a show with this much talent, starpower and surprises is hard to walk away from displeased.