With their guitar-picking fingers readied at their sides, Marty Stuart and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Cowboys rode into Augusta on Thursday night.

Only about 1,000 people came out to greet Stuart and his band at the stop along the concert trail, but those who did witnessed a rip-roaring country music show.

Soon after taking the stage with an electric guitar strapped around his shoulder, Stuart stirred up a frenzy among the females in the audience with his Elvis Presley-like leg wiggling and with his dedication of one of his biggest hits to the women in the crowd.

“Here’s one for you Maine cowgirls out here,” Stuart said, before singing the upbeat number “Western Girls”.

The song was among the first of a string of hits from his career that the country star delivered in his 1 1/2-hour show, and it is a song that is characteristic of Stuart’s style — a combination of traditional country, bluegrass and rock ‘n’ roll. During his show, Stuart often sounded like some of the rockabilly stars of the early 1950s, but his style is without a doubt well received by the country music fans of the 1990s.

Throughout most of the performance at the Augusta Civic Center, Stuart relied on his tried-and-true hits, such as “Tempted” and “Hillbilly Rock,” to keep members of the audience entertained and to keep their toes tapping. Occasionally, the singer delivered cover versions of the songs of Bill Monroe, Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash, and displayed his skill on the mandolin, which showed some of his versatility.

Stuart does not, however, perform many ballads during his show, and thus did not display the vocal range of such superstar country acts as Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson, Vince Gill and Reba McEntire.

But during the “The Marty Party,” as the concert was billed, the focus seemed not to be on showcasing Stuart’s talent as much as it was on ensuring that the audience had a great time.

When one Stuart admirer went up to the stage to take a photograph of the singer, she got a better shot than she expected.

“Hold it, lady, do you want a picture of the band?” Stuart asked, and the entire five-member band suddenly stopped playing and posed together at the front of the stage for that fan and the immediate onslaught of other camera-toting fans that followed her lead.

Also, during the show, stage hands threw large, black balloons imprinted with “The Marty Party” out into the audience. The balloons were briefly bounced around much like the beach balls at Fenway Park, but a few Stuart fans soon captured them as souvenirs.

When not dancing in their seats or trying to herd balloons, audience members also frequently sang along with Stuart, and they especially tested their vocal talents on “This One’s Gonna Hurt You.” Country star Travis Tritt accompanied Stuart on the recorded version of the song, and Tritt, who formerly toured with Stuart, was the focus of many of Stuart’s jokes throughout the evening.

Tritt is scheduled to appear at the Augusta Civic Center in October, and an ever-growing line was outside the center on Thursday night waiting to purchase tickets for the show, which went on sale Friday morning. Some of these dedicated Tritt fans, such as Cheryl Rhoten of Dresden, who was first in line, had been there since Tuesday night.

“Tell them all we gave you free Travis Tritt tickets,” Stuart joked.

“Anybody that sits out here in the yard all day, that’s a real country music fan,” he added.

Following two encore numbers, Stuart wrapped up his show, shook hands with several members of the crowd, signed autographs and exited the stage to a standing ovation.