Big country shows are pretty much the lifeblood of Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion at Walnut Creek -- as in just about the only thing keeping the city-owned amphitheater still going at this point. So here's a big chunk of the venue's 2013 schedule, its Country Megaticket of big arena-country acts coming to Walnut Creek this year. Pre-sales start on Tuesday and prices range from $199 to $799.

Tim McGraw, Brantley Gilbert, Love and Theft (May 4)
Kenny Chesney, Eli Young Band, Kacey Musgraves (May 23)
Brad Paisley, Chris Young, Lee Brice (June 8)
Luke Bryan, Thompson Square, Florida Georgia Line (July 13)
Keith Urban, Little Big Town, Dustin Lynch (July 26)
Blake Shelton, Easton Corbin, Jana Kramer (Aug. 9)
Miranda Lambert, Dierks Bentley (Aug. 24)
Jason Aldean, Jake Owen, Thomas Rhett (Sept. 13)
Rascal Flatts, The Band Perry (Sept. 27)

Meanwhile, Durham Performing Arts Center has also unveiled a choice country-leaning booking: Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell with Richard Thompson Electric Trio, playing DPAC on March 30. If you don't get in on any of the pre-sales, tickets go on sale Jan. 25.

We don't have dates yet, but we do have acts for the big 2012 arena-country shows at Raleigh's Time Warner Warner Cable Music Pavilion at Walnut Creek. And let's just say that, aside from the first two acts listed, this year's schedule is mighty heavy on The Usual Suspects (and is actually most notable for who isn't on it, at least not yet):

(UPDATE -- dates have been added...)

Sugarland (April 28)
Lady Antebellum, Darius Rucker, Thompson Square (June 8)
Toby Keith (July 15)
Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan (July 27)
Rascal Flatts, Little Big Town, Eli Young Band, Edens Edge (Aug. 10)
Brad Paisley, The Band Perry (Aug. 24)

These six shows go on sale Feb. 3 as part of the venue's annual "country megaticket" package at prices from $129 to $649.