It's the King Kong of New England fairs: The Big E starts its 17-day run on Friday. As always, it's got more - more than other fairs, more than past Big E's have had, more of everything.

You know there'll be carnival rides and the Avenue of States and Storrowton Village Museum and circus performances and horse shows and agricultural competitions, but that's not all.

Musicians like Darius Rucker (Sept. 14) and Little Big Town (Sept. 27) giving ticketed concerts, while Eddie Money (Sept. 20) and Christopher Cross (Sept. 13-15) offer free shows.

Celebrity impersonators roam the site - a little Robert DeNiro here, a little Jack Nicholson there.

Artifacts and video footage from the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair will help mark that famous fair's 50th anniversary. The memorabilia from the Ford Motor Company include a real 1965 Ford Mustang, which debuted at the fair.

You can't talk about any fair without mentioning wacky fair food. At The Big E, you can sample deep fried butter, red velvet Oreos, zucchini fries and French meat pie.

And it really is true that the Big E is more popular than ever: last year's attendance hit 1.5 million people - the most ever to visit the Big E.

- KRISTINA DORSEY

The Big E, Fri.-Sept. 28, Fairgrounds, Memorial Avenue, Springfield, Mass.; gates open at 8 a.m. daily, and most exhibits and buildings open 10 a.m.-10 p.m.; $12 adults, $8 kids 6-12. free for kids 5 and under; (413) 737-2443.