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37-525: The Amazing Rhythm Aces is an American country rock group, which has characterized its music as " American music " or " roots music "—a blend of rock, country, blues, R&B, folk, reggae, and Latino. The band is best known for its 1975 hit " Third Rate Romance ". They have released 18 albums over 30 years (a period including a 15-year hiatus). The band's music is distinguished by its eclectic scope, literate and often quirky lyrics, and distinctive vocals by lead singer and songwriter Russell Smith . Members of

74-583: A Group. "Third Rate Romance" reached No. 1 on the Canadian pop/rock charts. These tracks were engineered by Burton, who produced their first three albums. Burton left the group after the release of Toucan Do It Too in 1977 and was replaced by Duncan Cameron. In 1978, the Aces released Burning the Ballroom Down , followed the next year by a self-titled album featuring songs with Joan Baez , Tracy Nelson and

111-757: A comeback album, Out of the Blue , released in mid-1998 with drummer Michael Organ as a temporary replacement for the ailing McDade. Drummer Bill Bonnette played with the band in 1999. Davis left the group in 2004, shortly after the release of "Nothin' but the Blues" to join Sneaky Pete Kleinow and Garth Hudson in Burrito Deluxe. Since 2007, the Aces' lineup included original members Smith and Earheart along with Kelvin Holly on lead guitar. The boogie-and-blues-inspired Nothin' but

148-622: A group that found significant chart success in the 1980s with a sound similar to the Amazing Rhythm Aces. Hooker joined Nanci Griffith 's band, the Blue Moon Orchestra, in 1987 and became its leader. Hooker retired from touring in 2007 and lives in County Tipperary, Ireland, and Mallorca, Spain, where he continues to keep an active writing and recording schedule. McDade died of bladder cancer on November 29, 1998, only months after

185-581: A part in the development of Southern rock . Rock and roll has usually been seen as a combination of rhythm and blues and country music, a fusion particularly evident in 1950s rockabilly . There has also been cross-pollination throughout the history of both genres; however, the term "country-rock" is used generally to refer to the wave of rock musicians of the late 1960s and early 1970s who began recording rock songs with country themes, vocal styles, and additional instrumentation, most characteristically pedal steel guitars . John Einarson states that, "[f]rom

222-474: A sound mixing of pop, country, and blue-eyed soul . Stacked Deck , their debut album, released in 1975, resulted in two crossover (rock and country) hits , " Third Rate Romance " and " Amazing Grace (Used to Be Her Favorite Song) ", the group's lone Top 10 country single. In 1976, "The End Is Not in Sight (The Cowboy Tune)", from the album Too Stuffed to Jump , won a Grammy for Country Vocal Performance by

259-588: A variety of perspectives and motivations, these musicians either played country with a rock & roll attitude, or added a country feel to rock, or folk, or bluegrass. There was no formula". The term country-rock had rarely been heard until the critic Richard Goldstein used it the June   6, 1968 issue of The Village Voice . In his piece, titled "Country Rock: Can Y'All Dig It?", Goldstein counted several artists as moving towards country-friendly material – including Moby Grape , Stone Poneys , Buffy Sainte-Marie ,

296-582: Is usually considered some of their finest work; John Fogerty , who left Creedence Clearwater Revival behind for the country sounds of the Blue Ridge Rangers (1972); Mike Nesmith , who had experimented with country sounds while with the Monkees , formed the First National Band ; and Neil Young who moved in and out of the genre throughout his career. One of the few acts to successfully move from

333-493: The "queen of country-rock", creating a highly successful pop-oriented brand of the genre. Pure Prairie League , formed in Ohio in 1970 by Craig Fuller , had both critical and commercial success with five straight Top 40 LP releases, including Bustin' Out (1972), acclaimed by AllMusic critic Richard Foss as "an album that is unequaled in country-rock", and Two Lane Highway , described by Rolling Stone as "a worthy companion to

370-450: The 1988 single Darlin' Danielle Don't, the 1989 top twenty single Hey Baby, and the 1993 single Ain't That Love. Organ later performed and recorded with legendary slide guitarist Sonny Landreth from 1995 to 2001 including work on the 2000 release Levee Town on Sugar Hill Records . Levee Town was re-released in April 2009 with additional tracks from the original recording sessions. During

407-748: The 1990s, Organ lived in Nashville, Tennessee , working as a session musician and performing with such roots rock artists as Danny Flowers , Tim Krekel , Pat McLaughlin , Gary Nicholson , Michael Henderson, Sheila Lawrence, and Tom Ovans. During that period, Organ also recorded with Jimmy Buffett , recorded and toured with the Amazing Rhythm Aces , and performed with Bo Diddley - as well as working with country music artists Lionel Cartwright , Lee Roy Parnell , Kevin Welch , Highway 101 , Claudia Church , and Deborah Allen . Organ also recorded and performed in

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444-588: The 21st century. Japan even took influence in the 70s with country rock mainly in the kayokyoku genre. Artists such as Takuro Yoshida , Lily and Saori Minami have often dabbled with country rock in their music. Country rock has survived as a cult force in Texas, where acts including the Flatlanders , Joe Ely , Butch Hancock , Jimmie Dale Gilmore , and California-based Richard Brooker have collaborated and recorded. Other performers have produced occasional recordings in

481-726: The Aces came together in Memphis, Tennessee , at the recommendation of Barry "Byrd" Burton (born in Greene County, Tennessee ; September 7, 1946 – March 10, 2008), who was engineering and producing at the Sam Phillips Recording Studio in Memphis. Davis and McDade, who had recorded and toured with singer-songwriter Jesse Winchester as "The Rhythm Aces", recruited Smith, keyboardist Billy Earheart III, lead guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Burton, and pianist James Hooker to develop

518-574: The Aces played in Fatback, a local band in Knoxville, Tennessee , in the late 1960s and early 1970s, consisting of vocalist and guitarist Russell Smith , bassist Jeff "Stick" Davis, drummer Butch McDade (born David Hugh McDade in Clarksdale, Missouri ; February 24, 1946 – November 29, 1998), and Fatback's first lead guitarist Mike Brooks and later Dan Kennedy. The band left Knoxville in the early 1970s. In 1972,

555-668: The Blues was followed by Midnight Communion , in 2007, which hearkened back to the Aces' eclectic roots music origins. Following a cancer diagnosis, Russell Smith died in 2019 at age 70. Country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country . It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal styles, and additional instrumentation, most characteristically pedal steel guitars . Country rock began with artists like Buffalo Springfield , Michael Nesmith , Bob Dylan , Nitty Gritty Dirt Band ,

592-792: The Byrds , the Flying Burrito Brothers , The International Submarine Band and others, reaching its greatest popularity in the 1970s with artists such as Emmylou Harris , the Eagles , New Riders of the Purple Sage , Linda Ronstadt , Little Feat , Poco , Charlie Daniels Band , and Pure Prairie League . Country rock also influenced artists in other genres, including The Band , the Grateful Dead , Creedence Clearwater Revival , The Rolling Stones , and George Harrison 's solo work, as well as playing

629-643: The Byrds into the genre, among them the Beau Brummels and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band . A number of performers also enjoyed a renaissance by adopting country sounds, including: the Beatles, who re-explored elements of country in songs such as "Rocky Raccoon" and "Don't Pass Me By" from their 1968 self-titled double album (often referred to as the "White Album"), and "Octopus's Garden" from Abbey Road (1969); The Everly Brothers , whose Roots album (1968)

666-1194: The CD Zuni Movement. Ms. Faught utilized the CD in teaching seminars internationally, including her work for the New York City Center Project Dance program as well as the New York arts organization Together In Dance. In 2004, Organ composed music for Current, a project by multidisciplinary performance group Susurrus that is still in performance. 2009 Sonny Landreth - Levee Town Expanded Edition - LandFall 2000 Sonny Landreth - Levee Town - Sugar Hill 1995 Sonny Landreth - Son of Native Stepson - Zoo/BMG EP 1996 Tom Ovans - Nuclear Sky - Demon 1995 Jimmy Buffett - Margaritaville Cafe: Late Night Gumbo - Margaritaville 1994 Lost and Profound - Memory Thief - Polygram 1992 Sue Medley - I Am Alive - Polygram EP 1993 Henry Lee Summer - SlamDunk - Epic 1991 Henry Lee Summer - Way Past Midnight - Epic 1989 Henry Lee Summer - I've Got Everything - Epic 1988 Henry Lee Summer - Henry Lee Summer - Epic During his career Organ

703-510: The Country Rock sound as the frontman for his Stone Canyon Band and recorded the 1966 album "Bright Lights & Country Music" and the 1967 album "Country Fever". Bassist Randy Meisner joined briefly in 1970 after leaving Poco and before joining Eagles . In 1966, as many rock artists moved increasingly towards expansive and experimental psychedelia , Bob Dylan spearheaded the back-to-basics roots revival when he went to Nashville to record

740-636: The International Submarine Band and Bob Dylan – but he expected the Byrds ' forthcoming album, Sweetheart of the Rodeo , to represent the new genre. Before the Byrds' album was released in August   1968, Goldstein considered the Band 's debut album, Music From Big Pink , as the "first major album" of the country-rock movement when he reviewed it for The New York Times on August   4. Key to

777-604: The Muscle Shoals Horns. Both albums received critical approval but sold poorly. They released another album, How the Hell Do You Spell Rhythum , before disbanding. Smith became a successful songwriter and had some minor successes on the country charts as a solo artist and successfully composed songs for other performers such as Ricky Van Shelton, T. Graham Brown, and Randy Travis. Earheart joined Hank Williams, Jr. 's Bama Band , and Cameron joined Sawyer Brown ,

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814-761: The Natives' country rock cover of John Lennon's " Tight A$ " was included on the Lennon Bermuda album. A revival of country music blended with rock features in the 2020s was titled "ronky tonk" in the music press, with acts such as Zach Bryan , Jackson Dean , and Bailey Zimmerman identified by Billboard . Jelly Roll is another crossover artist that blends a unique fashion of country and rock, sometimes with hip hop influences. Michael Organ (drummer) Michael Organ played drums with pop/rock singer Henry Lee Summer from 1983 to 1992 including work on all four of Summer's album releases for Epic Records as well as

851-605: The Old Guys with two American members, drummer Andy Newmark and acoustic guitarist Bob Rafkin . Rafkin had written "Lazy Waters" for The Byrds from the 1971 album Farther Along , and Andy Newmark had played on the 1973 Gene Parsons album Kindling . Canadian country rock band Blue Rodeo has found considerable success in Canada, selling multi-platinum albums throughout the 1980s and 1990s, and continues to receive frequent radio airplay on Canadian radio stations. Later in 2013 Rocky and

888-631: The Rolling Stones "High and Dry" (1966), as well as Buffalo Springfield 's "Go and Say Goodbye" (1966) and "Kind Woman" (1968). According to The Encyclopedia of Country Music , the Beatles' "I Don't Want to Spoil the Party", their cover of the Buck Owens country hit " Act Naturally " and their 1965 album Rubber Soul can all be seen "with hindsight" as examples of country rock. Former TV teen idol and rockabilly recording artist Ricky Nelson pioneered

925-423: The Rolling Stones , and George Harrison 's solo work. It also played a part in the development of Southern rock , which, although largely derived from blues rock , had a distinct southern lilt, and it paved the way for parts of the alternative country movement. The genre declined in popularity in the late-1970s, but some established artists, including Neil Young, have continued to record country-tinged rock into

962-556: The album Blonde on Blonde , playing with notable local musicians like Charlie McCoy . This, and the subsequent more clearly country-influenced albums, John Wesley Harding (1967) and Nashville Skyline (1969), have been seen as creating the genre of country folk , a route pursued by a number of, largely acoustic, folk musicians. Dylan's lead was also followed by the Byrds, who were joined by Gram Parsons in 1968. Parsons had mixed country with rock , blues and folk to create what he called "Cosmic American Music". Earlier in

999-543: The country side towards rock were the bluegrass band the Dillards . Doug Dillard left the band to form the group Dillard & Clark with ex- Byrds member Gene Clark and Bernie Leadon . The greatest commercial success for country rock came in the 1970s, with the Doobie Brothers mixing in elements of R&B, Emmylou Harris (the former singer with Parsons) becoming a star on country radio, and Linda Ronstadt ,

1036-519: The genre, Goldstein wrote, was that the album had country music's "twang and   ... tenacity", but it also "[made] you want to move" like rock music. Country influences can be heard on rock records through the 1960s, including the Beatles ' 1964 recordings " I'll Cry Instead ", " Baby's in Black ", " I Don't Want to Spoil the Party ", and their 1965 recording " I've Just Seen A Face ", the Byrds' 1965 cover version of Porter Wagoner 's "Satisfied Mind", or

1073-468: The genre, including Elvis Costello 's Almost Blue (1981) and the Robert Plant and Alison Krauss collaboration Raising Sand , which was one of the most commercially successful albums of 2007. Kid Rock , who broke through into mainstream success with a rap rock sound, gradually developed a country rock sound. In 2013, British country rock band Rocky and the Natives released Let's Hear It for

1110-441: The genre. The Byrds continued in the same vein, but Parsons left before the album was released to join another ex-Byrds member Chris Hillman in forming the Flying Burrito Brothers . The Byrds hired guitarist Clarence White and drummer Gene Parsons , both from the country band Nashville West . The Flying Burrito Brothers recorded the albums The Gilded Palace of Sin (1969) and Burrito Deluxe (1970), which helped establish

1147-488: The hit "Let Your Love Flow"(1976). In 1979, the Southern rock Charlie Daniels Band moved to a more country direction, released a song with strong bluegrass influence, " The Devil Went Down to Georgia ", and the song crossed over and became a hit on the pop chart. Outside its handful of stars, country rock's greatest significance was on artists in other genres, including the Band, Grateful Dead , Creedence Clearwater Revival ,

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1184-490: The likes of the Byrds' Sweetheart of the Rodeo and other gems of the genre". Former Poco and Buffalo Springfield member Jim Messina joined Kenny Loggins in a very successful duo, while former members of Ronstadt's backing band went on to form the Eagles (two members of which were from the Flying Burrito Brothers and Poco), who emerged as one of the most successful rock acts of all time, producing albums that included Desperado (1973) and Hotel California (1976). However,

1221-490: The mid 1990s with Canadian Polygram Records rock recording artist Sue Medley and the Toronto duo Lost & Profound (Lisa Boudreau and Terry Tompkins) playing on their 1994 Polygram release Memory Thief produced by Richard Bennett . In 1999, Organ began a music project with the creative dance and movement educator Margot Faught. Organ composed rhythmic tracks to be used in dance and movement classes which were compiled into

1258-577: The principal country rock influence in the Eagles came from Bernie Leadon , formerly of the Flying Burrito Brothers, and the Eagles are perceived as shifting towards hard rock after he left the band in late 1975. The Ozark Mountain Daredevils had hit singles "If You Wanna Get To Heaven" (1974) and "Jackie Blue" (1975), the latter of which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1975. The Bellamy Brothers had

1295-549: The release of Out of the Blue . He was 52. Burton became a successful producer and session guitarist. He released a solo instrumental country album, Byrd Braynz (ADF Records), in 2002. He died on March 10, 2008, from complications of myelodysplastic syndrome , a rare form of blood cancer, at the age of 61. The Aces re-formed in 1994. The group, composed of Smith, Davis, McDade, Earheart, Hooker, and new guitarist-mandolinist Danny Parks, released Ride Again , an album of new renditions of their biggest hits. They composed songs for

1332-518: The respectability and parameters of the genre, before Parsons departed to pursue a solo career. Country rock was a particularly popular style in the California music scene of the late 1960s, and was adopted by bands including Hearts and Flowers, Poco (formed by Richie Furay and Jim Messina , formerly of the Buffalo Springfield) and New Riders of the Purple Sage . Some folk-rockers followed

1369-424: The year Parsons had released Safe at Home (although the principal recording for the album had taken place in mid-1967) with the International Submarine Band, which made extensive use of pedal steel and is seen by some as the first true country-rock album. The result of Parsons' brief tenure in the Byrds was Sweetheart of the Rodeo (1968), generally considered one of the finest and most influential recordings in

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