Capitol Offense is an American

rock band A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...

. It is most notable for its bassist,

Mike Huckabee Michael Dale Huckabee (born August 24, 1955) is an American politician, Baptist minister, and political commentator who served as the 44th governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007. He was a candidate for the Republican Party presidential nomina ...

, who is the former

Governor of Arkansas A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

and former 2008 Republican candidate for President of the United States.

History

Early years (1996-2000)

The band was formed in July

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

by newly elected governor Mike Huckabee and members of his executive staff: Chris Pyle (drums); DeWayne Hayes (lead guitar); and Mike Perkins (vocals), who all enjoyed

classic rock Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, primar ...

. They drew their name from the fact that all of them work in the Capitol building, and because according to Huckabee, "in the course of our playing, we offend just about everybody." The band's first performance was at a Governor's staff Christmas party in 1996, where their setlist consisted of Chuck Berry's "Rock and Roll Music," Barrett Strong's "

Money (That's What I Want) "Money (That's What I Want)" is a rhythm and blues song written by Tamla founder Berry Gordy and Janie Bradford, which was the first hit record for Gordy's Motown enterprise. Barrett Strong recorded it in 1959 as a single for the Tamla label, dist ...

", and the Beatles' "Come Together." Thereafter, the band would often play at Governor's staff events. In 1999, the band gave a performance in the Governor's Conference Room, during a bill-signing ceremony in honor of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

native

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

.Press release from guitar-maker Gibson
, regarding Huckabee and his band. The band was also a regular guest at the annual Hope Watermelon Festival in Huckabee's hometown of Hope, Arkansas. Huckabee, by far the most famous member of the band, was drawn to music from very early on in his life. He has played guitar since he was a child and states unequivocally that "music was life changing for me."Huckabee pushes the arts
." Stephen Schmidt. ''The Daily Iowan''

Recent times (2001-present)

Huckabee's band played at

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

inaugural balls put on by the

Free Republic Free Republic is a moderated Internet forum and chat site for self-described conservatives, primarily within the United States. It presents articles and comments posted pseudonymously by registered members, known as "Freepers", using screen names ...

in both 2001 and 2005. In recent years Capitol Offense has honed their sound to such an extent that they have opened for several high-profile artists, including The

Charlie Daniels Charles Edward Daniels (October 28, 1936 – July 6, 2020) was an American singer, musician, and songwriter. His music fused rock, country, blues and jazz, pioneering Southern rock. He was best known for his number-one country hit "The Dev ...

Band,

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles cha ...

REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The ...

,The Governor Who Put His State on a Diet
" Gina Bellafante. ''The New York Times''. August 10, 2005.

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...

Percy Sledge Percy Tyrone Sledge (November 25, 1940 – April 14, 2015) was an American R&B, soul and gospel singer. He is best known for the song " When a Man Loves a Woman", a No. 1 hit on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and R&B singles charts in 196 ...

38 Special 38 Special may refer to: * .38 Special The .38 Special, also commonly known as .38 S&W Special (not to be confused with .38 S&W), .38 Smith & Wesson Special, .38 Spl, .38 Spc, (pronounced "thirty-eight special"), or 9x29mmR is a rimmed, cent ...

, and

Grand Funk Railroad Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in 1968 in Flint, Michigan, by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar), Don Brewer (drums, vocals), and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved peak popularity and succes ...

."Once Again, a Little Rock From Arkansas"
''The Washington Post''. During 2007, front man Huckabee took his musical act on the presidential stump with him, performing numerous times without Capitol Offense during his campaign in Iowa. At one stop, backed by two record store employees, he covered a

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

song, before answering questions from the crowd at the store. During Huckabee's 2008 campaign,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

's guitarist and songwriter

Tom Scholz Donald Thomas Scholz (born March 10, 1947) is an American musician. He is the founder, main songwriter, primary guitarist and only remaining original member of the rock band Boston. He has appeared on every Boston album. Scholz is an MIT-traine ...

, a supporter of Democratic candidate

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

wrote to Huckabee, requesting him to stop performing the Boston song "

More than a Feeling "More Than a Feeling" is a song by the American rock band Boston, released as the lead single from the band's 1976 debut album by Epic Records in September 1976, with " Smokin' as the B-side. Tom Scholz wrote the whole song. The single pea ...

" at public appearances. Huckabee was reported to have been regularly playing the song, sometimes with former Boston band member

Barry Goudreau Barry Goudreau (born November 29, 1951) is an American musician. He was one of two original guitarists for the Rock music, rock band Boston (band), Boston alongside founder Tom Scholz; both Scholz and Goudreau shared lead and rhythm guitar parts ...

(who was a Huckabee supporter).

Style

Capitol Offense is a

cover band A cover band (or covers band) is a band that plays songs recorded by someone else, sometimes mimicking the original as accurately as possible, and sometimes re-interpreting or changing the original. These remade songs are known as cover songs. Ne ...

that plays a mix of

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

Lineup

Capitol Offense's lineup is as follows: *

- bass *Chris Pyle - drums (1996-2010) *DeWayne Hayes - lead guitar (1996–2003) *Mike Perkins - vocals (1996) *Grant Tennille - vocals (1997–1999) *Rick Calhoun - guitar, vocals *Aaron Black - vocals *Steve Pyle - vocals *Teri Cox - vocals *Marynell Branch - keyboard *Gordon Caffey - lead guitar, vocals *Alan Eidson - drums

References

{{Authority control Rock music groups from Arkansas Musical groups established in 1996 Politics of Arkansas Musical groups from Little Rock, Arkansas