The Kentucky Headhunters are an American
country rock and
Southern rock
Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music and a genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country music, and blues and is focused generally on electric guitars and vocals. Author Scott B. Bomar specula ...
band originating in the state of
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
. The band's members are Doug Phelps (vocals, bass guitar), Greg Martin (vocals, lead guitar), and brothers Richard Young (vocals, rhythm guitar) and Fred Young (vocals, drums). They were founded in 1968 as Itchy Brother, which consisted of the Young brothers and Martin, along with Anthony Kenney on bass guitar and vocals. Itchy Brother performed together until 1982, with James Harrison replacing Martin from 1973 to 1976. The Youngs and Martin began performing as The Kentucky Headhunters in 1986, adding brothers Ricky Lee Phelps (lead vocals, harmonica) and Doug Phelps (bass guitar, vocals) to the membership.
With the release of their 1989 debut album ''
Pickin' on Nashville'' via
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it i ...
, the band charted four consecutive Top 40 country singles. A second album for Mercury, ''
Electric Barnyard'', did not do as well commercially, and the Phelps brothers left after its release to form
Brother Phelps
Brother Phelps was an American country music duo formed by brothers Ricky Lee (guitar, vocals) and Doug Phelps (bass guitar, vocals). Prior to the duo's formation in 1992, both brothers were members of The Kentucky Headhunters, a Southern rock-inf ...
. Kenney re-joined and Mark S. Orr took over on lead vocals for 1993's ''
Rave On!!'' and a
compilation album
A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...
entitled ''
The Best of The Kentucky Headhunters: Still Pickin''' before the band exited Mercury. Orr left and Doug Phelps rejoined in 1996 as lead vocalist for the album ''
Stompin' Grounds''. He also led on the
Audium Entertainment
Entertainment One Ltd., trading as eOne, is an American-owned Canadian multinational entertainment company. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the company is primarily involved in the acquisition, distribution, and production of films and television se ...
albums ''
Songs from the Grass String Ranch
''Songs from the Grass String Ranch'' is the fifth studio album by the American country rock band the Kentucky Headhunters. It was released by Audium Entertainment in 2000. The album includes singles "Too Much to Lose", "Louisianna CoCo" and "Lo ...
'' and ''
Soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
'', as well as ''
Big Boss Man'' and a second compilation, ''
Flying Under the Radar
''Flying Under the Radar'' is the second compilation album by the American country rock/southern rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. It was released in 2006 via the CBuJ Ent. label. The album includes seven tracks from their 2000 album ''Songs fr ...
'', on CBuJ Entertainment. After Kenney's departure, Doug once again became the band's bass guitarist by the release of ''
Dixie Lullabies
''Dixie Lullabies'' is an album by the American southern rock/ country rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. It was released on October 18, 2011 through Red Dirt Records.
Critical reception
AllMusic gave the album three-and-a-half stars out of five ...
'', in 2011.
The Kentucky Headhunters have released ten studio albums, three compilations, and twenty-three singles. Their highest-peaking single is a cover of the
Don Gibson
Donald Eugene Gibson (April 3, 1928 – November 17, 2003) was an American songwriter and country musician. A Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, Gibson wrote such country standards as " Sweet Dreams" and "I Can't Stop Loving You", and enjoy ...
song "
Oh Lonesome Me
"Oh Lonesome Me" is a popular song written and recorded in December 1957 by Don Gibson with Chet Atkins producing it for RCA Victor in Nashville. Released in 1958, the song topped the country chart for eight non-consecutive weeks. On what beca ...
," which the band took to number eight on the ''
Billboard''
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
charts in 1990. In addition, the band has won three
Country Music Association awards, an
Academy of Country Music
The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...
award, and a
, won in 1990 for ''Pickin' on Nashville''.
History
1968–1982: Early years as Itchy Brother
Richard Young, his younger brother Fred, and their cousins Anthony Kenney and Greg Martin began performing music in the Youngs' and Kenney's hometown of
Glasgow, Kentucky
Glasgow is a home rule-class city in Barren County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. Glasgow is the principal city of the Glasgow micropolitan area, which comprises Barren and Metcalfe counties. The population was 14,028 ...
, in the 1960s. They founded a band called Itchy Brother,
named after Fred's favorite cartoon character,
from ''
King Leonardo and His Short Subjects
''King Leonardo and His Short Subjects'' (also known as ''The King and Odie Show'') is a 1960–1963 American Saturday-morning animated television series that aired on NBC, sponsored by General Mills. It was created by Total Television (which wou ...
''. The original lineup consisted of Richard Young on
rhythm guitar, Fred Young on drums, Kenney on bass guitar, and Martin on lead guitar. Itchy Brother achieved regional success in Kentucky in the 1970s, including at least one single, "Shotgun Effie," which they wrote about the Youngs' grandmother, Effie. It was released in 1973 on the King Fargo label. That same year, Greg Martin left the group to play in another band in his hometown of
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
. In the meantime, guitarist James Harrison took his place. Martin returned to the group in 1976.
Itchy Brother was almost signed to
Swan Song Records, an independent label founded by the band
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
, in 1980. The label closed after Led Zeppelin drummer
John Bonham
John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980) was an English musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Led Zeppelin. Esteemed for his speed, power, fast single-footed kick drumming, distinctive sound, and feel for groove ...
died, and Itchy Brother never recorded a full album on Swan Song.
Itchy Brother broke up in 1982. After their disbanding, Richard started writing songs for
Acuff-Rose Music
Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. was an American music publishing firm formed in 1942 by Roy Acuff and Fred Rose (songwriter), Fred Rose in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Acuff-Rose's honest behavior towards their writers set them apart from other m ...
, and Fred became a backing musician for country singer
Sylvia, who at the time was recording on
RCA Records
RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
. Martin played
bass guitar
The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
and sang backing vocals for
Ronnie McDowell
Ronald Dean McDowell Sr. (born March 25, 1950) is an American country music artist, songwriter, and actor. He is best known for his 1977 song "The King Is Gone", a tribute to Elvis Presley, who had recently died. From that single onward, McDowell ...
, then a recording artist for
Curb Records, and Kenney stopped performing, although he continued to write songs with the Young brothers.
1986–1988: Reunion with new name
When Martin attempted to reunite Itchy Brother in 1985, the Young brothers joined him, but Kenney declined. Martin invited
Missouri Bootheel
The Missouri Bootheel is a salient located in the southeasternmost part of the U.S. state of Missouri, extending south of 36°30′ north latitude, so called because its shape in relation to the rest of the state resembles the heel of a boot. ...
native Doug Phelps, also a member of McDowell's band, to replace Kenney, and Doug brought his older brother Ricky Lee to sing lead vocals.
The band decided to name themselves The Headhunters, taking the name from the term "headchopper," which blues musician
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913 April 30, 1983), known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-war blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago ...
used to indicate that he had supplanted another band in a gig. After discovering that other bands existed with that name, the band added "Kentucky" to its name and thus became The Kentucky Headhunters.
The Kentucky Headhunters began performing together the following year, playing twice monthly on the 90-minute ''Chitlin' Show'', a radio program on
WLOC in
Munfordville, Kentucky
Munfordville is a home rule-class city in, and the county seat of, Hart County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,615 at the 2010 U.S. census.
History
The settlement was once known as "Big Buffalo Crossing". The current name came fr ...
.
1989–1990: Debut album and early success
The Kentucky Headhunters borrowed $4,500
to record a
demo
Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to:
Music and film
*Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release
* ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes
* ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...
album, which included seven original songs, plus covers of
Bill Monroe
William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass".
The genre take ...
's "Walk Softly on This Heart of Mine,"
Henson Cargill
Henson Cargill (February 5, 1941 – March 24, 2007) was an American country music singer best known for the socially controversial 1968 Country No. 1 hit " Skip a Rope". His music career began in Oklahoma in clubs around Oklahoma City and Tuls ...
's "
Skip a Rope
"Skip a Rope' is a song written by Jack Moran and Glenn Douglas Tubb and recorded by American country music artist Henson Cargill, released in November 1967 as the first single and title track from the album ''Skip a Rope''. The song was Cargill ...
", and
Don Gibson
Donald Eugene Gibson (April 3, 1928 – November 17, 2003) was an American songwriter and country musician. A Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, Gibson wrote such country standards as " Sweet Dreams" and "I Can't Stop Loving You", and enjoy ...
's "
Oh Lonesome Me
"Oh Lonesome Me" is a popular song written and recorded in December 1957 by Don Gibson with Chet Atkins producing it for RCA Victor in Nashville. Released in 1958, the song topped the country chart for eight non-consecutive weeks. On what beca ...
."
Originally intended to be sold at the band's live shows, the demo tape came to the attention of the Nashville music community.
Although Martin said that the band had not seriously considered signing a record deal, the band pursued one through the suggestion of its manager, Mitchell Fox.
Harold Shedd
James Harold Shedd (born November 8, 1931) is a music industry executive and producer, best known for his role as producer of the country group Alabama as well as Reba McEntire, Shania Twain and Toby Keith. During his career he has headed Mercury ...
, a record producer who was then the head of
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it i ...
, helped sign The Kentucky Headhunters to the label in 1989.
Mercury released the demo in 1989 as The Kentucky Headhunters' debut album, ''
Pickin' on Nashville''. The album produced four singles, all of which reached top 40 on the ''
Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
) chart. The first of these, the "Walk Softly on This Heart of Mine" cover, peaked at number 25 in December 1989.
After it came "
Dumas Walker." According to Doug, Mercury Records was initially reluctant to release the song as a single: "
he label
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
thought it was too regional, and that no one outside the area would get it, but what they didn't see, was the reaction we got to it every night that we played it in front of a crowd, and it didn't matter where we were playing either."
The single peaked at number 15 on the ''Billboard'' chart.
Following "Dumas Walker" was "Oh Lonesome Me", which peaked at number eight; this was the band's only Top Ten hit. Finishing off the single releases was the number 23 "Rock 'n' Roll Angel",
which Richard wrote. ''Pickin' on Nashville'' also earned the band a
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
for
Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
The Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded from 1970 to 2011. The award has had several minor name changes:
* In 1970 the award was known as Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group
* From 1971 to 19 ...
, Best New Vocal Group award from the
Academy of Country Music
The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...
(ACM), and Album of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year awards from the
Country Music Association (CMA).
In addition, it earned a double-platinum certification from the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) for shipping two million copies in the United States.
William Ruhlmann of
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
gave the album a four-and-a-half star rating out of five, saying that the band was "all the better" for having a sound closer to rock than country.
After the success of their debut album, The Kentucky Headhunters began touring with
Hank Williams, Jr.
Randall Hank Williams (born May 26, 1949), known professionally as Hank Williams Jr. or Bocephus, is an American singer-songwriter and musician. His musical style is often considered a blend of southern rock, blues, and country. He is the son of ...
and
Delbert McClinton
Delbert McClinton (born November 4, 1940) is an American blues rock and electric blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, harmonica player, and pianist.
From his first professional stage appearance in 1957 to his most recent national tour in 2018, ...
.
1991–1992: Second album and departure of the Phelps brothers
In 1991, the band released their second album, ''
Electric Barnyard''. Although the album earned a gold certification from the RIAA
and a second CMA award for Vocal Group of the Year, its singles received little airplay compared to the band's previous releases,
with none of the four singles reaching the top 40 on the U.S. country charts. The album's first single was a cover of "
The Ballad of Davy Crockett
"The Ballad of Davy Crockett" is a song with music by George Bruns and lyrics by Thomas W. Blackburn. It was introduced on ABC's television series ''Disneyland'', in the premiere episode of October 27, 1954. Fess Parker is shown performing the ...
," which was released on the 155th anniversary of
Davy Crockett
David Crockett (August 17, 1786 – March 6, 1836) was an American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier, and politician. He is often referred to in popular culture as the "King of the Wild Frontier". He represented Tennessee in the U.S. House of Re ...
's death; the single shipped to radio with promotional
coonskin cap
A coonskin cap is a hat fashioned from the skin and fur of a raccoon. The original coonskin cap consisted of the entire skin of the raccoon including its head and tail. Beginning as traditional Native American headgear, coonskin caps became assoc ...
s.
It spent eleven weeks on the charts and peaked at 49.
"With Body and Soul" was the next single released, peaking at number 30 on the Canadian ''
RPM
Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines.
Standards
ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...
'' country charts but reaching number 56 in the United States.
The third and fourth singles were the original composition "It's Chitlin' Time" and a rendition of
Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music.
Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
's "
Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line
"Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line" is a song written by Jimmy Bryant. Originally recorded by American country music singer Jim Alley, it was made famous by American country music singer and musician Waylon Jennings.
Waylon Jennings version
Jenning ...
," at numbers 63 and 60 respectively.
Norman Greenbaum
Norman Joel Greenbaum (born November 20, 1942) is an American singer-songwriter. He is primarily known for his 1969 song "Spirit in the Sky".
Early life
Greenbaum was born in Malden, Massachusetts. He was raised in an Orthodox Jewish househol ...
's 1969 single "
Spirit in the Sky
"Spirit in the Sky" is a song by American singer-songwriter Norman Greenbaum, originally written and recorded by Greenbaum and released in late 1969 from the album of the same name. The single became a gold record, selling two million copies f ...
" was covered on this album as well.
This album was met with mixed reception from critics.
Alanna Nash
Alanna Nash is an American journalist and biographer.
Born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1950, Nash holds a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and is the author of several acclaimed books. She is a 1972 graduat ...
of ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' gave it an A rating, saying that it "skillfully blends raw wit, the working-class energy of sweat-stained factory workers jamming between shifts, and musical styles as diverse as the corny
Tennessee Ernie Ford
Ernest Jennings Ford (February 13, 1919 – October 17, 1991), known professionally as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American singer and television host who enjoyed success in the country and western, pop, and gospel musical genres. Noted for h ...
and the creamy
Eric Clapton."
Allmusic critic
Brian Mansfield, who gave it three-and-a-half stars, called the band a "top-notch Southern rock band with a sense of humor," and said that the covers on ''Electric Barnyard'' were highlights, while the originals were "adequate, offbeat filler." Randy Lewis of the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' called the band "
ZZ Top
ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in 1969 in Houston, Texas. For 51 years, they comprised vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard and vocalist-bassist Dusty Hill, until Hill's death in 2021. ZZ Top developed a signature sou ...
lite" and said that most of the songs on the album had a "party-hearty sound."
Later in 1991, The Kentucky Headhunters performed with
Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Following early work under his given name, first as co-founder of the Sons of the Pioneers and then acting, the rebra ...
on the song "That's How the West Was Swung" from his ''
Tribute
A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of land which the state conqu ...
'' album, and covered
Canned Heat
Canned Heat is an American band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1965. The group is noted for its efforts to promote interest in blues music and its original artists and rock music. It was founded by two blues enthusiasts Alan Wilson and Bob ...
's "
Let's Work Together
"Let's Stick Together" is a blues-based rhythm and blues song written by Wilbert Harrison. In 1962, Fury Records released it as a single. Harrison further developed the song and in 1969, Sue Records issued it as a two-part single titled "Let's W ...
" for the
soundtrack
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
to the film ''
Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man
''Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man'' is a 1991 American neo-Western biker film starring Mickey Rourke and Don Johnson, with a supporting cast including Chelsea Field, Tom Sizemore, Daniel Baldwin, Giancarlo Esposito, and Vanessa Williams w ...
''. In addition, Martin played lead guitar for Canadian
synthpop band
Men Without Hats
Men Without Hats are a Canadian new wave and synth-pop band, originally from Montreal, Quebec. Their music is characterized by the baritone voice of their lead singer Ivan Doroschuk, as well as their elaborate use of synthesizers and electro ...
on its 1991 album ''
Sideways
''Sideways'' is a 2004 American comedy-drama road film directed by Alexander Payne and written by Jim Taylor and Payne. A film adaptation of Rex Pickett's 2004 novel of the same name, ''Sideways'' follows two men in their forties, Miles Raymo ...
'' and filled in for
Southern rock
Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music and a genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country music, and blues and is focused generally on electric guitars and vocals. Author Scott B. Bomar specula ...
band
Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist
Ed King
Edward Calhoun King (September 14, 1949 – August 22, 2018) was an American musician. He was a guitarist for the psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock and guitarist and bassist for the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1972 to 1975 ...
on that band's 1992 tour, as King was injured at the time.
Ricky Lee and Doug departed in June 1992 due to creative differences. According to Richard, Ricky Lee's tenure as lead vocalist was "a bad time" for the band given his opposition to Richard's opinions, although Richard was still surprised to hear of the brothers' departure,
and said, "I tried everything I could to get them to stay." Ricky Lee, meanwhile, said that he "was a country singer more than anything" and wanted to eliminate most of the band's hard rock sounds.
He and Doug then founded
Brother Phelps
Brother Phelps was an American country music duo formed by brothers Ricky Lee (guitar, vocals) and Doug Phelps (bass guitar, vocals). Prior to the duo's formation in 1992, both brothers were members of The Kentucky Headhunters, a Southern rock-inf ...
, which had a more mainstream country sound than The Kentucky Headhunters did.
Brother Phelps released two albums for
Asylum Records
Asylum Records is an American record label, founded in 1971 by David Geffen and partner Elliot Roberts. It was taken over by Warner Communications (now the Warner Music Group) in 1972, and later merged with Elektra Records to become Elektra/Asylu ...
and charted in the country top 40 with "
Let Go" and "Were You Really Livin' ," which peaked at number 6 and 28 respectively.
1992–1994: New line-up and lack of success
Kenney rejoined in 1992 as bass guitarist, and
Charlotte, Michigan
Charlotte ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 9,074. It is the county seat of Eaton County.
Charlotte is in the central portion of the county, on the boundary between Eaton Township and C ...
, native Mark S. Orr took over on lead vocals.
The first album to feature Orr and Kenney, the more
blues rock
Blues rock is a fusion music genre that combines elements of blues and rock music. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electric blues and rock (electric guitar, electric bass guitar, and drums, sometimes w ...
-oriented ''
Rave On!!'', was released in 1993.
Although the band drew attention by touring with then-labelmate
Billy Ray Cyrus
Billy Ray Cyrus (born August 25, 1961) is an American country singer and actor. He has released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, and is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart and ...
, ''Rave On!!'' sold poorly
and failed to produce a successful single among its three releases: "Honky Tonk Walkin' ," "
Blue Moon of Kentucky
"Blue Moon of Kentucky" is a waltz written in 1945 by bluegrass musician Bill Monroe and recorded by his band, the Blue Grass Boys. The song has since been recorded by many artists, including Elvis Presley and Paul McCartney. "Blue Moon of Kentu ...
" and "
Dixie Fried
"Dixie Fried" is a 1956 song written by Carl Perkins and Howard "Curley" Griffin and released as a single on Sun Records. The song was released as a 45 and 78 single, Sun 249, in August, 1956 backed with "I'm Sorry, I'm Not Sorry". The single re ...
," the latter two being covers of Bill Monroe and
Carl Perkins, respectively. The album also included a cover of
The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful is an American rock band popular during the mid- to late-1960s. Founded in New York City in 1965 by lead singer/songwriter John Sebastian and guitarist Zal Yanovsky, the band is widely known for a number of hits, including ...
's "My Gal".
"Honky Tonk Walkin'" and "Dixie Fried" respectively reached numbers 54 and 71 on the country charts,
while the "Blue Moon of Kentucky" cover did not chart.
Mansfield gave a two-star rating for Allmusic, where he wrote that the band had "devolved into a
redneck
''Redneck'' is a derogatory term chiefly, but not exclusively, applied to white Americans perceived to be crass and unsophisticated, closely associated with rural whites of the Southern United States.Harold Wentworth, and Stuart Berg Flexner, ' ...
boogie
Boogie is a repetitive, swung note or shuffle rhythm,Burrows, Terry (1995). ''Play Country Guitar'', p.42. Dorling Kindersley Limited, London. . "groove" or pattern used in blues which was originally played on the piano in boogie-woogie mus ...
group."
Nash's review for ''Entertainment Weekly'' gave it a C− grade, and called it "warmed-over blues" that lacked the "outrageousness, wit, and brilliance that distinguished their earlier albums." Steve Morse of ''
The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' called it an "irresistible car-stereo album," and ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' critic John Swenson said that the album was more rock-oriented than its predecessors, also saying that it "sounds like a hell of a blueprint for a summer concert tour."
![JohnnieJohnson1996](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/JohnnieJohnson1996.jpg)
The Orr-led lineup also recorded ''
That'll Work'', a collaborative album with
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 ...
's pianist,
Johnnie Johnson.
It was released later in 1993 via
Nonesuch Records
Nonesuch Records is an American record company and label owned by Warner Music Group, distributed by Warner Records (formerly called Warner Bros. Records), and based in New York City. Founded by Jac Holzman in 1964 as a budget classical label, No ...
, and it comprised twelve songs which Johnson and the band wrote over the course of four days. The album featured Johnson on piano, as well as lead vocals on the title track and one other song;
Jimmy Hall
Jimmy Hall (born April 26, 1949) is the American lead singer and harmonica player for the Southern rock group, Wet Willie.
Hall was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and reared in Mobile, Alabama. He first gained notoriety in 1970 as the lead vocal ...
of
Wet Willie
Wet Willie is an American band from Mobile, Alabama. Their best-known song, " Keep On Smilin'", reached No. 10 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in August 1974. Several other of the group's songs also appeared on the singles charts in the ...
also played harmonica and saxophone, and sang backing vocals. Thom Owens of Allmusic wrote of this album that "They certainly can work a heavy, bluesy groove with dexterity, but they lack the gonzo charm they had on their debut, ''
Pickin' on Nashville '' — there simply isn't the sense of careening fun, nor is there the reckless fusions that resulted in such an invigorating listen." One year later, Mercury released a
greatest hits
A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...
package, ''
The Best of The Kentucky Headhunters: Still Pickin'''. It reprised singles and other songs from the band's first three albums, as well as "Let's Work Together" and a cover of
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
' "
You've Got to Hide Your Love Away
"You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was written and sung by John Lennon (though credited to Lennon–McCartney) and released on the album ''Help!'' in August 1965.
Composition and recording
Len ...
," which The Kentucky Headhunters had previously recorded on the 1994 tribute album ''Shared Vision: The Songs of the Beatles''. After ''Still Pickin, The Kentucky Headhunters left Mercury.
1995–2002: Reunion with Doug Phelps
Orr left The Kentucky Headhunters in August 1995 because he "was wantin' to do somethin' else," according to Richard.
Richard then called Doug and invited him to rejoin the band. As a result, Brother Phelps disbanded and Ricky Lee pursued a solo career.
In 1997, The Kentucky Headhunters signed to
BNA Records
BNA Records, formerly known as BNA Entertainment, was a label group that shared ties with Arista Nashville and RCA Nashville from parent company Sony Music Nashville, which itself is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment. Based in Nashville, ...
to release its fourth non-collaborative studio album, ''
Stompin' Grounds'', with Doug on lead vocals. This album was also an unsuccessful venture, failing to enter the country albums charts and producing only a number 70-peaking cover of
Marty Robbins
Martin David Robinson (September 26, 1925 – December 8, 1982), known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, and NASCAR racing driver. Robbins was one of the most popular and succ ...
' "
Singing the Blues
"Singing the Blues" is a popular song written by Melvin Endsley and published in 1956. The song was first recorded and released by Marty Robbins in 1956. It is not related to the 1920 jazz song " Singin' the Blues" recorded by Frank Trumbauer ...
".
In order to promote the album, Richard suggested that the label send free copies to smaller-market radio stations, where the band's fanbase was still strong.
He also considered the album's original songs as the strongest that the band had ever written. Brian Wahlert of ''
Country Standard Time
''Country Standard Time'' is a website dedicated to country music and related genres including Americana, bluegrass and rockabilly. It provides news and musical reviews pertaining to the genre. It was established in 1993 by Jeffrey B. Remz as a ...
'' magazine wrote that it "may be the band's best album ever;" Thom Owens gave the album two-and-a-half stars in his Allmusic review, where he wrote that the band "show
da lack of imagination" and "sound
dconsiderably less energetic and exciting" than on the first two albums.
''
Songs from the Grass String Ranch
''Songs from the Grass String Ranch'' is the fifth studio album by the American country rock band the Kentucky Headhunters. It was released by Audium Entertainment in 2000. The album includes singles "Too Much to Lose", "Louisianna CoCo" and "Lo ...
'', the band's next album, was completed almost 18 months before its release. The band had consulted with 38 different independent labels before signing to Audium Entertainment, a branch of Koch Records (now
MNRK Music Group
MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had ...
), which released the album in 2000.
Three months before its release, Richard suffered a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
, from which he soon recovered.
Because the "Singing the Blues" cover had been unsuccessful, the group decided to record entirely original songs for ''Songs from the Grass String Ranch''. All five members co-wrote all of the songs, with assistance from Verlon Dale Grissom on four of them.
In addition, this album featured the Youngs on lead vocals for the first time: Fred on "Dry-Land Fish" and Richard on "Louisianna CoCo."
The title track was inspired by a nickname given to the Youngs' family farm.
"Too Much to Lose" was the album's first single, peaking at number 66 on ''Billboard'' country chart.
Richard considered this song an unusual single release because it was the band's first
ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
.
Neither of the next two singles, "Louisianna CoCo" and "Love That Woman," appeared on the music charts. Giving it three stars out of five, Al Campbell of Allmusic said that it was "crowd-pleasing" but "nothing out of the ordinary." An uncredited review in ''
The Ledger
''The Ledger'' is a daily newspaper serving Lakeland, Florida, and the Polk County area.
The paper was founded on August 22, 1924, as the ''Lakeland Evening Ledger''. In 1927, it bought its main competitor, the morning ''Lakeland Star-Telegram ...
'', which gave the album two-and-a-half stars out of four, said that the up-tempo songs were "nothing very original
ut lots of fun" but added that its ballads were "mushy and earnest."
2003–2006: ''Soul'' and ''Big Boss Man''
''
Soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
'' followed in 2003, also on Audium.
This album also featured Johnnie Johnson, as well as guest appearances by organist
Reese Wynans
Reese Wynans (born November 28, 1947) is an American keyboard player, who has done session work and has been a member of Double Trouble and progressive rock band Captain Beyond. In 2015, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a m ...
(of
Double Trouble),
saxophone
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...
player
Jim Horn
James Ronald Horn (born November 20, 1940) is an American saxophonist, woodwind player, and session musician.
Biography
Horn was born in Los Angeles, and after replacing saxophonist Steve Douglas in 1959, he toured with member Duane Eddy for f ...
, and a local musician named Robbie Bartlett,
who sang guest vocals on "Everyday People." It included the non-charting single "Lonely Nights" and a tribute song to Carl Perkins entitled "Last Night I Met Carl Perkins", as well as two covers: "I Still Wanna Be Your Man," originally recorded by
Eddie Hinton
Eddie Hinton (15 June 1944 – 28 July 1995) was an American songwriter and session musician, best known for his work with soul music and R&B singers. He played lead guitar for Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section from 1969 to 1971 and after leaving th ...
, and "
Have You Ever Loved a Woman?
"Have You Ever Loved a Woman" is a blues song written by Billy Myles and first recorded by American blues artist Freddie King in 1960. The song is performed as a slow 12-bar blues with King's vocal and guitar accompanied by a small combo of pianis ...
," a
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 ...
standard made famous by
Eric Clapton.
This album received generally favorable reviews. Mark Deming gave a three-star rating for Allmusic, saying that the album's more
rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...
and
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
-influenced sound worked well due to the blues influences present in Southern rock, although he added that the album retained the "big guitar bombast" of the band's previous works. Matt Bjorke of
About.com
Dotdash Meredith (formerly About.com) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, home, food, finance, tech, beauty, ...
considered its sound a departure from the earlier albums, but added "it's not hard to see that the band fully enjoys what they are doing" and highlighted the presence of a
horn section
A horn section is a group of musicians playing horns. In an orchestra or concert band, it refers to the musicians who play the "French" horn, and in a British-style brass band it is the tenor horn players. In many popular music genres, the te ...
and
Hammond B-3 organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated ...
on some tracks.
Ray Waddell of ''Billboard'' magazine considered Wynans' and Johnson's contributions "perfect fits", and noted that the album was "laid back" until the second half. His review also mentions the extended drum solo and "stone blues coda" of the closing track "What You See Is What You Get."
In 2005, following the closure of Audium, the band signed to the CBuJ Entertainment label. Its first release for the label was ''
Big Boss Man'', an album composed entirely of cover songs.
This album was led off by its
title track
A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title.
Title track may a ...
, a cover of the
Jimmy Reed
Mathis James Reed (September 6, 1925 – August 29, 1976) was an American blues musician and songwriter. His particular style of electric blues was popular with blues as well as non-blues audiences. Reed's songs such as "Honest I Do" (1957), " ...
blues standard.
Also released from it were renditions of
Roger Miller's "
Chug-a-Lug" and
Hank Williams' "
Take These Chains from My Heart". The project was financed by
Sony/ATV Music Publishing
Sony Music Publishing (formerly Sony/ATV Music Publishing) is the largest music publisher in the world, with over five million songs owned or administered as of end March 2021. US-based, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is itself owned ...
as a means of making extra money from older songs in the publishing company's catalog.
Richard helped select the songs for this album, which included three other Hank Williams covers,
as well as
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
's "
Like a Rolling Stone
"Like a Rolling Stone" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on July 20, 1965, by Columbia Records. Its confrontational lyrics originated in an extended piece of verse Dylan wrote in June 1965, when he returned exhausted fro ...
," The Beatles' "
I'm Down
"I'm Down" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on a non-album single as the B-side to "Help!" in July 1965. The song originated in McCartney's attempt ...
," and
Patsy Cline
Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...
's "
Walkin' After Midnight
"Walkin' After Midnight" is a song written by Alan Block and Don Hecht and recorded by American country music artist Patsy Cline. The song was originally given to pop singer Kay Starr; however, her label rejected it. The song was left unused until ...
," among others. Despite saying that the album was "obviously aimed at longtime fans," Greg Prato of Allmusic gave it three-and-a-half stars, with his review making note of the "beefed-up" Patsy Cline and Hank Williams covers. Ray Waddell of ''Billboard'' called the album "loose and rowdy," saying that the band "injected soul" into the Dylan cover and recorded an "intoxicating" version of "Chug-a-Lug," although he said that the "
Hey Good Lookin'" cover was "heavy-handed."
Robert Woolridge gave a mostly-favorable review for ''Country Standard Time'', citing "Chug-a-Lug" and "So Sad to See Good Love Go Bad" (originally by
The Everly Brothers
The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 193 ...
) as the most country-sounding. He also described three of the Hank Williams covers positively, but said that Phelps did not have a suitable vocal range for "I'm Down" and that his voice was monotonous on "Walkin' After Midnight."
2007–2021: ''Flying Under the Radar'', ''Dixie Lullabies'', ''Meet Me in Bluesland'', and ''On Safari''
One year later, CBuJ Entertainment released the compilation ''
Flying Under the Radar
''Flying Under the Radar'' is the second compilation album by the American country rock/southern rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. It was released in 2006 via the CBuJ Ent. label. The album includes seven tracks from their 2000 album ''Songs fr ...
'', which comprised selections from ''Songs from the Grass String Ranch'', ''Soul'' and ''Big Boss Man'', as well as two new songs and a
remix of "Chug-a-Lug."
Kenney left the band around 2008 to take a job as the technical director of a theatre in Glasgow, Kentucky, and Doug has since taken over on bass guitar. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of ''Pickin' on Nashville'', the band released a
live album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
entitled ''
Authorized Bootleg: Live – Agara Ballroom – Cleveland, Ohio''. It was followed in October 2011 by ''
Dixie Lullabies
''Dixie Lullabies'' is an album by the American southern rock/ country rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. It was released on October 18, 2011 through Red Dirt Records.
Critical reception
AllMusic gave the album three-and-a-half stars out of five ...
'' on the Red Dirt label, which the band recorded at the Practice House after touring with
Jamey Johnson
Jamey Johnson (born July 14, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter.
Signed to BNA Records in 2005, Johnson made his debut with his single " The Dollar", the title track to his 2006 album '' The Dollar''. He was dropped fro ...
. William Ruhlmann gave this album a positive review, comparing the sound to
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
and
ZZ Top
ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in 1969 in Houston, Texas. For 51 years, they comprised vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard and vocalist-bassist Dusty Hill, until Hill's death in 2021. ZZ Top developed a signature sou ...
.
In April 2015, the band released another collaborative album with Johnson entitled ''
Meet Me in Bluesland
''Meet Me in Bluesland'' is a 2015 album by American southern rock band The Kentucky Headhunters and blues musician Johnnie Johnson. Recorded in 2003 during the sessions for the Kentucky Headhunters' 2003 album ''Soul'', it was not released until ...
'', via
Alligator Records
Alligator Records is an American, Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971. Iglauer was also one of the founders of the '' Living Blues'' magazine in Chicago in 1970.
History
Iglauer started the label using ...
. It was originally recorded in 2003 during the sessions for ''Soul''. ''
On Safari'' came in 2016. This album features several songs that the band had written years prior, including "Crazy Jim". Shortly before the album's release, Richard and Fred's father, James Howard, died at age 93. Also included are "Governor's Cup", the band's first ever instrumental track, and a cover of
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...
's "
Caught in a Dream
"Caught in a Dream" is a 1971 song written by Michael Bruce and recorded by his band, Alice Cooper, on their first major label release album '' Love It to Death''. As the album's second single "Caught in a Dream" was released backed with "Hallo ...
".
2021-present: ''That's a Fact Jack!''
On September 25, 2021 the band announced through their official Facebook page that a new album titled ''
That's a Fact Jack!
''That's a Fact Jack!'' is an album by the American country rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. It was released on October 2, 2021 via Practice House Records.
Content
The album consists of twelve tracks. As is usual for the band, bassist Doug Ph ...
'' would be released on October 22 through Practice House Records and would contain 12 songs. Along with the announced they released the first single from the album called "How Could I".
The second song to be released from the upcoming album was "Susannah" on October 21, 2021. Also included on the album is a re-recording of "Shotgun Effie". Following this album's release, the band made their debut on the
Grand Ole Opry on December 2, 2021. They also supported the album with a tour which began in
Corinth, Mississippi
Corinth is a city in and the county seat of Alcorn County, Mississippi, Alcorn County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 14,573 at the 2010 census. Its ZIP codes are 38834 and 38835. It lies on the state line with Tennessee.
Histor ...
that same month. According to Richard, the band was previously offered a chance to play the Grand Ole Opry in 1990 through the recommendation of bluegrass singer Bill Monroe, but
Roy Acuff
Roy Claxton Acuff (September 15, 1903 – November 23, 1992) was an American country music singer, fiddler, and promoter. Known as the "King of Country Music", Acuff is often credited with moving the genre from its early string band and "hoedown ...
rejected the band due to their long hair.
Work with other artists
The band's members have also participated in several projects involving other artists. Richard Young co-produced some tracks on
Flynnville Train's self-titled
debut album, which was released on September 11, 2007 by Show Dog Nashville, a label owned by
Toby Keith
Toby Keith Covel (born July 8, 1961), known professionally as Toby Keith, is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and record producer. He released his first four studio albums—1993's '' Toby Keith'', 1994's '' Boomtown'', 19 ...
(now part of
Show Dog-Universal Music
Show Dog Nashville is an American independent record label specializing in country music artists. It was founded in 2005 by singer Toby Keith. It was later merged with Universal South Records into Show Dog-Universal Music in December 2009 until ...
). This album includes the song "Truck Stop in the Sky," which Richard and Fred co-wrote with two of Flynnville Train's members, brothers Brent Flynn and David Flynn. Also in 2007, Greg Martin released a
gospel
Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...
rock album called ''The Mighty Jeremiahs'' as a side project. The album features Jimmy Hall and
Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a focus ...
, plus appearances by members of The Kentucky Headhunters,
Phil Keaggy,
Darrell Mansfield
Darrell Mansfield is an American vocalist, harmonica player, songwriter, recording artist, and performer of various genres including gospel, contemporary Christian music, blues, blues rock, rock, country rock, and soul/R&B. He is considered a p ...
(for whom Martin has previously played), and others. Martin also played for Hall on his 2007 album ''Build Your Own Fire'', a tribute album to Eddie Hinton. In 2009, Martin began a side project called Rufus Huff with Chris Hardesty, Dean Smith, and Jarrod England. This side project released an album via Zoho Music in April 2009.
![Black Stone Cherry 2014](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Black_Stone_Cherry_2014.jpg)
Richard, along with Stan Webb and former
MCA Nashville Records
Universal Music Group Nashville is Universal Music Group's country music subsidiary. Some of the labels in this group include MCA Nashville Records, Mercury Nashville Records, Lost Highway Records, Capitol Records Nashville and EMI Records ...
artist
Marty Brown, wrote
Tracy Byrd
Tracy Lynn Byrd (born December 17, 1966) is an American country music artist. Signed to Universal Music Group Nashville, MCA Nashville Records in 1992, Byrd broke through on the country music scene that year with his 1993 single "Holdin' Heaven" ...
's 1998 single "
I'm from the Country
''I'm from the Country'' is the fifth studio album by American country music artist Tracy Byrd. Released in May 1998 as his final studio album for MCA Records, it produced only two singles: the title track and "I Wanna Feel That Way Again", both ...
." Brown and the band also recorded the song's demo version. Richard's son, John Fred Young, plays drums in the rock band
Black Stone Cherry
Black Stone Cherry is an American rock band, formed in 2001 in Edmonton, Kentucky. They were signed to Roadrunner Records until 2015; the band is now signed to Mascot Label Group. The band consists of Chris Robertson (lead vocals, lead guitar), B ...
. The band practices at the same farm house where The Kentucky Headhunters once rehearsed.
Musical styles
The band's sound is influenced by
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
,
rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and blu ...
,
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 ...
,
Southern rock
Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music and a genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country music, and blues and is focused generally on electric guitars and vocals. Author Scott B. Bomar specula ...
, and
heavy metal,
and has been described as "guitar-heavy, rambunctious music."
Lead singer Doug Phelps' voice has been described as "alternately suggest
ngCount Basie
William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...
's storied blues shouter
Jimmy Rushing
James Andrew Rushing (August 26, 1901 – June 8, 1972) was an American singer and pianist from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948.
Rushing was known as " Mr. Five by ...
and the laid-back cool of
Eagle
Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, j ...
Glenn Frey
Glenn Lewis Frey (; November 6, 1948 – January 18, 2016) was an American singer, guitarist and a founding member of the rock band Eagles. Frey was the co-lead singer and frontman for the Eagles, roles he came to share with fellow member Don H ...
." The band's combination of styles is most notable in its cover song choices on early albums. All three Mercury albums contain a
Bill Monroe
William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass".
The genre take ...
cover, and other covers on these albums include Waylon Jennings, Carl Perkins, Norman Greenbaum and The Lovin' Spoonful.
''Soul'' showcased the band's blues and
R&B influences through its use of
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...
and a horn section. The band's original compositions, such as "Dumas Walker" and the title track to ''Songs from the Grass String Ranch'', often develop a regional theme.
At its peak in the early 1990s, The Kentucky Headhunters were considered a
dark horse in country music, due to the significant mainstream attention that the band received despite their rougher sound and the members' rural Southern image.
In 1991, ''Entertainment Weekly'' critic Alanna Nash wrote that although the band did not sell as many albums as contemporaries
George Strait or
Garth Brooks, "they may just end up redefining country for the '90s" given the diverse range of influences and styles.
''Billboard'' critic Ray Waddell called the band "arguably the most consistent and durable Southern rock outfit on the planet."
Band members
*Greg Martin (born March 31, 1954
) – lead guitar, backing vocals (1968-1973, 1976–1982, 1986–present)
*Doug Phelps (born December 15, 1960
) – bass guitar, background vocals (1986–1992, 2008–present); lead vocals (1995–present); rhythm guitar (1995–2008)
*Fred Young (born July 8, 1958
) – drums, backing vocals (1968–1982, 1986–present)
*Richard Young (born January 27, 1955
) – rhythm guitar, lead and backing vocals (1968–1982, 1986–present)
;Former members
*James Harrison - lead guitar (1973-1976)
*Anthony Kenney (born July 14, 1956) – bass guitar, harmonica, backing vocals (1968–1982, 1992–2008)
*Mark S. Orr (born April 22, 1957) – lead vocals (1992–1995)
*Ricky Lee Phelps (born January 17, 1953) – lead vocals, harmonica (1986–1992)
ImageSize = width:1000 height:250
PlotArea = left:100 bottom:60 top:10 right:50
Alignbars = justify
DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy
Period = from:01/01/1968 till:10/07/2018
TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy
Colors =
id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals
id:lead value:green legend:Lead_guitar
id:rhythm value:brightgreen legend:Rhythm_guitar
id:bass value:blue legend:Bass
id:drums value:orange legend:Drums
id:Lines value:black legend:Studio albums
Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom
ScaleMajor = increment:2 start:1968
LineData =
at:01/01/1989 color:black layer:back
at:01/01/1991 color:black layer:back
at:01/01/1993 color:black layer:back
at:29/03/1997 color:black layer:back
at:13/06/2000 color:black layer:back
at:06/05/2003 color:black layer:back
at:21/06/2005 color:black layer:back
at:18/11/2011 color:black layer:back
BarData =
bar:Richard text:"Richard Young"
bar:Ricky text:"Ricky Lee Phelps"
bar:Mark text:"Mark S. Orr"
bar:Greg text:"Greg Martin"
bar:James text:"James Harrison"
bar:Anthony text:"Anthony Kenney"
bar:Doug text:"Doug Phelps"
bar:Fred text:"Fred Young"
PlotData=
width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4)
bar:Doug from:01/08/1995 till:end color:vocals
bar:Doug from:01/01/1986 till:01/06/1992 color:bass
bar:Doug from:01/08/1995 till:03/04/2008 color:rhythm width:3
bar:Doug from:03/04/2008 till:end color:bass width:3
bar:Greg from:01/01/1986 till:end color:lead
bar:Greg from:01/01/1976 till:01/01/1982 color:lead
bar:Greg from:01/01/1968 till:01/01/1973 color:lead
bar:Richard from:01/01/1986 till:end color:rhythm
bar:Richard from:01/08/1995 till:end color:vocals width:3
bar:Richard from:01/01/1968 till:01/01/1982 color:rhythm width:3
bar:Richard from:01/01/1968 till:01/01/1982 color:vocals
bar:Fred from:01/01/1986 till:end color:drums
bar:Fred from:01/01/1968 till:01/01/1982 color:drums
bar:James from: 01/01/1973 till:01/01/1976 color:lead
bar:Anthony from:01/06/1992 till:03/04/2008 color:bass
bar:Anthony from:01/01/1968 till:01/01/1982 color:bass
bar:Mark from:01/06/1992 till:01/08/1995 color:vocals
bar:Ricky from:01/01/1986 till:01/06/1992 color:vocals
TextData =
pos:(245,025) textcolor:brightblue fontsize:7 text: Itchy Brother
pos:(385,025) textcolor:brightblue fontsize:7 text: defunct
pos:(650,025) textcolor:brightblue fontsize:7 text: Kentucky Headhunters
;Notes
Discography
;Studio albums
* ''
Pickin' on Nashville'' (1989)
* ''
Electric Barnyard'' (1991)
* ''
Rave On!!'' (1993)
* ''
That'll Work'' (1993)
* ''
Stompin' Grounds'' (1997)
* ''
Songs from the Grass String Ranch
''Songs from the Grass String Ranch'' is the fifth studio album by the American country rock band the Kentucky Headhunters. It was released by Audium Entertainment in 2000. The album includes singles "Too Much to Lose", "Louisianna CoCo" and "Lo ...
'' (2000)
* ''
Soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
'' (2003)
* ''
Big Boss Man'' (2005)
* ''
Dixie Lullabies
''Dixie Lullabies'' is an album by the American southern rock/ country rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. It was released on October 18, 2011 through Red Dirt Records.
Critical reception
AllMusic gave the album three-and-a-half stars out of five ...
'' (2011)
* ''
Meet Me in Bluesland
''Meet Me in Bluesland'' is a 2015 album by American southern rock band The Kentucky Headhunters and blues musician Johnnie Johnson. Recorded in 2003 during the sessions for the Kentucky Headhunters' 2003 album ''Soul'', it was not released until ...
'' (2015)
* ''
On Safari'' (2016)
* ''
That's a Fact Jack!
''That's a Fact Jack!'' is an album by the American country rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. It was released on October 2, 2021 via Practice House Records.
Content
The album consists of twelve tracks. As is usual for the band, bassist Doug Ph ...
'' (2021)
Awards and nominations
See also
*
References
External links
*
Honorary Kentucky Headhunter*
*
*
Greg Martin InterviewNAMM Oral History Library (2021)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kentucky Headhunters
Musical groups established in 1968
American country rock groups
BNA Records artists
MNRK Music Group artists
Grammy Award winners
Mercury Records artists
Rock music groups from Kentucky
American southern rock musical groups
Country music groups from Kentucky
1968 establishments in Kentucky
Edmonton, Kentucky