Ace in the Hole Band
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Ace in the Hole Band is the backup band for American
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, ...
performer
George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. In the 1980s, he was credited for ...
, who was the band's lead singer before beginning his solo career in the early 1980s. The band formed at
San Marcos, Texas San Marcos ( ) is a city and the county seat of Hays County, Texas, United States. The city's limits extend into Caldwell and Guadalupe Counties, as well. San Marcos is within the Austin–Round Rock metropolitan area and on the Interstate 35 ...
in the 1970s, and recorded several singles for "D Records" including the Strait-penned "I Just Can't Go On Dying Like This" and "I Don't Want To Talk It Over Anymore". After Strait attained status as the " King of Country", the group released an album of its own in 1995 featuring vocals from
Darrell McCall Darrell McCall (born April 30, 1940) is a country music performer, known for his honky tonk and traditional country musical style at the height of his career in the 1960s, and his return to popularity during the Outlaw country era in the late 1 ...
and Mel Tillis. The band, originally known as "Stoney Ridge", performs such styles of traditional country music as honky-tonk and western swing and were influenced by such performers as
Bob Wills James Robert Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American Western swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although S ...
,
Johnny Bush John Bush Shinn III (February 17, 1935October 16, 2020) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Nicknamed the "Country Caruso", Bush was best known for his distinctive voice and for writing the song "Whiskey River", a t ...
, and
The Strangers Strangers are people who are unknown to another person or group. Strangers or The Strangers may also refer to: History * Elizabethan Strangers or Strangers, a name applied to French and Belgian immigrants to Norwich, East Anglia, England, during ...
. Contemporaries of the band include
Asleep at the Wheel Asleep at the Wheel is an American Western swing group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, and is based in Austin, Texas. The band has won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception, released over twenty albums, and has charted more t ...
and Jerry Jeff Walker.


Background


Origins

The Ace in the Hole Band derived from the band "Stoney Ridge," which was composed of
Southwest Texas State University Texas State University is a public university, public research university in San Marcos, Texas. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to the second largest university in the Greater Austin, Greater Austin metropolitan area ...
(now Texas State) students Ron Cabal (lead
guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
), Mike Daily (
steel guitar A steel guitar ( haw, kīkākila) is any guitar played while moving a steel bar or similar hard object against plucked strings. The bar itself is called a "steel" and is the source of the name "steel guitar". The instrument differs from a conve ...
), Terry Hale (
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 ...
), Tommy Foote (
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
) and Jay Dominguez (lead vocals). Dominguez and Foote left the band after graduating in 1975, prompting a search for a new singer. The band members posted bulletins around the campus of Southwest Texas. One was noticed by an
agricultural science Agricultural science (or agriscience for short) is a broad multidisciplinary field of biology that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. Profession ...
student, George Strait. He contacted the band and was hired after an audition. Soon after, the group was renamed "Ace in the Hole" and George quickly became the lead singer. The band regularly performed at Cheatham Street Warehouse in
San Marcos, Texas San Marcos ( ) is a city and the county seat of Hays County, Texas, United States. The city's limits extend into Caldwell and Guadalupe Counties, as well. San Marcos is within the Austin–Round Rock metropolitan area and on the Interstate 35 ...
, where they debuted on October 13, 1975 along with new member Ted Stubblefield, who temporarily replaced Foote as the drummer. Acts such as
Asleep at the Wheel Asleep at the Wheel is an American Western swing group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, and is based in Austin, Texas. The band has won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception, released over twenty albums, and has charted more t ...
and Jerry Jeff Walker also played at the forum. The band appeared at the locale nearly every week until the early 1980s, when they began touring with Strait. Drummer Foote returned to the lineup late in 1975 and remained as drummer until 1983 when he relinquished his position to become the band's road manager, a position he holds to this day.


Recording

In 1976, Pappy Daily, the grandfather of band member Mike Daily, decided to record the group for his "D Records" label at a studio in
Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
. At the first session, the band recorded Dallas Frazier's "Honky Tonk Downstairs" (later recorded on Strait's 1981 debut album ''
Strait Country ''Strait Country'' is the debut studio album by American country music artist George Strait, released on September 4, 1981 by MCA Records. The album's traditional country music approach—a mix of Texas honky tonk and the Bakersfield sound—pres ...
'') and the Strait-penned "I Just Can't Go on Dying Like This" (later recorded on Strait's 2013 album '' Love Is Everything''). The songs were released to radio stations in Texas and
Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
. In 1977, Bill Mabry was added to the lineup as a fiddle player and the band recorded their second single, which featured the songs "Lonesome Rodeo Cowboy" (later recorded on Strait's 1990 album '' Livin' It Up'') and "That Don’t Change the Way I Feel About You" which was written by Strait. The next year, the band recorded the songs " Right or Wrong," and "
Little Liza Jane "Li'l Liza Jane", also known as "Little Liza Jane", "Liza Jane", and "Goodbye Liza Jane", is a song dating back at least to the 1910s. It has become a perennial standard both as a song and an instrumental in traditional jazz, folk music, and blu ...
", which were later included on the 2005 D Records label release ''Complete D Singles Collection, Vol. 6: The Sounds of Houston, Texas''. Strait re-recorded "Right or Wrong" in 1983 for his album '' Right or Wrong'' and took it to number one on the country charts. "The Loneliest Singer in Town" and Strait's "I Don’t Want to Talk It Over Anymore" also came out of this session. The three songs composed by Strait were later released on his 1995 compilation album '' Strait Out of the Box''. In 1981, after Strait signed with
MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 wit ...
, the band began to tour with him and played the instrumentals on his recordings. They were honored in 1991 with the SRO's "Touring Band of the Year." Four years later, the band released an album without vocals from Strait, featuring singers
Darrell McCall Darrell McCall (born April 30, 1940) is a country music performer, known for his honky tonk and traditional country musical style at the height of his career in the 1960s, and his return to popularity during the Outlaw country era in the late 1 ...
and Mel Tillis.


Style

The band plays in a honky-tonk and western swing style, and credits such performers as
Bob Wills James Robert Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American Western swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although S ...
,
Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...
,
Johnny Bush John Bush Shinn III (February 17, 1935October 16, 2020) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Nicknamed the "Country Caruso", Bush was best known for his distinctive voice and for writing the song "Whiskey River", a t ...
, George Jones, Merle Haggard and
The Strangers Strangers are people who are unknown to another person or group. Strangers or The Strangers may also refer to: History * Elizabethan Strangers or Strangers, a name applied to French and Belgian immigrants to Norwich, East Anglia, England, during ...
as influences.
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 ...
describes the band's styles as
Alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...
, Neotraditional and Western swing revival. Because of the group's traditional style, performances in the city of
Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...
did not occur often due to the city's demand for progressive sounds. Strait traveled to
Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
in 1977 with hopes of beginning a career, but most in the industry passed on him, shunning his traditional approach for pop-influenced sounds popular in country music during the late 1970s Urban Cowboy era.


Members


Current members

*Mike Daily - steel guitar (1975–present) *Terry Hale – bass (1975–present) *Ron Huckaby – piano (1983–present) *Rick McRae – lead guitar (1984–present) *Benny McArthur – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, occasional fiddle (1984–present) *Gene Elders – fiddle, mandolin (1985–present) *Wes Hightower - backing vocals (1999-2006; 2016–present) *Marty Slayton – backing vocals (2000–present) *Joe Manuel - acoustic guitar, backing vocals (2005–present) *John Michael Whitby – keyboards (2006–present) * Bobby Jarzombek - drums (2021-present)


Former Members

*Ron Cabal - lead guitar (1975–1983) *
George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. In the 1980s, he was credited for ...
– lead vocals, acoustic guitar (1975–1980) *Ted Stubblefield – drums (1975) *Tommy Foote – drums (1976–1982) *Bill Mabry - fiddle (1977–1979) *Richard Casanova - fiddle (1980–1984) *Roger Montgomery – drums (1983–1986) *David Anthony - acoustic guitar (1985–2002) *Phillip Fajardo - drums (1987) *Phil Fisher - drums (1988–1990) *Mike Kennedy - drums (1991–2018; died 2018) *Jeff Sturms - acoustic guitar, mandolin (2002–2007); backing vocals (1998-2007); keyboards (1998-2002) *Liana Manis – backing vocals (1999) *Anthony Bazzari - keyboards (2002–2005) *Thom Flora – backing vocals (2007–2014) * Lonnie Wilson - drums (2019–2020)


Timeline


Discography


Singles


Albums with George Strait

*'' Ocean Front Property'', 1987 *'' Livin' It Up'', 1990 *''
Chill of an Early Fall ''Chill of an Early Fall'' is the eleventh studio album by American country music singer George Strait. It was released by MCA Records. The album produced the singles "If I Know Me" and " You Know Me Better Than That", both of which reached Numbe ...
'', 1991 *''
Holding My Own ''Holding My Own'' is the twelfth studio album by American country music singer George Strait. It was released by MCA Records and features the singles "Gone as a Girl Can Get" and "So Much Like My Dad", both of which charted in the Top 5 on the ...
'', 1992 *'' Strait Out of the Box'', 1995 *''
For the Last Time For the Last Time may refer to: Music * '' For the Last Time: Live from the Astrodome'', a 2003 live album by the American country music singer George Strait (recorded in 2002) * "For the Last Time", a 2019 song by the Australian singer and songw ...
'', 2003 *''
Live at Texas Stadium ''Live at Texas Stadium'' is a live album by Alan Jackson, George Strait and Jimmy Buffett. It was recorded during a concert at Texas Stadium that took place on May 29, 2004. The album was released by Mailboat Records on April 3, 2007. Track lis ...
'', 2007 *''
The Cowboy Rides Away "The Cowboy Rides Away" is a song written by Sonny Throckmorton and Casey Kelly, and recorded by American country music artist George Strait. It was released in January 1985 as the second single from his album ''Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Min ...
'', 2014


Hit Singles with George Strait

*" Lovesick Blues", 1991 *" Gone as a Girl Can Get", 1992


''Ace in the Hole Band'' (album)

The Ace in the Hole Band released their self-named debut album in 1995. Among its many covers, the album features the song " You're Something Special to Me," which was recorded by George Strait on his 1985 album '' Something Special''. ;Track list


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ace In The Hole Country music groups from Texas Musical backing groups