Bellamy Brothers

Founded by brothers David and Homer Bellamy in 1968, the Bellamy Brothers were raised on a diet of country music, rock and roll, and Western swing. With no formal musical training the pair soon learned the guitar, madolin, and banjo before making their performance debut with their father at the Rattlesnake Roundup in San Antonio, Florida. The talented brothers were then introduced to Jim Stafford, who subsequently sung the No. 5 single “Spiders and Snakes” written by David, providing the Bellamy Brothers with enough money to move to Los Angeles, California. After signing with Curb Records, the pair earned their mainstream breakthrough with the single “Let Your Love Flow” which became poplular in the U.S., Britain, Germany, and Scandinavia.

The brothers’ debut LP “Let Your Love Flow” followed in 1976, peaking at No. 69 on the Billboard 200, and No. 21 in the UK. In 1977 the pair released the album “Plain & Fancy” marking a move towards a strict country music aesthetic. Two years later the brothers made their mark on country music with their single “If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me”, which topped the Billboard Country Music Chart, and proved hugely popular in the UK. Going from strength to strength, the Bellamy Brothers’ streak of hit singles continued in the 1980s with: “Sugah Daddy”, “Dancin’ Cowboys”, “Do You Love as Good as You Look”, and “They Could Put Me in Jail”.

Following a move to Elektra Records from Warner Bros. the group began experimenting with their sound, introducing reggae and hip hop themes to their music. The No. 1 single “For All the Wrong Reasons” arrived in 1981, followed by “Get into Reggae Cowboy”, a hugely popular crossover single. Until the end of the ‘80s the brothers enjoyed their peak of appeal and success, with the singles “Old Hippie” and “Kids of the Baby Boom” cementing their position as relevant and thoughtful musicians. With the new decade brought a new label, Atlantic, on which the brothers released their 1991 album “Rollin’ Thunder”.

Released on their own label Bellamy Brother Records, 1992's “Latest & the Greatest” spawned the hit “Cowboy Beat”, proving popular both in the U.S and elsewhere. The albums “Angels & Outlaws, Vol. 1”, “Jesus is Coming”, and “The Anthology, Vol. 1” were subsequently released on their label, providing the icing on the cake to this country music duo’s illustrious musical journey.

Unlike many country artists, the music that John Anderson grew up with was never country music, instead, Anderson grew up in thrall to the likes of Jimi Hendrix and The Rolling Stones, to the extent that the first band he was ever in was a rock and roll band. However, That came to an end when Anderson was 15, when he discovered the likes of George Jones and Merle Haggard for himself. After that, all bets were off, Anderson wanted nothing more than to be a country singer, and in 1971, he relocated to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue that dream. It was six years before he got his big break, and signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1977. Those six years paid off handsomely as his second single “I've Got A Feelin' (Somebody's Been Stealin')”, his first on a major label, charted on the Billboard country charts after its first week of release.

By the end of 1978, he'd broke the top 40 of the chart with the single “The Girl At The End Of The Bar”, and thanks to his distinctive accent and singing style, he became the forefront of the “New Traditionalist” movement along with Ricky Skaggs and George Strait. His mainstream breakthrough came in 1982 with the release of his album “Wild & Blue”, and most notably with the single “Swingin'” which was a number one hit on the country charts and even cracked the Billboard Hot 100 as well. Ever since then, Anderson has remained one of the most respected songwriters of his generation, with a countless amount of critically acclaimed albums to his name, and the kind of song-writing experience that many would give their left leg for. He's still touring to this day, and for everything he gave to country music, John Anderson comes highly recommended.