Ricky Van Shelton

Ricky Van Shelton ranked among the leading male figures in country music throughout the closing years of the 1980s and the opening stretch of the 1990s, before crossover figures such as Garth Brooks arrived on the scene. His polished baritone delivery proved especially suited to country-pop ballads, yet he also blended in touches of rock, gospel, and traditional honky-tonk sounds. Born in Danville, Virginia, in 1952, he spent his childhood in the modest community of Grit. Church services first taught him to sing, and as a teenager he encountered country music, taking the stage at local events whenever the chance arose. Following graduation he worked the regional club circuit alongside a string of daytime employment, until late 1984, when he relocated to Nashville in pursuit of a professional career. Nightclub appearances continued until a newspaper columnist discovered his demo tape and arranged a showcase performance that secured a CBS recording contract in 1986.

His first album, Wild-Eyed Dream, appeared in 1987 and introduced the single “Crime of Passion,” which reached the country Top Ten. The next release, “Somebody Lied,” ascended to number one, as did the album itself and the additional single “Life Turned Her That Way.” He moved quickly into a second collection, Loving Proof, issued in 1988; it likewise topped the country charts and yielded three number-one singles—“I’ll Leave This World Loving You,” “From a Jack to a King,” and “Living Proof”—while “Hole in My Pocket” climbed to the Top Five. Ahead of his third studio effort, Van Shelton finished two specialized recordings: the holiday set Ricky Van Shelton Sings Christmas in 1989 and the gospel project Don’t Overlook Salvation in 1990. The proper follow-up, RVS III, arrived the same year and became his third consecutive chart-topping album. “I’ve Cried My Last Tear for You” supplied another number-one single, “I Meant Every Word He Said” and “Statue of a Fool” each peaked at number two, and “Life’s Little Ups and Downs” reached the Top Five. In 1991 he joined Dolly Parton for the number-one duet “Rockin’ Years” and then released Backroads. Although the album stopped just short of the summit, it maintained his run of hits with two further chart-toppers—“Keep It Between the Lines” and “I Am a Simple Man,” bringing his total to nine—and a number-two placement for the title track.

Tastes within the format evolved rapidly, and by the time Van Shelton overcame the alcohol problems that had begun affecting his private life, Garth Brooks had already reshaped the country mainstream. To sustain momentum he issued Greatest Hits Plus in 1992; the new song “Wild Man” reached the Top Five. He returned the following year with A Bridge I Didn’t Burn, yet the project failed to generate the major successes once anticipated. It earned gold certification, though it remained the sole Van Shelton album that never achieved platinum status. Love and Honor, released in 1994, marked a further commercial decline, and disagreements with Columbia eventually prompted his departure from the label a few years later. He devoted time to other ventures, including a series of children’s books featuring the character Quacker the Duck that he had started earlier. He also established his own imprint, RVS, and cut the album Making Plans, which appeared through an exclusive arrangement with the Wal-Mart chain in 1997. The next year Vanguard arranged a broader distribution. Van Shelton later joined the Audium roster, home to numerous established country performers, and recorded Fried Green Tomatoes there in 2000.