Biography
After enjoying critical acclaim and radio exposure for their album How Is It Where You Are?, the members of Rodeo Boy chose an unexpected path. Rather than pressing forward, they stepped away from music entirely and remained inactive for roughly four years. Bassist Charles Brookshire later explained that the group needed time to recover from the surrounding attention and to regroup before beginning work on a follow-up, a process they initiated after a couple of years. Once recording started, the album required about twelve months to complete. Upon its release, Rodeo Boy discovered that their extended silence had led many listeners to assume the band had broken up, forcing them to reconnect with an audience that had drifted away.
Returning in 2002 with a clearer sense of their limits, the musicians issued The Pine and Promise early that year. Brookshire handled bass duties while also supplying backing vocals and occasional piano, organ, and guitar parts. The remaining members were lead guitarist Jason Caperton, drummer Jeff Reardon, and vocalist-guitarist James Reardon. Brookshire grew up in Wilmington, NC, Caperton in Whiteville, NC, and the Reardon brothers moved often because of their family’s military commitments. That same year the band appeared in a Dawson’s Creek episode filmed in North Carolina, the state where they are based.
Originally a trio, the group consisted of the Reardon brothers and Brookshire’s roommate; when the roommate proved unsuitable, Brookshire took over on bass. Local performances followed, and the owner of several area record stores asked the band to record a 7-inch single for a label he planned to launch. The project grew into the full-length release And the Streets Did Shrink. An alliance with the Godrays soon produced a split 7-inch. Prior to work on The Pine and Promise, guitarist Caperton joined as the fourth member.
Returning in 2002 with a clearer sense of their limits, the musicians issued The Pine and Promise early that year. Brookshire handled bass duties while also supplying backing vocals and occasional piano, organ, and guitar parts. The remaining members were lead guitarist Jason Caperton, drummer Jeff Reardon, and vocalist-guitarist James Reardon. Brookshire grew up in Wilmington, NC, Caperton in Whiteville, NC, and the Reardon brothers moved often because of their family’s military commitments. That same year the band appeared in a Dawson’s Creek episode filmed in North Carolina, the state where they are based.
Originally a trio, the group consisted of the Reardon brothers and Brookshire’s roommate; when the roommate proved unsuitable, Brookshire took over on bass. Local performances followed, and the owner of several area record stores asked the band to record a 7-inch single for a label he planned to launch. The project grew into the full-length release And the Streets Did Shrink. An alliance with the Godrays soon produced a split 7-inch. Prior to work on The Pine and Promise, guitarist Caperton joined as the fourth member.