The Amazing Rhythm Aces

Formed in Memphis in 1974, the Amazing Rhythm Aces created country-rock that echoed the Eagles in style if not in sales volume. Bassist Jeff Davis and drummer Butch McDade, both previously involved in recordings and tours with singer/songwriter Jesse Winchester, started the project and soon brought in vocalist/guitarist Russell Smith, keyboardist Billy Earheart, Dobro player Barry Burton, and pianist James Hooker. Their approach blended equal measures of pop, country, and blue-eyed soul.

The band's first release, the 1975 album Stacked Deck, yielded the notable crossover singles "Third Rate Romance" and "Amazing Grace (Used to Be Her Favorite Song)," the latter becoming the group's sole Top Ten country hit. From the follow-up LP Too Stuffed to Jump, the track "The End Is Not in Sight (The Cowboy Tune)" earned the Aces a Grammy for Country Vocal Performance by a Group in 1976. After Toucan Do It Too appeared in 1977, Burton departed and Duncan Cameron took his place.

Burning the Ballroom Down followed in 1978, and a self-titled set issued the next year included guest appearances by Joan Baez, Tracy Nelson, and the Muscle Shoals Horns. Both records received favorable reviews yet failed to attract strong sales. The group issued one more album, How the Hell Do You Spell Rhythum?, before breaking up. Smith later thrived as a songwriter, Earheart joined Hank Williams, Jr.'s Bama Band, and Cameron became part of Sawyer Brown, a band that ironically achieved major chart success in the 1980s with a sound reminiscent of the earlier work by the Amazing Rhythm Aces.

Following a roughly 15-year break, the Amazing Rhythm Aces reunited in 1994. The lineup of Smith, Davis, McDade, Earheart, Hooker, and new guitarist/mandolinist Danny Parks signaled their return with Ride Again, an album of fresh recordings of past hits. They also began writing original material for a new project, though McDade's death from cancer on November 29, 1998, paused those efforts. The resulting record, Chock Full of Country Goodness, eventually surfaced in mid-1999.