Wagoneers

Emerging from Austin, Texas, in the 1980s, the Wagoneers quickly drew an audience that spanned both dyed-in-the-wool traditionalists and rockabilly enthusiasts. Fronted by local favorite Monte Warden on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, with Brent Wilson handling lead guitar and backing vocals, Craig Allan Pettigrew on bass, and Thomas A. Lewis, Jr., behind the drums, the quartet helped usher in what became known as alternative country. Defiantly rejecting Nashville’s assembly-line hat-act formula, they generated considerable excitement in the process. Their debut album, Stout & High, issued on Herb Alpert’s A&M Records, proved successful and addressed a long-ignored niche in the marketplace. A follow-up release arrived after that initial breakthrough yet soon faded into obscurity. Still, their role in the ongoing quest for authentic country music earned them a lasting place next to acts such as the Lonesome Strangers, the Georgia Satellites, the Derailers, and fellow Texans High Noon. Eventually the group disbanded, leaving Warden to pursue a solo path that leaned more heavily toward pop than the traditional country & western style his voice suited best.