With his stripped-down approach to traditional honky tonk and Bakersfield country, Dwight Yoakam helped return country music to its roots in the late '80s. Like his idols Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, and Hank Williams, Yoakam never played by Nashville's rules; consequently, he never dominated the charts like his contemporary Randy Travis. Then... [+] Read More

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Foster & Lloyd stood out from the contemporary country pack in the late '80s thanks to Radney Foster's intelligent, literate lyrics; Bill Lloyd's flair for memorable pop melodies; and the duo's Everly Brothers-style close harmony singing. It was an influential mix that, in its own way, helped pave the way for country's crossover success of the... [+] Read More

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One of the most popular country bands of the late '80s, Highway 101 boasted an influential country-rock sound that helped pave the way for the blockbuster superstars of the '90s. The group was fronted by singer/guitarist Paulette Carlson, a Minnesota native, and assembled by manager Chuck Morris in Los Angeles in 1986. Morris pulled together... [+] Read More

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One of the most popular female singers of the new traditionalist movement, Patty Loveless rose to stardom thanks to her blend of honky tonk and country-rock, not to mention a plaintive, emotional ballad style. Her late-'80s records for MCA were generally quite popular, earning her comparisons to Patsy Cline, but most critics agreed that she... [+] Read More

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While Rodney Crowell first gained widespread recognition as a leader of the new traditionalist movement of the mid-'80s, he in fact was a singer, songwriter, and producer with roots and ambitions extending far beyond the movement's parameters. Born to a musical family on August 7, 1950, in Houston, TX, Crowell formed his first band, the... [+] Read More

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Southern Pacific formed in 1983 around vocalist Tim Goodman, guitarist John McFee, drummer Keith Knudsen, bassist Jerry Scheff, and keyboardist Glenn D. Hardin. Both McFee and Knudsen were ex-Doobie Brothers; this rock & roll background would continue to tarnish for some the band's country-rock sound. Despite the adversity, Southern Pacific... [+] Read More

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In the strictest sense, Steve Earle isn't a country artist, he's a roots rocker. Earle emerged in the mid-'80s, after Bruce Springsteen had popularized populist rock & roll and Dwight Yoakam had kick-started the neo-traditionalist movement in country music. At first, Earle appeared to be more toward the rock side than country. He played... [+] Read More

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This country band backed up Hank Williams, Jr. It consists of Lamar Morris on lead vocals and guitar, Wayne "Animal" Turner on vocals and guitar, Jerry McKinney, Jr. on the sax, Eddie "Cowboy" Long and Vernon Derrick both on the pedal steel guitar and the fiddle, Paul Eugene "Dixie" Hatfield on keyboards, Ray Barrickman on bass and Bill Marshall... [+] Read More

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The Kentucky Headhunters created a hybrid of honky tonk, blues, and Southern rock that appealed to fans of both rock and country music. While they were only officially together for a few albums, the band nevertheless left a long shadow.

The origins of the Kentucky Headhunters lie in 1968, when Fred and Richard Young began playing... [+] Read More

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During their relatively brief time together, Kieran Kane and Jamie O'Hara, otherwise known as the O'Kanes, produced three albums of absolutely superb country music. The self-titled, first, and arguably strongest effort contains everything that is best about the O'Kanes' sound. It is rich in country music's finest traditions, yet it is by no... [+] Read More

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