America’s favorite rockin’ country band at Alderson 4th of July
Little Texas was conceived in 1988, in Nashville, TN, by a handful of guys in their early twenties who were willing to do just about anything to bring their brand of rockin’ country to the forefront of the music industry. Before hitting the big time, the band crisscrossed America for three long years, playing every bar and honky tonk from Myrtle Beach, SC, to Los Angeles, CA, all the while writing songs that were destined to change the sound of modern country, and perfecting a stage show that has been critically acclaimed worldwide.
Known as “the hardest working band in country music,” it was not uncommon for the band to play over 300 shows a year, without a bus, without a driver, without tour support from a label. They simply made it on their own, and that seasoning shows up even today.
Their first radio release, “Some Guys Have All The Love,” became a top ten hit, as did their next single, “First Time For Everything.” The only problem was, with two top ten singles, the band still didn’t have a full album in the can. “Our label wasn’t really sure about us from the beginning,” said bassist Duane Propes. “Who could blame them? At that time there had never been a country act that young signed to a label. There was no individual artist of that age, and of course, no bands like Little Texas that really looked and performed like a rock act. We wound up jumping in the studio during a small break in our schedule and hammering out the first album in a matter of days.”
After the album First Time For Everything was released, five singles reached the top of the charts. The second album, Big Time, truly was the big time for Little Texas, as it spawned three number 1 singles with “What Might Have Been,” “God Blessed Texas” and “My Love,” capturing the very first CMT award, a Billboard award, a Radio & Records award and a Grammy nomination, and to date has sold over three million copies.
Soon, they signed on as an opening act on an arena tour headlined by Clint Black. Later, they traveled with Travis Tritt and Tricia Yearwood on a tour sponsored by Budweiser. After that, they were on their own, singing to packed arenas across the United States and Canada. During this time, the band played a part in Common Thread: A Tribute To The Eagles, which later earned their first CMA Award for “Album Of The Year.” Their cover of “Peaceful Easy Feeling” charted well albeit without an official release, and with that, Little Texas broke another record in country music history: three different songs on three different charts with three different lead singers, all at the same time; a feat that has never been repeated since by any band. The year 1994 also brought them the ACM Award for “Vocal Group of the Year.”
