Some musicians front a wholesome public image of clean living and hard work, selling a version of the Mid-American dream with varying degrees of earnestness and success.
But no one, and I mean absolutely no one, has been as convincing, and as influential doing so as the Fort Payne quartet simply and memorably named “Alabama.” Randy Owens, Teddy Gentry, Mark Herndon, and Jeff Cook may as well have their own Mt. Rushmore in Fort Payne.
Blending elements of Southern rock and pop with blues, folk, bluegrass, Oak Ridge gospel harmonization, and even an occasional Haggard-esque crooning vibe, Alabama may not have invented crossover Southern Country Rock, but they certainly perfected it.