A mainstream country-rock band similar in execution (if not commercial success) to
the Eagles,
the Amazing Rhythm Aces were formed in Memphis in 1974 by bassist
Jeff Davis and drummer
Butch McDade, who had earlier recorded and toured with the great singer/songwriter
Jesse Winchester. After striking out on their own,
Davis and
McDade enlisted vocalist/guitarist
Russell Smith, keyboardist
Billy Earheart, Dobro player
Barry Burton, and pianist
James Hooker to develop a sound composed of equal parts pop, country, and blue-eyed soul.
Stacked Deck,
the Amazing Rhythm Aces' debut album, appeared in 1975; it produced two significant crossover hits, "Third Rate Romance" and "Amazing Grace (Used to Be Her Favorite Song)," the group's lone Top Ten country single. A year later, the hit "The End Is Not in Sight (The Cowboy Tune)," from the LP
Too Stuffed to Jump, won
the Aces a Grammy for Country Vocal Performance by a Group. Following the release of 1977's
Toucan Do It Too,
Burton left the group, and was replaced by
Duncan Cameron.
In 1978,
the Aces released
Burning the Ballroom Down, followed a year later by a self-titled effort featuring cameos by
Joan Baez,
Tracy Nelson, and
the Muscle Shoals Horns; both were met with critical approval, but sold poorly. They released one final record,
How the Hell Do You Spell Rhythum?, before disbanding. While
Smith went on to become a successful songwriter,
Earheart joined
Hank Williams, Jr.'s
Bama Band, and
Cameron joined
Sawyer Brown -- a group that, ironically enough, would find significant chart success in the 1980s with a sound similar to what
the Amazing Rhythm Aces had created a decade earlier.
After a hiatus of some 15 years,
the Amazing Rhythm Aces re-formed in 1994.
The Aces, now comprised of
Smith,
Davis,
McDade,
Earheart,
Hooker, and new guitarist/mandolinist
Danny Parks, marked their return to duty by releasing
Ride Again, a collection of newly recorded renditions of their biggest hits. In addition, they also began composing new songs for a projected comeback album; although
McDade's cancer-related death on November 29, 1998, temporarily halted that plan,
Chock Full of Country Goodness finally appeared in mid-1999. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide