Boy Howdy

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Boy Howdy
Origin Los Angeles, California, USA
Genre(s) Country
Years active 1990-1996
Label(s) Curb
Former members
Cary Park
Larry Park
Jeffrey Steele
Hugh Wright

Boy Howdy was a country music band founded in 1990 in Los Angeles, California. Its members included Jeffrey Steele (lead vocals, bass guitar), Hugh Wright (drums), and brothers Cary Park (rhythm guitar, mandolin, vocals) and Larry Park (lead guitar, fiddle, vocals). Between 1992 and 1995, the band recorded two albums (1992's Welcome to Howdywood and 1995's Born That Way) and an EP (1994's She'd Give Anything), all on the Curb Records label. In that same time span, they charted seven singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts; their highest-charting single, "They Don't Make Them Like That Anymore", peaked at #2 in 1994.

After Boy Howdy's disbanding in 1996, Jeffrey Steele embarked on a solo career, recording several solo albums and charting four singles of his own. Steele, who also co-wrote most of Boy Howdy's material, has since become an award-winning songwriter, having co-written more than sixty singles for other country music artists.

Contents

[edit] History

Boy Howdy was founded in Los Angeles, California in 1990. Before the band's formation, lead singer Jeffrey Steele worked as a songwriter and solo artist in California.[1]Brothers Larry and Cary Park, sons of bluegrass music artist Ray Parks, met Steele at a gig at a club; drummer Hugh Wright, also present at the gig, soon joined.[1]

A year into their union, the band released an independent single with their rendition of the old Civil War song "When Johnny Comes Marching Home", at the height of the Gulf War.[1] This single was so well-received that it caught the attention of Curb Records, a Nashville, Tennessee record label, which signed the band in 1992. The same year, Boy Howdy released their debut album titled Welcome to Howdywood, from which two singles were released: "Our Love Was Meant to Be" and "A Cowboy's Born with a Broken Heart";[1] these peaked at #43 and #12, respectively, on the Billboard country charts.

[edit] She'd Give Anything

In late 1993, Boy Howdy released the single "She'd Give Anything", which became their first Top 5 hit on the Billboard country music charts, peaking at #4. It was followed by the release of an EP the following year, also titled She'd Give Anything, which also produced the band's highest-charting hit in "They Don't Make 'Em Like That Anymore", a #2.[1] During the height of the band's career, drummer Hugh Wright was involved in a motorcycle accident, but recovered long enough to rejoin the group as they released their third and final album, Born That Way, in 1995. Three singles were released from that album, none peaking any higher than #23. A year later, the group announced that it was "on hold" with no immediate plans to resume playing together;[2] by 1996, they had disbanded. Steele then moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he began a solo career. Although his solo career was met with limited success (his highest solo single peaked at #33), Steele found continued success as a songwriter for other artists.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

All albums released on Curb Records.

Year Title US Country US 200
1992 Welcome to Howdywood
1994 She'd Give Anything (EP) 19 103
1995 Born That Way 73

[edit] Singles

Year Title US Country Album
1992 "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again"
"Our Love Was Meant to Be" 43 Welcome to Howdywood
1993 "A Cowboy's Born with a Broken Heart" 12
1994 "She'd Give Anything" 4 She'd Give Anything
"They Don't Make 'Em Like That Anymore" 2
1995 "True to His Word" 23 Born That Way
"Bigger Fish to Fry" 57
"She Can't Love You" 48

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e allmusic (((Boy Howdy > Biography))). All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-07-21.
  2. ^ "So Long, Howdy" (1996-08-05). Country Weekly 3 (35): 6.