Pure Prairie League

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Pure Prairie League
Origin Waverly, Ohio United States
Genre(s) Country Rock
Associated acts Vince Gill, Little Feat
Website Pure Prarie League Website

Pure Prairie League is an American country-rock band whose roots began between 1964 and 1969 in Waverly, Ohio with Craig Fuller, Tom McGrail, Jim Caughlan and John David Call. The band's name was chosen by McGrail after a 19th century temperance union mentioned in the 1939 film, Dodge City. The band has had a long run, active from the early 1970s through to the early 1980s, and reborn in the mid 2000s.

[edit] History

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Although the band has its roots in Waverly, Ohio, it was actually formed in Columbus, Ohio, (sixty miles north of Waverly), and had its first success in Cincinnati. Although Fuller, McGrail, Caughlan, and Call had played together off and on since high school, the first Pure Prairie League recording was a George Ed Powell penned composition, "Down to Pieces" with Powell (acoustic guitar and vocal), Fuller (lead guitar and vocal), McGrail (drums), Kenny May (bass) and David Workman (pedal steel guitar). The original stage band was Fuller, McGrail, Powell, Phil Stokes on bass, and Robin Suskind on guitar and mandola. Steel guitar player, John Call, joined the band in 1970. His steel guitar improved the country songs and sparked guitar duels with Fuller that contributed greatly to the rock/country, signature sound of the band. Caughlan, who had played drums and guitar with Fuller, Call and McGrail in earlier bands, took over on drums when McGrail quit the band just before their first album. Lanham replaced Stokes who left at the same time. After the eponymous first album release and a nationwide tour in 1971, the band split up with Call, Caughlan, and Lanham leaving before the second album. This left Fuller and Powell to record Bustin' Out in Toronto with Billy Hinds (drums) and Michael Connor (piano) would become regulars in the PPL line-up for years to come. Michael Reilly, the longtime bass player and front man for the band, joined the band for the "Two Lane Highway" album and plays with the current band.

Pure Prarie League’s biggest hits include Fuller’s "Amie"; "Two Lane Highway", and the musically less-representative pop song, "Let Me Love You Tonight". Vince Gill, who sang and played guitar with the band in the early 1980s and recorded an updated version of "Amie" for their greatest hits album, moved on to become one of Nashville, Tennessee’s biggest stars. A fourteenth album was released in 2006, composed primarily of Craig Fuller songs, as was the very first back in 1971. They also are known to have a Norman Rockwell cowboy named "Sad Luke" appear on most of their album covers.

[edit] Discography

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