The Steel Guitar Forum

Does anyone know the reason why the Desert Rose Band split up? Obviously I am biased towards the Steel Player but do you think John Jorgensen, the guitar player, really outshined J.D. to gain more "stutus" in the band. I mean, why on earth should J.D. take a back seat to anybody in that band. Why was his name in small letters on the album credits, Especially since his steel work contributed to so much of their sound. Those two guys (John, and J.D.) made that band come alive. What power they had together. It was so cool to have a road band that cut their own tracks. I actually thought this could have been the band where the general public could actually name the Steel Player someday!!!!That would really be a milestone for our instrument!

I heard it had to do with the financial split on the profits from the original songs. Some parties felt they were not being compensated justly...Pete

Well, I don't know, but I'm 26 years old, and looking back, I just feel priveleged just to have been there. I'm young enough that I missed it the first go-round. The "good" country music that is (or should I say the first round of the Bakersfield sound?) The Desert Rose Band and Highway 101, looking back, were a much-needed and well-deserved break from the usual outputs from the Nashville Clone Machine. (I realized I broke a major rule by bunching two different artists together. That's like campaigning for two different political candidates.) And, to be like Opie, that's my three cents' worth.

--js

As I understand it, there was an issue between whether or not they were a band, or a couple of singer songwriters who built a group around themselves.
For Hillman I think there may have been a point where he tired of being a bandleader, after all when you're solo you can hire and fire guys at will, do an acoustic tour any time you like, or in the case of Chris, probably not tour.

I believe there may have been an issue with band credits, but even in one sense there was an issue about Chris not needing to tour as much due to his royalties, while for most of the guys they should have been a touring band.
If they weren't on the road, then certain members just couldn't make a big living on the records.

Of course there's the whole issue of their last album, they seemed to get lumbered with a producer who didn't understand their sound, and it wasn't released in the USA anyway.
Now, lets see, you were a chart group in 1988-1990, then by 1994 you couldn't even gain a domestic release, gee I wonder why they split?

On another note, look at the album covers, they didn't always show a full band did they, now that's a good indication of the general vibe of how the politics worked there, at least in my humble opinion.

Several biographies of the Byrds told the story of the income dichotomies between the songwriters... i.e. Gene Clark and Jim McGuinn... and the rest of the band. I don't believe that lesson was lost on Chris when it was his turn to become a bandleader.

Jay Dee is a friend of mine, so I'm not going to comment on the situation, other to say that I believe the early period of the DRB was band-oriented. However, record companies have a hard time marketing "bands" per se, and they (the companies) prefer "personalities." Therefore they focus on the principal members (the singers) and tend to ignore the "sidemen." So Chris, Herb, and John get on the front of the album, and Jay Dee and Bill are relegated to the back cover. That's just the "real world."

Highway 101 was a cool band, too. I really dug Jack Daniels guitar slinging. Then the chick went off on a solo career. Neither she or the band did diddly-squat after the split, as I recall.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

Was their last album with Tom Brumley ever released?
Thanks
Billy

In Norway last weekend, Jay Dee said that he had just finished recording the tracks with with Chris and Herb for a CD which is due for release shortly. I am sure he said that it would be on Back Porch records.

Just wanted to say how increadable it is to be "chillin'" on the forum w/ so many of you great musicians that played and "ran" w/ so many of my musical heros!!! (Jay Dee, Sneaky Pete, Ralph Mooney, etc.)Sometimes I feel like a weirdo amoung my peers though because of the music I listen to. I just cant seem to get enough Byrds, Burrito Bros. , New Riders, Poco, Comander Cody etc. I'm 25 years old and I dont know ANYONE my age that listens to this stuff. I mean, even my buddies that like country music are like "Gram Parsons...who da #*&@ is that?" How can so many increadble musicians that ignighted a whole new chapter of country music (if thats how you want to categorize it) just blend into such obscurity? Hope they dont start "Closin down the honkey-tonks" (sorry, had ta toss that in!) Is there anyone out there on the forum that faces this same obsticle. Its hard to play all the music that I love so much, out at the bars simply for the fact that no one has a clue of what the hell you are playing. Just try to convince someone my age that the guitarist for Limp Biskit is not just the "Badest Mutha-#@!& guitar slinger around...DUDE!" Mabey I should start throwin' a cute little coriographed boy -band dance routien in there next time I play! But anyway, I just wanted to say that is really nice to see people out there sharing my passion and keeping all this great music alive!! Keep up the good work fellas!! (and MAKE your kids listen to this stuff!)J/K -Brandon

¨Billy, and all of you. The album you mean is probably " Life Goes On " from 1993, which
wasn´t released in the US, as I heard, but in Europe. I bought it here in Sweden a few years ago. Some info ; Produced by Paul Worley and Ed Seay. The Band ; Chris Hillman, Herb Pedersen, Bill Bryson as allways. TOM BRUMLEY - Steel Guitar, Jeff Ross - Lead Guitar, Tim Grogan - Drums, percussion, harmony vocals. Additional Musicians ; Sam Bush - Fiddle , JOHN JORGENSON - Lead Guitar (2 songs) , Tony Rice - Acoustic Lead Guitar (3 songs) , Larry Park - Acoustic Lead Guitar (1 song) Electric Guitar (1 song) , AL PERKINS - Dobro (2 songs). CURB Records CUR 7514-2 .
Song List ; What About Love, Night After Night, Walk On By, Love´s Refugees, Life Goes On, That´s Not The Way, Till It´s Over, Hold On, A Little Rain, Throw Me A Lifeline. BTW. I Know That this lineup(with Brumley at leased) played in Finland in ´94 or ´95 . Help me out here guys !!
Thanx / Gert

Hey Brandon,
Hang in there! We need you younger fellers
to keep this kind of music alive & kickin'.
If there's no following among the twenty
somethings out there, then the future of
our kinda music (as well as the steel
guitar) won't last very long.
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<font size=3 color=red>"Turn up the dang STEEL!!!"</font>
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<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Jay Ganz on 28 August 2001 at 04:39 PM.]</p></FONT>

I had the DRB CD with Tom Brumley. I think our last bass player made off with the CD.

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My best,
Ernie

The Official Buddy Emmons Website
www.buddyemmons.com

Gert is right, that's the last album, and it wasn't issued in the US of A.
Ironically some tracks were later issued on the US best of CD, so that's a taste of REcord Co. values.

Curb went into the early 1990s as a label with some real cred, then they tried to force the whole pop thing on certain acts, even if not in sound, they wanted to pronmote certain acts as pop stars. I think Herb Steiner has really captured the main problem with the band, the promotional push and rejection of the band image.

As a little side note, for their last gig in 1995, the DRB used Jay Dee on steel as Tom simply could not make the date.
A fantastic outfit, and of course Chris, Herb, Jay Dee and pretty much all the others have worked in one combination or another in the last half decade, no bad blood there.
I'm sure someone can pick me up on this one, but there was a Rose Maddox CD from the mid 1990s with most of the DRB (except Chris I think), although the Strangers did some cuts on the CD as well.
It's really good, I don't have a copy but I have heard it and I give it a big thumbs up rating.

Hey Brandon,
I understand very well what you´re saying and I´ve been facing the same situation. I´m ten years older than you but I guess that doesn´t change much. I too love all the acts you´ve mentioned, especially NRPS, and have been trying again and again to convince band members to at least try some of their music, but the response was always been something like, "People don´t wanna hear that, we´ve got to play stuff they know." And then the country scene over here - well that´s another story. Lots of frustration...
But then here´s what happened. Some day I finally decided to check out the influences of my hero, Buddy Cage, and particularly got hooked on Buddy Charleton. Listen to him some time - you´ll be surprised! Next thing I know is I got myself quite a collection of Ernest Tubb and other ´60s honky tonk records. Did a session with some musicians who used to play with my former band´s fiddle player and just decided to return from a five-year hiatus. When they found out I was into that stuff, they flipped. They said they always wanted to do just that and people actually were getting tired of "new" country, so there might be quite a demand. BTW, I also played two New Riders records to them and they liked them, too. I just hope it´s finally gonna work out this time and not be another fallimento( we´ll only start rehearsing in October). I sympathize with you, pal, so wish me luck. Oops - I realize this is getting a bit far from the original topic. But I´ve been listening to the Desert Rose Band while typing this and Jay Dee just blew my mind! One of the greatest ever.
Best regards, Joe H.

Jason,

"$35 and a Dream", Rose Maddox, and b0b sells it right here on the Forum!

Take Care,

Les