Guest
Country music made a startling advance into the pop charts in the early 80's, songs from George Strait, Dolly Parton, Alabama, Barbara Mandrell and Crystal Gayle were well known to pop audiences. After the disco bubble popped, country music seemed to step in helping to fill part of the void it left behind. “Urban Cowboy“ the John Travolta movie introduced us to clogging and line dancing that picked up on the group mentality of dancing in sync with moves the mirrored the pair dancing of disco. Now it was all cowboy hats, western shirts, dingo boots and tight blue jeans for the men with glamour and flash for the women. Next up was “Roadie“ a comedy that starred Meat Loaf in his first big role after the Rocky Horror Picture show displayed his rock and roll chops. The story goes that he gets hired to be a roadie which is the name for a staffer who builds and takes down the sets and stages, loads them onto a truck and then travel on the tour bus. The soundtrack featured Warner label artists both old and new music from Emmylou Harris, Hank Williams Jr, Blondie, Yvonne Elliman and Stephen Bishop, Jay Ferguson, Jerry Lee Lewis and Eddie Rabbitt whose “I'm Driving My Life Away“ is the perfect theme for a roadie. Eddie was born November 24, 1941 in Brooklyn, New York to parents of Irish extraction. His father was an accomplished musician playing the fiddle and accordion for various New York dance halls. Rabbitt learned to play the guitar and became a “walking encyclopedia of country music“. Dropping out of school at the age of 16 after his parents divorced he took a job as a hospital attendant but kept his toe in the music scene performing live at clubs and winning a talent contest where the prize was one full hour of his live performing for the radio. He moved to Nashville and began his career as a songwriter for 20th Century Records. His first hit came from Roy Drusky who covered his “Working My Way Up To The Bottom“ in 1968. He drove a truck, became a fruit picker and worked as a soda jerk to make ends meet. Then the big man came calling, Elvis Presley who recorded his composition “Kentucky Rain“ a #16 pop hit in 1970. That opened the floodgates and when Rabbitt's “Pure Love“ was recorded by Ronnie Milsap it went straight to #1 country. Elektra Records signed him in 1975 and the following year he released his debut LP “Rocky Mountain Music“ and he got his first #1 Country hit with “Drinkin' My Baby (Off My Mind)“. He won the 1977 Academy Of Country Music award for “Top New Male Vocalist of the Year“. Comparisons were being made to Kris Kristofferson so Rabbitt built on this reputation by opening for Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. The #1 country hits kept coming and now he was being described as “a young Elvis Presley“. His good looks and easy performance style was winning him loads of fans and crossed over into pop. “Horizon“ released in 1980 with “Driving My Life Away“ hit #5 on the Hot100 and the follow up “I Love A Rainy Night“ peaked at #1 for two weeks! “Driving My Life Away“ was inspired by Eddie's own experiences as a truck driver and by Bob Dylan's “Subterranean Homesick Blues“.
