Desert Rose Band
Encyclopedia
The Desert Rose Band is a US country music
band from California
founded by Chris Hillman
(formerly of the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers) along with Herb Pedersen
and John Jorgenson
in 1985. Rounding out the original lineup were Bill Bryson on bass guitar
, Jay Dee Maness on pedal steel guitar
, and Steve Duncan on drums
. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band charted several hit singles on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts until disbanding in February 1994.
, formerly a member of The Byrds
, and later co-founder, along with Gram Parsons
, of the country-rock band Flying Burrito Brothers. Additional members included John Jorgenson, who was mainly responsible for the instrumental arrangements of the songs; Herb Pedersen for the vocal arrangements. Herb sang the high tenor part above Chris' tenor and each Desert Rose Band album featured Herb on one lead vocal. Drummer Steve Duncan and bassist Bill Bryson provided background vocals. Pedal steel player Jay Dee Maness rounded out the group.
debut album was issued in 1987 on MCA
/Curb
. It contained their first hit "Ashes of Love" which was a Johnnie & Jack
song from the early 1950s. It was the second time Hillman and Pederson recorded "Ashes of Love", the first being on Hillman's just prior album Desert Rose on the Sugar Hill label. The Desert Rose Band's debut also featured a remake of Chris Hillman's "Time Between" which he previously recorded as a member of the Byrds, as well as the band's first chart-topper "He's Back and I'm Blue
".
(1988) featured the John Hiatt
-penned hit "She Don't Love Nobody
", "Running", and a remake of Buck Owens's "Hello Trouble".
featured a remake of "Desert Rose" as well as a remake of Pedersen's folk song about his daughter "Our Baby's Gone" which was originally recorded on his 1976 album Southwest. Jay Dee Maness left the band in 1990 and was replaced on pedal steel guitar by Tom Brumley
whom Jay Dee replaced in the Buckaroos. Jay Dee Maness would again play with Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen on their post Desert Rose Band duo albums Bakersfield Bound and Way Out West.
, was released in 1991. It was followed by 1993's Life Goes On
, released only in Europe. Several prominent country and bluegrass musicians made guest appearances on Life Goes On including Sam Bush
on fiddle, Tony Rice
and Larry Park (of Boy Howdy
) on guitar, and Al Perkins on dobro.
steel player Tom Brumley played with Joey Riley's band in Branson, Missouri
. He passed away on 3 February 2009.
In 2010 the Desert Rose Band announced more reunion shows throughout the US.
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
band from California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
founded by Chris Hillman
Chris Hillman
Christopher Hillman was one of the original members of The Byrds which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, and Michael Clarke....
(formerly of the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers) along with Herb Pedersen
Herb Pedersen
Herb Pedersen is an American musician, guitarist, banjo player, and singer-songwriter who has played a variety of musical styles over the past forty years including country, bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, folk, folk rock, country rock, and has worked with numerous musicians in many different...
and John Jorgenson
John Jorgenson
John Jorgenson is a US musician. Although best known for his guitar work with bands such as the Desert Rose Band and The Hellecasters, Jorgenson is also proficient in the mandolin, mandocello, Dobro, pedal steel, piano, upright bass, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone...
in 1985. Rounding out the original lineup were Bill Bryson on bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, Jay Dee Maness on pedal steel guitar
Pedal steel guitar
The pedal steel guitar is a type of electric guitar that uses a metal bar to "fret" or shorten the length of the strings, rather than fingers on strings as with a conventional guitar. Unlike other types of steel guitar, it also uses pedals and knee levers to affect the pitch, hence the name "pedal"...
, and Steve Duncan on drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band charted several hit singles on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts until disbanding in February 1994.
Formation
The Desert Rose Band was formed in 1985 by frontman Chris HillmanChris Hillman
Christopher Hillman was one of the original members of The Byrds which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, and Michael Clarke....
, formerly a member of The Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
, and later co-founder, along with Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and pianist. Parsons is best known for his work within the country genre; he also mixed blues, folk, and rock to create what he called "Cosmic American Music"...
, of the country-rock band Flying Burrito Brothers. Additional members included John Jorgenson, who was mainly responsible for the instrumental arrangements of the songs; Herb Pedersen for the vocal arrangements. Herb sang the high tenor part above Chris' tenor and each Desert Rose Band album featured Herb on one lead vocal. Drummer Steve Duncan and bassist Bill Bryson provided background vocals. Pedal steel player Jay Dee Maness rounded out the group.
1987-1988: The Desert Rose Band
Their eponymousThe Desert Rose Band (album)
The Desert Rose Band is the first studio album by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released June 2, 1987 via MCA/Curb...
debut album was issued in 1987 on MCA
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
/Curb
Curb Records
Curb Records is a record label started by Mike Curb originally as Sidewalk Records in 1963...
. It contained their first hit "Ashes of Love" which was a Johnnie & Jack
Johnnie & Jack
Johnnie & Jack was an American country music duo composed of Johnnie Wright and Jack Anglin . Between 1951 and 1962, the duo released several singles on the RCA Victor Records label, including their version of "Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite" which peaked at number four on the Best Seller charts,...
song from the early 1950s. It was the second time Hillman and Pederson recorded "Ashes of Love", the first being on Hillman's just prior album Desert Rose on the Sugar Hill label. The Desert Rose Band's debut also featured a remake of Chris Hillman's "Time Between" which he previously recorded as a member of the Byrds, as well as the band's first chart-topper "He's Back and I'm Blue
He's Back and I'm Blue
"He's Back and I'm Blue" is a 1988 single written by Robert Anderson and Michael Woody and recorded by The Desert Rose Band. "He's Back and I'm Blue" was the fourth country hit for The Desert Rose Band and the first of two number ones for the group. The single went to number one for one week and...
".
1988-1989: Running
Their second album RunningRunning (The Desert Rose Band album)
Running is the second studio album by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released September 6, 1988 via MCA/Curb. The album peaked at #26 on the Top Country Albums chart.-Track listing:#"She Don't Love Nobody" – 2:56...
(1988) featured the John Hiatt
John Hiatt
John Hiatt is an American rock guitarist, pianist, singer, and songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including New Wave, blues and country. Hiatt has been nominated for several Grammy Awards - although he has never won- and has been awarded a variety of other...
-penned hit "She Don't Love Nobody
She Don't Love Nobody
"She Don't Love Nobody" is the title of a song written by John Hiatt and recorded by US country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released in March 1989 as the third single from the album Running. The song reached #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.-Chart performance:...
", "Running", and a remake of Buck Owens's "Hello Trouble".
1989-1990: Pages of Life and Jay Dee Maness departure
The third album Pages of LifePages of Life
Pages of Life is the third studio album by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released January 16, 1990 via MCA/Curb...
featured a remake of "Desert Rose" as well as a remake of Pedersen's folk song about his daughter "Our Baby's Gone" which was originally recorded on his 1976 album Southwest. Jay Dee Maness left the band in 1990 and was replaced on pedal steel guitar by Tom Brumley
Tom Brumley
Tom Brumley was an American steel guitarist who played with Buck Owens and the Buckaroos in the 1960s, contributing to the group's "Bakersfield sound", and later spent a decade with Rick Nelson.-Biography:...
whom Jay Dee replaced in the Buckaroos. Jay Dee Maness would again play with Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen on their post Desert Rose Band duo albums Bakersfield Bound and Way Out West.
1991-1993: True Love and Life Goes On
The fourth album, True LoveTrue Love (The Desert Rose Band album)
True Love is the fourth album by country band The Desert Rose Band, released in 1991. The album was released by the Curb record label, failing to make an impact on the American Country charts....
, was released in 1991. It was followed by 1993's Life Goes On
Life Goes On (The Desert Rose Band album)
Life Goes On is the fifth and final album by country band The Desert Rose Band, released in 1993. By 1994, the band had officially split. The band would eventually reunite for live performances in 2008....
, released only in Europe. Several prominent country and bluegrass musicians made guest appearances on Life Goes On including Sam Bush
Sam Bush
Sam Bush is an American bluegrass mandolin player considered an originator of the Newgrass style.- History :...
on fiddle, Tony Rice
Tony Rice
Tony Rice is an American acoustic guitarist and bluegrass musician. He is considered one of the most influential acoustic guitar players in bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, newgrass and acoustic jazz.Rice spans the range of acoustic music, from traditional bluegrass to jazz-influenced New...
and Larry Park (of Boy Howdy
Boy Howdy
Boy Howdy was an American country music band. It was founded in 1990 in Los Angeles, California, United States by Jeffrey Steele , Hugh Wright , and brothers Cary and Larry Park...
) on guitar, and Al Perkins on dobro.
Post-Desert Rose Band
John Jorgenson and Steve Duncan left the band in 1991. John would go on to form the Hellecasters with Will Ray and Jerry Donahue; Duncan would join the Hellecasters as well. John Jorgenson is currently playing gypsy jazz with his John Jorgenson Quintette. Chris and Herb recorded an acoustic album called The Other Side in 2005. They continue to tour as an acoustic duo. Former Buck OwensBuck Owens
Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 No. 1 hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
steel player Tom Brumley played with Joey Riley's band in Branson, Missouri
Branson, Missouri
Branson is a city in Taney County in the U.S. state of Missouri. It was named after Reuben Branson, postmaster and operator of a general store in the area in the 1880s....
. He passed away on 3 February 2009.
2008-2010 Reunion
Chris Hillman, Herb Pederson, JayDee Maness, John Jorgenson, Bill Bryson, and Steve Duncan performed their first reunion concert on August 27, 2008, at the Belly Up in Solano Beach. Before this date Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen were as a duo joined by John Jorgenson on the 2nd of May 2008 for a small DRB set. The full lineup is the best known and included all of the original members present on the hit albums and singles from the 1980s. At this show in Nashville, Hillman stated that it was the first time that they had played together in 19 years. They went through a string of DRB hits, but were unable to play "He's Back & I'm Blue" because Hillman had forgotten the words. This sold-out show prompted Hillman and the band to play a handful of other reunion shows at clubs and music festivals throughout the U.S. Several of the reunion shows were to be recorded for inclusion on an upcoming live album. This would be the only official live album released by the Desert Rose Band. However, the project was later delayed and pushed back until further notice.In 2010 the Desert Rose Band announced more reunion shows throughout the US.
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
||
| The Desert Rose Band The Desert Rose Band (album) The Desert Rose Band is the first studio album by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released June 2, 1987 via MCA/Curb... |
|
24 | — |
| Running Running (The Desert Rose Band album) Running is the second studio album by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released September 6, 1988 via MCA/Curb. The album peaked at #26 on the Top Country Albums chart.-Track listing:#"She Don't Love Nobody" – 2:56... |
|
26 | — |
| Pages of Life Pages of Life Pages of Life is the third studio album by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released January 16, 1990 via MCA/Curb... |
|
17 | 187 |
| True Love True Love (The Desert Rose Band album) True Love is the fourth album by country band The Desert Rose Band, released in 1991. The album was released by the Curb record label, failing to make an impact on the American Country charts.... |
|
— | — |
| Life Goes On Life Goes On (The Desert Rose Band album) Life Goes On is the fifth and final album by country band The Desert Rose Band, released in 1993. By 1994, the band had officially split. The band would eventually reunite for live performances in 2008.... |
|
— | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||
Compilation albums
| Title | Album details | Peak positions |
|---|---|---|
| US Country | ||
| A Dozen Roses – Greatest Hits A Dozen Roses – Greatest Hits A Dozen Roses – Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released January 4, 1991 via MCA/Curb... |
|
44 |
| Traditional |
|
— |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions |
Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
CAN Country RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
|||
| 1987 | "Ashes of Love" | 26 | 37 | Desert Rose Band |
| "Love Reunited Love Reunited "Love Reunited" is a single by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. Released in 1987, it was the second single from the album The Desert Rose Band. The song reached #6 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.... " |
6 | 5 | ||
| "One Step Forward One Step Forward "One Step Forward" is the title of a song written by Chris Hillman and Bill Wildes, and recorded by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released in October 1987 as the third single from the album The Desert Rose Band. The song reached #2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles &... " |
2 | 2 | ||
| 1988 | "He's Back and I'm Blue He's Back and I'm Blue "He's Back and I'm Blue" is a 1988 single written by Robert Anderson and Michael Woody and recorded by The Desert Rose Band. "He's Back and I'm Blue" was the fourth country hit for The Desert Rose Band and the first of two number ones for the group. The single went to number one for one week and... " |
1 | 1 | |
| "Summer Wind Summer Wind (The Desert Rose Band song) "Summer Wind" is a single by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. Released in 1988, it was the first single from the album Running. The song reached #2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.-Chart performance:... " |
2 | * | Running | |
| "I Still Believe in You I Still Believe in You (The Desert Rose Band song) "I Still Believe in You" is a 1988 single by The Desert Rose Band. "I Still Believe in You" was written by Chris Hillman and Steve Hill and was the second and final number one on the country chart for The Desert Rose Band. The single went to number one for one week and spent fifteen weeks on the... " |
1 | * | ||
| 1989 | "She Don't Love Nobody She Don't Love Nobody "She Don't Love Nobody" is the title of a song written by John Hiatt and recorded by US country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released in March 1989 as the third single from the album Running. The song reached #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.-Chart performance:... " |
3 | 4 | |
| "Hello Trouble Hello Trouble (song) "Hello Trouble" is the title of a song written by Orville Couch and Eddie McDuff and was recorded by Couch in 1962. Couch's version made number 5 on the country charts that year.... " |
11 | 11 | ||
| "Start All Over Again Start All Over Again "Start All Over Again" is the title of a song written by Chris Hillman and Steve Hill, and recorded by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released in November 1989, it was the first single from the album Pages of Life. The song reached #6 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles... " |
6 | 3 | Pages of Life | |
| 1990 | "In Another Lifetime In Another Lifetime "In Another Lifetime" is the title of a song written by Chris Hillman and Steve Hill, and recorded by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released in February 1990 as the second single from the album Pages of Life. The song reached #13 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles &... " |
13 | 18 | |
| "Story of Love Story of Love "Story of Love" is the title of a song written by Chris Hillman and Steve Hill, and recorded by American country music group The Desert Rose Band. It was released in July 1990 as the third single from the album Pages of Life. The song reached #10 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks... " |
10 | 6 | ||
| 1991 | "Will This Be the Day" | 37 | 44 | A Dozen Roses |
| "Come a Little Closer" | 65 | 67 | ||
| "You Can Go Home" | 53 | 64 | True Love | |
| 1992 | "Twilight Is Gone" | 67 | 82 | |
| 1993 | "What About Love" | 71 | — | Life Goes On |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart * denotes unknown peak positions |
||||
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | "Summer Wind" | |
| 1989 | "She Don't Love Nobody" | Bill Pope |
| "Hello Trouble" | ||
| 1990 | "In Another Lifetime" | |
| 1991 | "Will This Be the Day" | Gerry Wenner |
| "You Can Go Home" | Gustavo Garzon | |
| 1993 | "What About Love" | Michael Merriman |