By By Penny Randall/The Meridian Star
Nov. 23, 2001
Alabama, the Country Music Association's "Artist of The Decade" for the 1980s, will perform in concert at the Silver Star Hotel and Casino this weekend.
The Fort Payne, Ala., natives are set to perform at 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday in the conference center.
Randy Owen, Teddy Gentry, Jeff Cook and Mark Herndon hit the music scene in the late 1970s, one of the first country acts that became popular as a group and not as a single vocalist.
Drawing from both pop rock and country roots, Alabama is one of the most popular country groups in history. The group features a unique blend of rock, bluegrass and country music.
Alabama's first single, "Tennessee River," was released in 1980. After that, the band charted 21 consecutive No. 1 country hits.
Between 1980 and 1987, the group also won numerous country music awards, released several multi-platinum albums and hit the pop charts nine times.
In 1990, Alabama released "Jukebox In My Mind," which became one of their biggest records. Another huge single, "I'm In a Hurry (And Don't Know Why)," stayed at No. 1 for two weeks in 1992.
Their album, "Twentieth Century," was released in 1999. It contained the song "God Must Have Spent a Little More Time On You," which was nominated for an Academy of Country Music Award in the category Vocal Event of the Year.
Their latest album, "When it All Goes South," was released in January. The disc is the group's 23rd album for the RCA label.
Ticket prices are $35 and $32.50 for adults 21 and older. Tickets can be charged by phone at (800) 557-0711 or purchased at the Silver Star Box Office. All tickets are non-refundable.