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Big & Rich are an American country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich, both of whom are songwriters, vocalists, and guitarists. Big Kenny was formerly a solo artist on Hollywood Records while Rich was a founding member of the country music band Lonestar and later a solo artist for BNA Records. Their first studio album, ''Horse of a Different Color'', was released in 2004. This album produced four straight Top 40 country hits, including the number 11 "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)", plus collaborations with Cowboy Troy, Gretchen Wilson, and Martina McBride. ''Comin' to Your City'' was released in November 2005 followed by another Top 20 single the Vietnam War-inspired "8th of November", and two more Top 40 hits. Joining the duo on this album were Cowboy Troy, Wilson, and Kris Kristofferson. ''Between Raising Hell and Amazing Grace'', released in 2007, produced the their first number-one single, "Lost in This Moment". Both before and during the duo's hiatus, Rich has worked as a producer and songwriter for several other artists. After this album, both members went on hiatus and released solo albums in 2009 — Big Kenny's ''The Quiet Times of a Rock and Roll Farm Boy'' and Rich's ''Son of a Preacher Man''. These also produced the duo's first Top 40 solo entries — Big Kenny with "Long After I'm Gone" and Rich with "Shuttin' Detroit Down". In 2010, Big Kenny released his second solo country album, ''Big Kenny's Love Everybody Traveling Musical Medicine Show Mix Tape, Vol. 1'' and in 2011, Rich released the extended plays ''For the Kids'' and ''Rich Rocks'', the latter of which included the Top 40 country single "Country Done Come to Town". Big & Rich reunited in May 2011 to release "Fake ID", a cut from the soundtrack to the 2011 film ''Footloose''. A year later, the duo released their fourth album, ''Hillbilly Jedi'', which produced the Top 20 hit "That's Why I Pray. In July 2013, Rich announced that the duo had begun work on their fifth studio album, ''Gravity''. In January 2014, the lead off single to the album, "Look at You", was released. ==History== Prior to Big & Rich's foundation, John Rich was a founding member of the band Texassee, which later became Lonestar. Rich played bass guitar in the band and alternated with Richie McDonald on lead vocals; he also co-wrote their singles "Come Cryin' to Me" and "Say When".〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, p. 14〕 After Lonestar released its second album, Rich was fired from the band in 1998.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Character profile: John Rich )〕 Kenny Alphin (aka Big Kenny) was signed to Hollywood Records in 1998,〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, p. 11〕 where he recorded a rock album called ''Live a Little'' a year later. Although one of its songs was featured in the soundtrack to the film ''Gun Shy'', ''Live a Little'' was not released, and Hollywood Records held the rights to the songs for five years.〔 In the meantime, The Mavericks recorded one of Alphin's songs ("I Hope You Want Me Too") on their 1998 album ''Trampoline'', and Danni Leigh recorded his "Beatin' My Head Against the Wall" on her album ''29 Nights''. Big Kenny then befriended John Rich after meeting him at a club,〔 and the two began writing songs together. Their first songwriting collaboration was "I Pray for You," which they wrote in October 1998.〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, p. 15〕 Following his departure from Hollywood Records, Big Kenny recorded in a short-lived band called luvjOi, whose lead guitarist Adam Shoenfeld and drummer Larry Babb would later become part of Big & Rich's road band.〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, p. 12〕 In 2000, Rich began recording as a solo artist as well. He charted two singles of his own — "I Pray for You" and "Forever Loving You," which respectively reached numbers 53 and number 46 on the U.S. Hot Country Songs charts — but his debut album, ''Underneath the Same Moon,'' was not released.〔 The two then founded the MuzikMafia (an abbreviation for Musically Artistic Friends in Alliance),〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, p. 30〕 a roundtable aggregation of singer-songwriters including Cowboy Troy, James Otto, Gretchen Wilson and Shannon Lawson.〔〔 This group held its first official show at a Nashville, Tennessee nightclub in 2001.〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, p. 33〕 Among Big Kenny and John Rich's first outside cuts as songwriters was "Amarillo Sky", which was the title track to McBride & the Ride's 2002 album ''Amarillo Sky'' and later a top 5 hit for Jason Aldean in 2007. The two also wrote and sang backing vocals on "She's a Butterfly", which was recorded by Martina McBride on her album ''Martina''.〔 After McBride cut this song, manager Marc Oswald suggested that Rich and Big Kenny begin recording as a duo. Rich was apprehensive at first, as he had been told by BNA staff that he was "too rock for country" and was unsure of what major labels would think of Big Kenny's rock influences.〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, pp. 56–57〕 The two began recording songs together at a songwriting seminar. After they recorded a demo of "Holy Water", Rich was convinced that the duo would be successful.〔Rich, Big Kenny, Rucker, p. 62〕 They then met with Paul Worley, a record producer who was then the head of creative affairs at Warner Bros. Records Nashville, and Worley helped sign Big & Rich to a recording contract in late 2003.〔 In 2007, Reservoir Media Management acquired the publishing rights to Rich's and Kenny's song catalogs. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Big & Rich」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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