The Back Forty: John Schneider

You never know who’ll walk into our studios – welcome to The Back Forty. This is where we highlight artists who walk the line outside of today’s country chart with their music, as well as the folks who have made an impact on country music – yesterday and today.

 

It would be hard-pressed to find a hard core country fan who didn’t know those “good ol’ boys” from Hazzard County… From 1979 to 1985, America watched Bo and Luke Duke evade the grasp of Boss Hogg and Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane with the help of their trusty ride the General Lee. It was through The Dukes of Hazzard that we first became acquainted with John Schneider. And, John’s face has continued to grace our television and movie screens ever since with popular roles like Jonathan Kent on Smallville, and, most recently, as Jim Cryer in the OWN drama The Haves and the Have Nots.

But, back in the 1980s, John also had a re-occurring role on our radio airwaves with a successful country music career. He topped Billboard’s Hot Country Songs Chart for the first time in 1984 with “I’ve Been Around Enough To Know” and then proceeded to collect three more #1s and 10 Top 10 hits. Along the way, John earned a #1 album with A Memory Like You and snagged one of the most coveted touring gigs at the time – an opening slot for Alabama. However, John’s growing success came to a halt due to the entanglements of the business side of the music industry.

These days, as John says, “there’s no game to play,” and he’s back making music. And, this time, it’s on his terms. That freedom has allowed him to take on an ambitious project – a 52-song collection titled Odyssey.

In this visit with Kix, John tells his story about what it’s like recording and touring again and details what fans can expect from Odyssey. Plus, they get a little inside baseball when it comes to the music industry and why John walked away. And, John plays a couple of selections from Odyssey.

 

For the latest on John Schneider’s career and to check out more music, visit JohnSchneiderStudios.com. And, be sure to catch John on the new season of Dancing with the Stars during its live two-night premiere beginning Monday, September 24th, at 8/7c on ABC.

 

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