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Biography
LITTLE TEXAS was conceived
in Nashville, Tennessee, by a handful of guys in their early 20s who
were willing to do just about anything to bring their brand of rockin’
county to the forefront of the music industry.
Before hitting the big time, the band crisscrossed America for three
long years, playing every bar and honky-tonk from Myrtle Beach, S.C.,
to Los Angeles, Calif., all the while writing songs that were destined
to change the sound of modern country and perfecting a stage show that
has been critically acclaimed worldwide.
Known as “the hardest-working band in country music,” it was
not uncommon for the band to play more than 300 shows a year without
a bus, without a driver, without tour support from a label. They simply
made it on their own, and that seasoning is evident even today.
Their first radio release, “Some Guys Have All The Love,”
became a Top-10 hit, as did their next single, “First Time For
Everything.” After the album First Time For Everything was released,
five singles reached the top of the charts. The second album, Big Time,
truly was the big time for Little Texas.
The sophomore release, which has sold more than three million copies
to date, spawned three No. 1 singles—“What Might Have Been,”
“God Blessed Texas” and “My Love”—and captured
the group's first CMT Award, a Billboard award, a Radio & Records
award and a Grammy nod.
Soon, they signed on as an opening act on an arena tour headlined by
Clint Black. Later, they traveled with Travis Tritt and Trisha Yearwood
on a tour sponsored by Budweiser. After that, they were on their own,
with Crown Royal, singing to packed arenas across the United States
and Canada. During this time, the band played a part in Common Thread:
The Songs of The Eagles, which later earned their first Country Music
Association trophy for “Album Of The Year.”
The group's cover of “Peaceful Easy Feeling” charted well;
albeit, without an official release, and with that, Little Texas broke
another record in country music history: three different songs on three
different charts with three different lead singers, all at the same
time. It is a feat that has never been repeated since by any band. The
year 1994 also brought the lineup an Academy of Country Music Award
for “Vocal Group of the Year.”
Little Texas released the album Kick A Little, and their first true
arena-headling tour began, supported by Keebler and newcomer Tim McGraw.
with opening act BlackHawk. The tour and the album were huge successes,
highlighted by shows in Detroit and Minneapolis fully selling out the
arenas just days after their heroes, The Eagles, had played the same
venues. The tour continued on through 1995, finishing as the fifth largest-grossing
tour of the year, and over the course of ’94 and ’95, the
band received two more Grammy nominations and released Little Texas–Greatest
Hits.
After the self-titled Little Texas album was released, Little Texas,
the players, needed a break following years of performing a relentless
concert schedule. Thus, at the end of that year, each member went his
separate way, opting to spend time with family and friends, and work
on individual projects. Says bassist-vocalist Duane Propes: “At
that point it was time for our loved ones to have us back for a while.
It all happened for a reason.”
Today, though, Little Texas is back! The multi-platinum band’s
four original members—Propes, Porter Howell (lead vocals and lead
guitar), Dwayne O'Brien (vocals and rhythm guitars) and Del Gray (drums)—have
rebuilt the franchise with a completely new sound, and with two recent
albums under their collective musical belt, they couldn’t be happier
to be back on tour and bringing fans what they do best.
“Everybody still has a ‘What Might Have Been’ and there's
always a ‘First Time For Everything,’ and folks still want
to ‘Kick A Little,’" shares Propes, referring to the
group’s continued rotation at radio and generations of both old
and new fans that keep the band playing their classics and putting out
new music.
In summer 2007, Little Texas returned to the airwaves, country charts
and music video playlists with an album titled Missing Years. In typical
Little Texas style, the band broke the rules yet again, choosing to
unleash TWO new albums within the same month, including the band's LIVE
album, The Very Best of Little Texas: Live & Loud, released on May
15, 2007.
“The four of us appreciate each other and still have a ball on
stage,” says drummer Gray of the band’s chemistry on stage
after all this time. “There is a comfort level that happens to
us when we play together that can only happen with 20 years of experience.”
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