October
9, 1946
Born, Louisville, Kentucky
1946-64
Formative years in Louisville/ Meridian, Mississippi/ Hopkinsville,
Kentucky At age thirteen, family returns to Louisville area. Grows up
obsessed with records of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Chuck Berry, Little
Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, Buddy Holly and others. Hears
Bo Diddley Roy Orbison, Frankie Lyman and others live at the Middletown
Hop, Middletown, KY , a suburb of Louisville. Graduates Eastern High
School after excelling in drawing, painting, literature, track and field
1964
Awarded full scholarship to Louisville Art Center Association School
1965
While attending college, joins Louisville rock'n'roll band, The Kingspades,
as vocalist, harmonica player, performing the songs of the Rolling Stones/
The Beatles/ The Animals/ Chuck Berry and others
1965-68
Takes up acoustic guitar, rack-mounted harmonica learning folk, blues
and country songs from records, and musician friends
July 1966
Travels to New York City, hears Jose Feliciano/ The Rolling Stones/
Hamilton Camp, Patrick Sky in concert.
March 1967
First public appearance (1 song, "House Of The Rising Sun")
at The Shack, Louisville, KY plays open stages and co-bills at The Round
Table Theater , formerly known as The Shack (1967-1968)
February 2, 1968
Graduates art college with a major in painting
February 22,
1968
Gives first solo concert at opening of first one-man art exhibition
Port O' Call Gallery, Louisville, KY singing songs of Leadbelly/ Hamilton
Camp/ Bob Dylan/ Jimmie Rogers and Gordon Lightfoot
July 1969
Starts first song "My Kentucky" while in Berkeley, California.
Plays open stages at Freight & Salvage and other venues in San Francisco,
and Berkeley area.
Travels to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Stays in Canada and
obtains Landed Immigrant Status.
Takes job as layout artist for Simson-Sears Retail Advertising Dept.
August 1969 -
April 1971
Joined by family in Vancouver. Plays open stages at famous folk/blues
club,
The River Queen in Vancouver. Hears and meets Jesse Fuller, John Hammond,
Jr. and the Reverend Gary Davis. Continues writing and performing original
material at open stages and coffee houses.
Meets singer-songwriter
and MCA recording artist, Russell Thornberry who recommends Alan to
CBC's In The Round, which lands him a national TV guest appearance as
well as securing Alan as a cast member of Music ' 70 - ' 71 series hosted
by Thornberry for CTV, Edmonton, Alberta. Performs first major solo
engagement at The Crypt Coffee House in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Meets
then upstart manager and college DJ, Holger Peterson in Saskatoon. Later
after performing in Edmonton, receives first major press review in The
Edmonton Journal
May 1971 - April
1973
Moves with family to Toronto, Ontario, works as advertising artist as
he did in Vancouver while becoming part of the Toronto music scene
Becomes regular
performer at famed folk club, Steele's Tavern in Toronto as well as
performing at legendary club, The Riverboat.
Forms duo with bass
player, Byron Stoehr (later trio w/ Jerry Wagoner, lead guitar) performing
all over Ontario.
Makes transition to full-time music career
Releases two singles
for London Records produced by Thornberrry.
("My Kentucky", the B side of the second single continues
to get airplay for the next 20 years)
August 1973 -
December 1975
Makes more appearances
on Canadian national television, CBC - CTV, including The Ian Tyson
Show, opens for Jesse Winchester, Leon Redbone
Returns to U.S.
April 26, 1976
Signs songwriting agreement with Tree International Publishing Co.,
Inc.
(Now Sony / ATV / Tree Music Publishing, LLC)
1976 - 1977
While Alan is still living in Toronto, first covers of his songs, "Tuesday
Night Local" by Ronnie Prophet (RCA Canada) and "I'll Be True
To You" by gospel group,The Oak Ridge Boys, making their first
country album, "Y'all Come Back Saloon"
Relocates with family
to Nashville, Tennessee
June 1978
The Oak Ridge Boys take "I'll Be True To You" to #1 on the
country charts and it crosses over into the pop charts, establishing
Alan as a hit songwriter in Nashville
1978 - 1986
Alan's fresh mix of folk, country, rock and blues yields many hits and
album cuts while at Tree Publishing. He is also introduced to the concept
of co-writing for the first time, meeting and writing with some of the
best in the business such as Curly Putman, Red Lane, Bobbie Braddock,
Harlan Howard, Keith Whitley, Bill Caswell, Bruce Channell and others.
In addition to "I'll Be True To You", which goes on to become
a standard by the late eighties ringing up more than four million in
sales and eventually over one million airplays, other hits and cuts
at Tree include:"Love Busted" (w/Red Lane) - Billy "Crash"
Craddock / "Family Man" - The Wright Brothers / "Just
When" (w/Bill Caswell) - George Jones / "Somebody To Care"
(w/Bill Caswell) - Tanya Tucker/ "Christmas To Christmas"
(w/Ron Hellard) - Toby Keith, Tanya Tucker, and Lee Greenwood (please
see discography)
Releases first full
length solo album Stop The Rain (1981) on his own Headless Horseman
Records label
Performs on 23-date
cross-Canada tour with RCA artists, The Good Bros.
Receives encores at 7 of the concerts as the opening act
Appearances on CBC's
The Family Brown Show and CTV's Sun Country with Ian Tyson
Assembles and tours
U.S. with several band projects: The Alan Rhody Band, Alan Rhody and
the Rear View Mirrors and others that included some of Nashville's and
Louisville's hottest players: Mike Alger, Larry Colburn, Gary Hurt,
Rick McEwen, Roger McVey, Eugene Moles, Mark Paden, Michael Rhodes,
Danny Rhodes, Tommy Stribling, Jim Dant, and Jim Haswell.
Releases Border
Crossings, an all acoustic collection of early material recorded in
the mid-seventies in Toronto with Byron Stoehr, Jerry Wagoner, and Tom
Lockwood
Parts ways withTree
Publishing, re-activates Headless Horseman Music
Appearances on The
Nashville Network
1987 - 1990
Releases single "She Dreams", co-written with Pat Alger (Evergreen
Records)
More hits and covers
including "Wild-Eyed Dream" - Ricky Van Shelton / "Trainwreck
Of Emotion" (w/Jon Vezner) - Lorrie Morgan in country / Del McCoury
in bluegrass (please see discography)
1990
Signs songwriting agreement with Bluewater Music Corp
Kevin Welch records
"The Mother Road" co-written with Alan,
on his debut album for Warner/Reprise
1991
"Trainwreck Of Emotion" nominated for Song of the Year at
I
nternational Bluegrass Music Assoc. Awards, as performed by Del McCoury.
McCoury wins Best Male Vocalist Award.
1992
Releases "Dreamer's World" (Taxim Records) in Central Europe,
United Kingdom
Signs new songwriting
agreement with Double J Music Group
1993
Produces and sings two original songs on avant-garde visual artist/songwriter
project, double XX posed, put together by sculptor-songwriter John Heric
of Tucson, AZ. Project also includes the songs of world famous painter,Tom
Wesselmann, multi-media artist, Fritz Sholder, and sculptor, painter,
instructor, Jim Leedy of Kansas City, MO
Meets and collaborates
with award-winning Canadian songwriter, Ron Hynes
Performs at the
Kerrville Folk Festival, Kerrville, TX for the first time, as a "New
Folk" winner
1994
Produces and sings track of "The Mother Road" for the acclaimed
compilation The Songs Of Route 66 (Lazy SOB) - Alan's cut is later featured
on National Public Radio's All Things Considered and Morning Edition
Appears on CBC Radio's
"Swingin" On A Star" hosted by Canadian folk legend,
Murray McLauchlan
Strikes up lasting
friendship and writing collaboration with McLauchlan
Featured on MUCH
MUSIC TV network's Outlaws and Heroes across Canada
1995
Toby Keith and Tanya Tucker each record "Christmas To Christmas"
(please see discography)
Extensive touring
includes main stage at The Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas, The Everly
Bros. Homecoming Festival in Central City, KY with John Prine, Chet
Atkins, Tammy Wynette, dates in Maryland, New York,
West Virginia, Indiana, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky
Releases fourth
collection of original material From A Real Good Home (ARCD) to great
reviews - CD includes live cuts from 1995 Kerrville Folk Festival and
guest appearance by Gillian Welch partner, David Rawlings
Profiled onTNN News
/ guest appearance on TNN's Prime Time Country
1996 - 2000
Releases Pieces
Of Essence (Ashwood Recordings) a collection of selected tracks from
four previous releases
Writes and sings
two songs for the new film Mi Amigo (Azalea Films) with writer/producer/director
Milton Brown
Writes "Ambitious
Life" for stage musical, "Eddie" with Murray McLauchlan.
"Eddie"
makes its debut May 26, 2004 at the Village Theatre in Hudson, Quebec.
Headlines Kentucky
Folk Festival in Bardstown, KY along with John Hartford, Emmylou Harris,
Roger McGuin and others
Produces and sings
"Christmas To Christmas" for Elixir Strings Holiday Collection
CD
2000 - 2002
Continual touring,
writing, painting
2003 - 2006 Highlights:
August, 2006
Trout Forest Folk & Blues Festival, Ear Falls, ONT
Summerfolk Festival, Owen Sound, ONT
Shelter Valley Folk Festival, Grafton, ONT
June, 2006
Kentucky Homefront Concert Series, Kentucky Theatre, Louisville, KY
Sept 2005
Alan Rhody Songbook published
August, 2005
Summerfolk Festival, Owen Sound, ONT
Live From The Rock Folk Festival, Red Rock, ONT
July 2005
Released "Rhody In Black & White" a 21 song retrospective
of
his best known compositions plus new and previously unrealeased material.
June, 2004 (also
'93, '95, '96)
Kerrville Folk Festival, Kerrville, TX
June, 2004
Central South Art Exhibition, Nashville, TN (juried)
Harold Miller Award in Watercolor
Oct. 2003
"I'll Be True To You" earns BMI Millionaire's Award for over
1,000,000 airplays in the U.S. market
July 2003
Released "Journey" on Ashwood Recordings. Garners substantial
airplay on
Sirius Satallite Radio in U.S. and Galaxie Satallite Network in Canada,
as well
as charting for over 6months on both. "Journey also chosen for
Top Twelve Independent
Releases of summer, 2004 by Performing Songwriter Magazine.
July, 2003
7th Annual Stan Rogers Folk Festival, Canso, Nova Scotia
May, 2003
51st Annual Florida Folk Festival, White Springs, Florida
Feb. 2003
Woody Guthrie 90th Anniversary Celebration, Nashville, Tennessee
Jan. 2003
Concert for Nashville Peace and Justice Center, Belcourt Theater, Nashville,
Tennessee with John Prine, Tim O'Brien, Darrell Scott, Maura O'Connell,
Beth Neilson Chapman and others.