FP News Features

The Canadian Press - ONLINE EDITION

'Crazy Girl' carries Eli Young Band to Academy of Country Music Awards, and beyond

By: Chris Talbott, The Associated Press

Posted: 03/28/2012 8:00 AM | Comments: 0 | Last Modified: 03/28/2012 12:50 PM

FILE - In this June 12, 2011, file photo, Eli Young Band performs during the CMA Fan Fest in Nashville, Tenn. Count the guys in Rascal Flatts among the fans of “Crazy Girl,” the song that took the Eli Young Band to the top of the country songs chart and earned the Texas quartet three nominations at the Academy of Country Music on Sunday. The veteran trio has tapped the new act for its “American Band” tour later this year and guitarist Joe Don Rooney recently raved of lead singer Mike Eli’s performance on the song. (AP Photo/Wade Payne, File)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Count the guys in Rascal Flatts among the fans of "Crazy Girl," the song that took the Eli Young Band to the top of the country songs chart and earned the Texas quartet three nominations at the Academy of Country Music Awards on Sunday.

The veteran trio has tapped the act for its "American Band" tour later this year and guitarist Joe Don Rooney recently raved of lead singer Mike Eli's performance on the song: "He sings his butt off."

But as enamoured as they are with the Eli Young Band, the Rascal Flatts members also had some advice for the rising group.

"You've got to follow it up," bassist Jay DeMarcus said. "That's the hard part. The easy part's having one hit, but you've got to follow it up."

"Yeah, but then you've got to follow that up and you've got to follow that up," Gary LeVox said with a laugh.

It's a lot of pressure, but it's a challenge the band — which includes guitarist James Young, bassist Jon Jones and drummer Chris Thompson — seems ready to tackle. After all, they spent a decade of hard work growing from a partnership between two roommates at the University of North Texas into a tight, ambitious outfit that relentlessly toured and grew its fan base one show at a time.

"No matter what comes along — hits or no hits — I think that you can work hard at capitalizing on what you already have built and then try to move forward with it and use your music to get to that point," Eli said. "Hits will definitely make that happen. They're not the only way, but they definitely will help. We've been very fortunate and very lucky to so far have this career and I think that it's turning into something really cool."

They've already experienced some of the cool moments. This week, they wrapped up a trip to Australia, came home for 12 hours, and then jumped on a plane to Las Vegas, where the ACMs are going to be held. "Crazy Girl," a slow-building love song that rolls along like a drive down a lonely two-lane blacktop, is up for song and single of the year and the band is up for vocal group of the year.

Originally scheduled for a one-off festival appearance in Australia, a promoter suggested them to Faith Hill and Tim McGraw and they found themselves as the husband-and-wife superstars' opening act.

"This is definitely one of those situations where it's been a blast to be here," Eli said in a phone interview from Australia. "I didn't realize how many fans we could really make here and how well we'd be embraced coming over from the U.S. It's been really cool."

They earned their way into these opportunities with a rockin' country sound that recalls the mellow smooth of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers and the raucous nature of the Texas live music scene where bands are required to bring it every night. They had put out four albums and had a hit, "Always the Love Songs," about four years ago. But their latest album, "Life at Best," and the song "Crazy Girl" took off the band to another level; that album was released last year.

Their latest single, "Even If It Breaks Your Heart," cracked the top 20 last week and is one of the fastest rising songs on the Billboard country songs chart. But whether they'll have another No. 1 remains to be seen. To be honest, they're not really sure why "Crazy Girl" captured the imagination of so many people. There was the hard work and the support of label Universal Republic. But there's no explanation for why lightning struck when it did.

"I think anybody that's in the national spotlight, timing is really everything — timing and the people you have behind you," Young said. "There's so many talented musicians and songwriters, it's just we were lucky. We had kind of a top 10 and disappeared for a few years. We never quit touring or making records, and then with 'Crazy Girl' the time was right. It just happened."

___

Online:

http://www.acmcountry.com

http://www.eliyoungband.com

Fact Check

Have you found an error, or know of something we’ve missed in one of our stories? Please use the form below and let us know.

* Required

In which story did you find the error? *
Please post the headline of the story or the title of the video with the error.
What was the error? *
Please post exactly what was wrong with the story.
What should we have written?
Please indicate your source for the correct information.
Who else should we interview to improve this story?
Please include any contact information you may have.
Can we contact you in the future for advice on stories about this topic?
Yes

No
First Name: *
Last Name: *
E–mail Address: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Phone: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Colour:
Are you blue? If you can see this, leave it blank and get some CSS support.
Enter the words that you see: * This is to prevent our forms from being filled out automatically.
You have failed to correctly identify the words in the box above. Please try again.

More FP News Features

Undock

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.

Have Your Say

New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

Have Your Say

Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?

Have Your Say

Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.