Dale Watson (singer)
| Dale Watson (singer) | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Kenneth Dale Watson |
| Born |
October 7, 1962 Birmingham, Alabama, United States |
| Genres | Ameripolitan |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1976–present |
| Labels | HighTone, Continental Song City, Audium, Koch, Hyena , Red River, Red House, Red House/Ameripolitan (current) |
| Associated acts | The Lone Stars |
| Website | www.dalewatson.com |
| Members | Chris Crepps (stand-up bass/background vocals), Don Pawlak (pedal steel), Mike Bernal (drums) |
| Past members | Herb Belofsky, Billy Donahue, Scott Matthews, Ricky Davis, Donnie Knutson (Road Manager), Preston Rumbaugh, Brian Ferriby, Mark Rubin, Scott Hinkle, Ron O'Rielley, Butch Brown, Dennis Vanderhoof, Craig Pettigrew, Dave Biller, Gene Kurtz, Kurt Baumer |
Dale Watson (born October 7, 1962 in Birmingham, Alabama) is an American country/Texas country singer, guitarist, songwriter, and self-published author based in Austin, Texas. He champions "Ameripolitan" as a new genre of original music and has positioned himself as a tattooed, stubbornly independent outsider who is interested in recording authentic country music. As a result, he has become a favorite of critics and alt-country fans.
Watson grew up in poverty outside of Pasadena, Texas as one of four boys. Watson's father (after whom he is named) and his brother, Jim, were both musically inclined and guided what have become his longstanding musical influences. Watson began writing his own songs at age 12, making his first recording two years later. Soon after, Watson became an emancipated minor. By day he went to school and by night he played local Houston clubs and honky-tonks with Jim, in an aggregation called The Classic Country Band.
He moved to Los Angeles in 1988 on the advice of Rosie Flores and soon joined the house band at North Hollywood's now-legendary alt-country venue "The Palomino Club". He recorded two singles for Curb Records in 1990 and 1991, "One Tear At A Time" and "You Pour It On And I Pour It Down", and appeared on the third volume of the compilation series A Town South of Bakersfield in 1992. Not long after, he moved to Nashville and spent some time writing songs for the Gary Morris publishing company where his first daughter was born.
Watson relocated to Austin, TX, where he formed a backing band called The Lone Stars. He scored a deal with Hightone and released his debut album, Cheatin' Heart Attack, in 1995. It was greeted with enormous acclaim for the vitality Watson brought to his vintage-style material and performances and also featured a dig at mainstream country in "Nashville Rash". Follow-up Blessed Or Damned appeared in 1996 and continued in a similar vein, as did 1997's I Hate These Songs. His next release, The Truckin' Sessions, appeared on Koch in 1998 and was devoted entirely to that distinct country subgenre of truck-driving songs. Soon after, his second daughter was born. Watson attended truck driving school about the time his first album came out and later obtained his commercial driver's license; he often drives the band bus when on tour.
The singer is also featured in the Zalman King documentary "Crazy Again", chronicling his (Watson's) breakdown after his girlfriend Terri Herbert died in a car accident in September 2000. Every Song I Write Is For You was released in 2001 as a tribute album.
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