The Flatlanders

The Flatlanders
The Flatlanders playing a concert in Lubbock, Texas, on June 3, 2009
Background information
Origin	Lubbock, Texas, United States
Genres	Country rock, alternative country
Years active	1972–1973, 1998–present
Labels	Charly, New West, Plantation, Rounder
Members	Jimmie Dale Gilmore Joe Ely Butch Hancock

The Flatlanders are an American country band from Lubbock, Texas, United States, founded in 1972 by Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Joe Ely and Butch Hancock. The group garnered little success during their brief original incarnation from 1972 to 1973, but when the individual members found success in their solo careers, interest in The Flatlanders was rekindled with the band reuniting several times since.

In 1972, Gilmore, Ely and Hancock, formed The Flatlanders with each contributing vocals, guitar, and songwriting skills. Other key musicians were Steve Wesson on autoharp and musical saw, Tony Pearson on mandolin and backup harmony, Tommy Hancock (no relation to Butch Hancock) on fiddle and Syl Rice on string bass.

One of the band's first appearance was at the Kerrville Folk Festival in 1972, where they were named one of the winners of the inaugural Kerrville Folk Festival New Folk Singer/Songwriter Competition.

The band's first recording project was produced in 1972 by Shelby Singleton, the then-owner of Memphis, Tennessee's famed Sun Studios. A promotional single, Gilmore's "Dallas", was a commercial failure, and the planned album, All American Music, was all but scrapped, being released only in a limited run on 8-track tape in order to fulfill contractual obligations.

The Flatlanders performed through 1973 before disbanding. By the end of the decade, however, Gilmore, Ely and Hancock had all found success as solo performers, and rumors of their earlier obscure collaboration began to circulate. In 1991, Rounder Records issued the 1972 sessions as More a Legend Than a Band.

The three musicians continued to reunite for occasional Flatlanders performances. In 1998 they contributed to the soundtrack of The Horse Whisperer, and then in 2002 released their follow-up album, Now Again, on New West Records. In 2004 this was followed with Wheels of Fortune, again on New West. In 2004, New West released Live '72 a live recording of the then-unknown country band performing at the One Knite honky-tonk in Austin, Texas.