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Asleep at the Wheel sure woke up the Breckenridge crowd last summer, and, as a result, it's back for another round.
“People loved the show so much,” said BMF spokesperson Rick Hansen. “(The band has) such a great following already, and anyone who hasn't seen them before should definitely come check out the show. It will be the perfect final concert for our summer series of concerts.”
The Western swing band has won nine Grammy's since 1970, including its 2001 one for best vocal performance by a duo or group, for the single “Cherokee Maiden” from the acclaimed album, “Ride with Bob” (a tribute to Bob Wills, king of Western swing).
Ray Benson began Asleep at the Wheel with a strong driving force in 1970 — in the band's first year, it opened for Alice Cooper and Hot Tuna; during the second year, Van Morrison mentioned Asleep at the Wheel in a Rolling Stone Magazine interview; in 1973, Willie Nelson invited the band to move to Texas to make music; and by 1977, Rolling Stone voted the outfit best country and western band. Benson's vision involved reviving Americana roots music that had been left behind in the 1960s.
In doing so, he hoped to unite various age groups and political viewpoints through music. When he put Asleep at the Wheel together, the Vietnam War and hippy movement had alienated many parents from their kids. Rock music represented opposition to the war, while country music stood for patriotism and fighting for one's country. Benson didn't see music as a valid demarcation of sociological or political stances.
“(I set out to) say ‘Hey, music transcends all of this,'” Benson said. “I can be a long-haired kid in the 1970s and still play this great country music that's associated with our parents' generation, which were politically and sociologically on opposite ends in the 1960s.”
Today, Benson credits the ensemble's 40-year staying power to “perseverance, for one, and again, we play a style of music that very few people can or do play,” he said, explaining that Western swing is “not simple music,” and there aren't a lot of venues to make a living at it. When he first started, he imitated country-western masters, became proficient, then stamped the sound with his own style.
As Benson tells young musicians now: “You have to be able to go anywhere at anytime for anything ... you just have to go at them like Don Quixote.”
And, you have to be flexible and remain focused. Throughout the decades, Asleep at the Wheel has gone through nearly 100 members, but the one constant is Benson and his passion and high standards for music.
In celebration of its 40th anniversary, Asleep at the Wheel released a new CD a week or so ago, titled “It's a Good Day.” The musicians collaborated with Willie Nelson and Leon Rausch, the latter of whom is a Western swing icon — and is 83 years old. Rausch sang with Bob Wills & The Texas Playboys, and he's the last of the Playboys. Nelson and Rausch sing a duet called “Truck Driver's Blues,” which was the first truck driving song, originating in the 1930s.
The album contains remakes of old standards and includes “swing, blues — everything the Wheel does.”
The band will perform a few songs from the new disc, as well as favorites on Saturday. Benson said last year's Breckenridge show was great:
“We had them up dancing and everything.”
“Asleep at the Wheel is great because it mixes country, jazz, ragtime and swing music all into one,” Hansen said, “so a wide variety of people can enjoy the show.”
“People loved the show so much,” said BMF spokesperson Rick Hansen. “(The band has) such a great following already, and anyone who hasn't seen them before should definitely come check out the show. It will be the perfect final concert for our summer series of concerts.”
The Western swing band has won nine Grammy's since 1970, including its 2001 one for best vocal performance by a duo or group, for the single “Cherokee Maiden” from the acclaimed album, “Ride with Bob” (a tribute to Bob Wills, king of Western swing).
Ray Benson began Asleep at the Wheel with a strong driving force in 1970 — in the band's first year, it opened for Alice Cooper and Hot Tuna; during the second year, Van Morrison mentioned Asleep at the Wheel in a Rolling Stone Magazine interview; in 1973, Willie Nelson invited the band to move to Texas to make music; and by 1977, Rolling Stone voted the outfit best country and western band. Benson's vision involved reviving Americana roots music that had been left behind in the 1960s.
In doing so, he hoped to unite various age groups and political viewpoints through music. When he put Asleep at the Wheel together, the Vietnam War and hippy movement had alienated many parents from their kids. Rock music represented opposition to the war, while country music stood for patriotism and fighting for one's country. Benson didn't see music as a valid demarcation of sociological or political stances.
“(I set out to) say ‘Hey, music transcends all of this,'” Benson said. “I can be a long-haired kid in the 1970s and still play this great country music that's associated with our parents' generation, which were politically and sociologically on opposite ends in the 1960s.”
Today, Benson credits the ensemble's 40-year staying power to “perseverance, for one, and again, we play a style of music that very few people can or do play,” he said, explaining that Western swing is “not simple music,” and there aren't a lot of venues to make a living at it. When he first started, he imitated country-western masters, became proficient, then stamped the sound with his own style.
As Benson tells young musicians now: “You have to be able to go anywhere at anytime for anything ... you just have to go at them like Don Quixote.”
And, you have to be flexible and remain focused. Throughout the decades, Asleep at the Wheel has gone through nearly 100 members, but the one constant is Benson and his passion and high standards for music.
In celebration of its 40th anniversary, Asleep at the Wheel released a new CD a week or so ago, titled “It's a Good Day.” The musicians collaborated with Willie Nelson and Leon Rausch, the latter of whom is a Western swing icon — and is 83 years old. Rausch sang with Bob Wills & The Texas Playboys, and he's the last of the Playboys. Nelson and Rausch sing a duet called “Truck Driver's Blues,” which was the first truck driving song, originating in the 1930s.
The album contains remakes of old standards and includes “swing, blues — everything the Wheel does.”
The band will perform a few songs from the new disc, as well as favorites on Saturday. Benson said last year's Breckenridge show was great:
“We had them up dancing and everything.”
“Asleep at the Wheel is great because it mixes country, jazz, ragtime and swing music all into one,” Hansen said, “so a wide variety of people can enjoy the show.”
