The band was founded by Randy Owen (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) and his cousin Teddy Gentry (bass, backing vocals). They were soon joined by another cousin, Jeff Cook (lead guitar, fiddle, and keyboards). First operating under the name Wild Country, the group toured the Southeast bar circuit in the early 1970s, and began writing original songs. They changed their name to Alabama in 1977 and following the chart success of two singles, were approached by RCA Nashville for a record deal.
Alabama's biggest success came in the 1980s, where the band had over 27 #1 hits, seven multi-platinum albums and received numerous awards. Alabama's first single on RCA Records, "Tennessee River", began a streak of 21 #1 singles, including "Love in the First Degree" (1981), "Mountain Music" (1982), "Dixieland Delight" (1983), "If You're Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band)" (1984) and "Song of the South" (1988). The band's popularity waned slightly in the 1990s although they continued to produce hit singles and multi-platinum album sales. Alabama disbanded in 2004 following a farewell tour and two albums of inspirational music but reunited in 2010 and have continued to record and tour worldwide.
Owen was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2010, but he was later given a clean bill of health, which led to the band's reunion, without Herndon. Following a series of tornadoes destroying homes and businesses throughout their state in 2011, Alabama assembled a benefit concert in Birmingham, called Bama Rising. Featuring the band's first set since 2004, alongside Luke Bryan, Sheryl Crow and Brad Paisley, the concert raised $2.1 million. "I guess we realized that maybe we missed the playing ... and five or six years had gone by and we were like, 'Maybe that wasn't as bad as we remember it being,'" said Gentry. In celebration of the group's 40th anniversary, Alabama resumed touring in 2013 for the Back to the Bowery tour, referencing the Myrtle Beach club where they first became professional musicians. They also undertook a short cruise, The Alabama & Friends Festival at Sea, which left for the Bahamas on Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Pearl ship. In addition, the band released Alabama & Friends, a tribute album encompassing covers from newer artists such as Jason Aldean and Florida Georgia Line, in addition to two new tracks by Alabama.
The band released their first new studio album in 14 years, Southern Drawl, on September 18, 2015, via BMG Chrysalis. In 2016, Alabama was selected as one of 30 artists to perform on "Forever Country", a mash-up track of "Take Me Home, Country Roads", "On the Road Again", and "I Will Always Love You" that celebrates 50 years of the CMA Awards.
In April 2017, guitarist Jeff Cook announced in a video that he would reduce the number of shows for which he would be in attendance while the band was on tour, due to his struggle with Parkinson's. He had been diagnosed four years prior, and this was his first public announcement about his condition.
In August 2021, the band sold its interest in its recorded music rights catalog to Reservoir Media. Cook died from complications of Parkinson's disease on November 7, 2022.
The band's blend of traditional country music and Southern rock combined with elements of bluegrass, folk, gospel and pop music gave it a crossover appeal that helped lead to their success. They also toured extensively and incorporated production elements such as lighting and "sets" inspired by rock concerts into their shows.
Alabama was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2019 and were awarded with the first ever Life Time Achievement Award from this institution.
The members of Alabama are:
- Randy Owen (lead vocals and rhythm guitar)
- Teddy Gentry (bass guitar and backing vocals)
Cruisin'
Alabama Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
to pick you up at eight
Wear that red dress
You know the one you wore
on our first date
Ease into my Chevrolet
We've got to listen
I'm a feelin'
We'll go cruisin'
Crusin' on Saturday night
We'll be moving,
Grooving in the radio lights
It don't matter where we go
Baby, what we do
Long as I'm cruisin'
Crusin' with you
There's a drive-in
Place where you and I
Shared our first kiss
That and the moonlight,
Love was shining
On a night like this
Slide on over next to me
We gonna make some
New memories
Hold on tight
We'll go
Crusin' on Saturday night
We'll be moving,
Grooving in the radio lights
It don't matter where we go
Baby, what we do
Long as I'm cruisin'
Crusin' with you
We'll go crusin'
Crusin' on Saturday night
We'll be moving,
Grooving in the radio lights
It don't matter where we go
Baby, what we do
Long as I'm cruisin'
Crusin' with you
It don't matter where we go
Baby, what we do
Long as I'm cruisin'
Crusin' with you
Baby, let's go cruisin'
Crusin' on Saturday night
And we'll be moving,
Grooving in the radio lights
You and I can go crusin'
Cruisin on a Saturday night
The lyrics of Alabama’s song, “Cruisin’” are about spending a Saturday night with a loved one, cruising around in a Chevrolet and making new memories. The first stanza involves the singer asking his loved one to wear the red dress they wore on their first date. It seems like the singer is trying to rekindle the feeling of the first date and create new memories. The second stanza mentions a drive-in place where they shared their first kiss, and how the love was shining on a night like this. The third and fourth stanzas talk about sliding over next to the singer and creating new memories while cruising around.
The overall theme of the song is reminiscing about old memories with a loved one and making new ones while moving and grooving to the music. The idea of listening to oldies and cruising around in a Chevrolet gives a nostalgic vibe to the song. The lyrics paint a picture of a hot summer night, driving around with the windows down, feeling the breeze and singing along to the tunes of the radio.
Line by Line Meaning
Hello, Baby, I'll be by to pick you up at eight
I'm excited to see you and I'll be at your place at eight
Wear that red dress
Wear the dress that you wore on our first date
You know the one you wore on our first date
I want you to wear that dress that looked so beautiful on our first date
Ease into my Chevrolet
Get into my car carefully and comfortably
We've got to listen to those oldies play
Let's listen to some classic music from the past
I'm a feelin' We'll go cruisin'
I have a hunch that we're going to have a great time driving around
Crusin' on Saturday night
Driving around on Saturday night
We'll be moving, Grooving in the radio lights
We'll be driving around and enjoying the lights from the radio
It don't matter where we go, Baby, what we do
It doesn't matter where we end up or what we do, as long as we're together
Long as I'm cruisin' Crusin' with you
As long as I'm driving around with you, I'm happy
There's a drive-in Place where you and I Shared our first kiss
Let's go to the drive-in where we had our first kiss
That and the moonlight, Love was shining On a night like this
The moonlight made that night even more special and romantic
Slide on over next to me
Come sit closer to me in the car
We gonna make some New memories
Let's make some new memories together
Hold on tight We'll go Crusin' on Saturday night
Hold on tight, we're going to have a great time driving around on Saturday night
And we'll be moving, Grooving in the radio lights
We'll be driving around and enjoying the lights from the radio
Baby, let's go cruisin' Crusin' on Saturday night
Hey my dear, let's go drive around on Saturday night
You and I can go crusin' Cruisin on a Saturday night
We can both have fun driving around on a Saturday night
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: RANDY FREDRIX
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Kimberly Bittner
on Carolina Mountain Dewe
Why would you put this one to show, when I made a video to it on u-tube.. This dosen't tell the story to the song I have loved for over 30 tears..