Court Yard Hounds were an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

and

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fo ...

duo, founded by sisters

Martie Maguire Martha Elenor Maguire (née Erwin, previously Seidel; October 12, 1969) is an American musician who is a founding member of both the all-female alternative country band The Chicks and country bluegrass duo Court Yard Hounds. She won awards in na ...

and

Emily Robison Emily Burns Strayer ( Erwin, previously Robison; born August 16, 1972) is an American songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and a founding member of the country band The Chicks, formerly known as the Dixie Chicks. Strayer plays banjo, dob ...

. They, along with

Natalie Maines Natalie Louise Maines (born October 14, 1974) is an American singer. She is the lead vocalist for the all-female country band The Chicks. In 1995, after leaving Berklee College of Music, Maines was recruited by the Dixie Chicks to replace their ...

, make up

The Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and Em ...

, formerly the Dixie Chicks. The sisters decided to record a side project under a different name. Court Yard Hounds, featuring Robison for the first time as lead vocalist, released a debut album for Columbia Records, the same label for which the Dixie Chicks has recorded, on May 4, 2010. The album debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 chart, initially selling 61,000 copies. It has sold approximately 825,000 copies in the United States.

Career

Dixie Chicks

Emily and Martie Erwin, now Emily Robison and Martie Maguire, founded the

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and ...

in 1989 with Robin Lynn Macy (lead vocals) and Laura Lynch. They released two independent albums before Macy left, and their third album was released with Lynch on lead vocals. In 1995, Lynch left and was replaced by

. The group was then signed to

Monument Records Monument Records is an American record label in Washington, D.C. named for the Washington Monument, founded in 1958 by Fred Foster, Buddy Deane (a prominent Baltimore disc jockey at WTTG), and business manager Jack Kirby. Buddy Deane soon left ...

and released two hit albums, before departing from Monument in 2000 and founding their own label, Open Wide Records, in association with Columbia Records. They then released their third album Home to critical acclaim. During a London concert ten days before the

2003 invasion of Iraq The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...

, lead vocalist Maines stated, " Just so you know, we're on the good side with y'all, we don't want this war, this violence, and we're ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas" (the trio's home state). The statement offended their core fan base who thought it rude and unpatriotic, and the ensuing controversy cost the group half of their concert audience attendance in the United States and led to accusations of the three women being un-American, as well as hate mail, death threats, and the public destruction of their albums in protest. The group followed a small hiatus with a live album and a documentary highlighting the maelstrom created by Maines' comment entitled '' Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing''. The Dixie Chicks released ''

Taking the Long Way ''Taking the Long Way'' is the seventh studio album by American country music group Dixie Chicks. Released on May 23, 2006, through Columbia Nashville, it was also the group's last album released under the “Dixie Chicks” name. The album debut ...

'' in 2006 which has since sold over 3 million copies and ultimately won five Grammy Awards. The Dixie Chicks have been on hiatus since 2008. in 2016 they reformed for a world tour.

Formation of Court Yard Hounds

Court Yard Hounds was formed in 2009 when Maguire and Robison wanted to return to the studio however Maines was still reluctant to do so. The duo's project was announced in January 2010 and the album features Emily on lead vocals. Robison said that the album is "very personal" and she would also be joined by singer-songwriter

Jakob Dylan Jakob Luke Dylan (born December 9, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter. He rose to fame as the lead singer and primary songwriter for the rock band the Wallflowers. Born in New York City to musician Bob Dylan and model Sara Lownds, Dylan be ...

on a track called "See You in the Spring". The band signed to Columbia Records and released their self-titled debut album on May 4, 2010. Their first public appearance as Court Yard Hounds was on March 18, 2010 at the Americana Music Association's SXSW showcase in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

. With Robison on lead vocals she is backed up by her sister Martie, with other band members consisting of Natalie Maines' father,

Lloyd Maines Lloyd Wayne Maines (born June 28, 1951) is an American country music record producer, musician and songwriter. He was inducted into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame as one of the first three members, the other two being Willie Nelson and Stev ...

, on guitar, and other members from the Dixie Chicks' backing band; the debut album was also recorded in Maguire's home studio. According to Maguire and Robison, the Dixie Chicks have not parted ways. And still continue to make appearances including touring with the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, jus ...

and

Keith Urban Keith Lionel Urban (born 26 October 1967) is an Australian-American musician, singer, guitarist and songwriter known for his work in country music. Recognized with four Grammy Awards, Urban also received fifteen Academy of Country Music Award ...

in 2010 and appearing at selected events, such as the

Calgary Stampede The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and featu ...

, in 2013. Court Yard Hounds' second studio album, ''Amelita'', was released on July 16, 2013. "Sunshine," the album's lead single, was released on June 10, 2013. In 2015, the Dixie Chicks announced a tour of Europe for the following year, later also announcing a tour in North America, their first tour in years.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Guest appearances

Music videos

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control American bluegrass music groups Country music groups from Texas Columbia Records artists Country music duos Sibling musical duos Musical groups from Austin, Texas Musical groups established in 2009 2010 establishments in Texas American musical duos Female musical duos