Yankee Grey was 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, ...

group originally composed of six members: David Buchanan (

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

), Matthew Basford (

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featu ...

), Joe Caverlee ( fiddle), Kevin Griffin ( drums), Jerry Hughes ( keyboards), and Tim Hunt (

lead vocal The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

s), all of whom met in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wi ...

. Founded in 1986, the band toured throughout the state of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

before being signed to a record deal with

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 ...

in 1999. The same year, they made their debut on the '' Billboard'' country music charts with the Top Ten single "All Things Considered," followed by the release of their debut album ''Untamed'', which produced two more hit singles on the country charts. After exiting Monument, the band signed to the independent Stonewall label in 2002.

Biography

Yankee Grey was founded in Cincinnati in 1986 by drummer Kevin Griffin and guitarist Matthew Basford, steel guitarist David Carter, lead vocals and guitarist Coy Lee Jackson, and Bass Guitarist Dwayne Blankenship. Bass guitarist David Buchanan and lead vocalist Tim Hunt were added soon afterward, and the group began to perform in various bars and clubs around Cincinnati. Eventually, keyboardist Jerry Hughes and fiddle player Joe Caverlee were added as well, completing the band's lineup. After several years of playing local venues in Ohio, Yankee Grey was eventually spotted by an engineer who had connections to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

record producers. He then asked the band to record a demo tape; Cliff Audretch, Senior Director of Sony Music Nashville, heard the demo tape and traveled to Ohio to see them perform. By 1997, the group was signed to Sony's

division. Their debut album ''Untamed'' was issued in late 1999, with Robert Ellis Orrall,

Josh Leo Josh Leo (born 1953 in Des Moines, Iowa) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and record producer active in Nashville, Tennessee. Leo was born in Des Moines, Iowa, but was raised in Kansas City, Missouri. In 1976, he moved to Chicago, Illinois ...

, and Ronnie Thomas serving as producers. "All Things Considered," the first release from the album, reached a peak of No. 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts. In addition, Yankee Grey received a nomination for Best New Group or Duo at the

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller (songwriter), Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris ...

awards that year. roken link as of June 6, 2013/ref> The second single from ''Untamed'', "Another Nine Minutes," peaked at No. 15 on the country charts in 2000; it was followed by "This Time Around," which failed to enter the Top 40. By the end of 2000, Yankee Grey had exited Monument's roster, and Tim Hunt had left the group's lineup due to vocal problems. After Hunt's departure, the band began a search for a replacement lead singer. The group signed to an independent label known as Stonewall Records. Their second album, ''Yankee Grey 2'', was issued in 2002, with keyboardist Jerry Hughes taking over as lead vocalist on the album. Later on, Lyle Gudmunsen was briefly signed on as lead singer. The band broke up shortly after Gudmunsen joined, and he began a solo career.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Music videos

Awards and nominations

References

{{Authority control American country music groups Musical groups established in 1986 Monument Records artists Musical groups from Cincinnati Musical groups disestablished in 2002 1986 establishments in Ohio