Snuff were an American

country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...

band based in Southern

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

and active during the 1970s and early 1980s. They released a pair of albums and scored a minor hit on the US pop chart with "Bad, Bad Billy" in 1983.

Career

Snuff initially formed in the 1970s and began as an acoustic trio featuring guitarist James Gray "Jimbo" Bowling, guitarist Bill Wampler, and vocalist Mike Jones. However, the group gradually incorporated more of an

electric Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

sound into their repertoire, and by the 1980s, they had evolved into a six-member outfit, including Bowling, guitarist Robbie House, lead vocalist/acoustic guitarist Chuck "Coyote" Larson, bassist C. Scott Trabue, violinist Cecil Hooker, and drummer/percussionist Michael A. Johnson.Snuff - History of the Band
Retrieved 10-12-2013. The group released their

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ous debut album in 1982. Featuring a

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

sound infused with elements of

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

, ''Snuff'' featured a minor country hit, "(So This is) Happy Hour", which peaked at number 71 on the Country music charts. The following year, the band released their follow-up album, an EP titled ''NightFighter''. This release featured six tracks, including what would become the band's biggest hit, "Bad, Bad Billy". This song would be the group's only ever song to crack the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking as high as No. 88 in August 1983. Penned by House, Larson, and Bowling, "Bad, Bad Billy" was also the only original tune on the EP, as the remaining tracks were covers of

and

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

songs. Another track from ''NightFighter'', "United or Divided" was later featured in the

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

film ''

Tomboy A tomboy is a girl or young woman who generally expresses masculine traits. Such traits may include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and engaging in activities and behaviors traditionally associated with boys or men. Origins The w ...

''. The group was popular in the

area, as well as

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

into the early 1980s. Later in the decade, Robbie House left the group to form the band Street Talk, and he was replaced by guitarist Norman Harrell. However, they could not duplicate the success they achieved with "Bad, Bad Billy", and the group faded from public view.

Currently

Larson and House, who had originally comprised the duo Coyote and Robbie prior to joining Snuff, join regularly with Norman Harrell and other musicians to perform under the Snuff moniker. In early September 2013, Larson, House, and Harrell reunited with Cecil Hooker and Michael Johnson from the classic Snuff lineup to perform at

Hampton, Virginia Hampton is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 137,148 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, seve ...

's annual

Bay Days A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), ''gulf'', ''sea'', sound (geography), ''sound'', or bi ...

festival.

Band members

Classic lineup

* James Gray "Jimbo" Bowling - Six-string acoustic and electric guitars, vocals (now deceased) * Robbie House - Acoustic and electric guitars, vocals * Cecil Hooker - Violins (4- and 5-string) * C. Scott Trabue - Bass guitar * Michael A. Johnson - Drums, percussion, vocals * Chuck "Coyote" Larson- Acoustic guitar, banjo, Lead Vocals

Later member

* Norman Harrell - Guitars, bass, Drums, vocals (replaced Robbie House; also played with the band prior to the "Classic lineup" days)

Earlier members

* Mike Jones - Vocals * Bill Wampler - Guitars, vocals

Discography

Albums

* 1982: ''Snuff'' ( Elektra) * 1983: ''NightFighter'' ( E.P.) (

Curb Records Curb Records (also known as Asylum-Curb and formerly known as MCG Curb) is an American record label started by Mike Curb, originally as Sidewalk Records in 1963. From 1969 to 1973, Curb merged with MGM Records where Curb served as President of M ...

) Snuff discography @Discogs.com
Retrieved 10-12-2013.

Singles

* 1982: "Boys in Oklahoma" * 1982: "When Jokers Are Wild" * 1982: "(So This is) Happy Hour" * 1983: "Bad, Bad Billy" * 1985: "United or Divided"

References

{{Authority control American country music groups American country rock groups