This Cd contains 12 of the coolest tracks of great country and western music that's come along in decades. Royal Wade portrays outlaws, good guys and good ol' boys who rode the range! He has a romantic side as well, that will keep you coming back for more! Saddle up and choose your favorites.
Check out www.royalwadekimes.com for the latest on RWK.
Bio
Born in the deep South where the James Gang, Daltons, Youngers, Bell Star and others rode. Royal Wade himself descended from a band of bank-robbing outlaws, who ran with the likes of Bonnie and Clyde, Ma Barker and Pretty Boy Floyd. Though he came from a family of outlaws and is considered the outlaw of Nashville, because he won't play the Nashville game, he can give you both sides to the cowboy, the west.
In fact Kimes gets right down to business in the first cut, "Poines." This song has been covered before, but no one has come close to the job Kimes did on the song. You would have to know and understand horses, understand the cowboy to achieve this kind of rendition of the song.
Kimes take on the cowboy life. "Well it isn't just the cowboy riding off into the sunset with a pretty girl, although I like that picture, it is about hard work.
The cowboy not only works the ranch, but he works for his ponies, his cattle, and himself. A cowboy learns resposibility early on when he has a good horse that depends on him to keep him fed, and a place to stay."
This hard work ethic carried over into the music biz for Kimes.
His hard work and perseverance have helped make him one of the industry's most gifted singer/songwriters. Having penned hits for Garth Brooks, Diamond Rio and Gene Watson, there are real stories to Kimes' songs.
Kimes first album, Another Man's Sky (Asylum), produced a top 10 video and a top 10 dance record across the nation. Not to mention a top 20 off the record "Courage Of Daniel" after everyone thought the record had run its course.
For his second effort, Hangin' Around the Moon (Wonderment Records) Kimes loaded up his car, hit the road and took his music straight to his fans, often selling CDs right out of his trunk. His hard work paid off again as the album soared to #1 on the World Major/INDIE chart. The album also won the coveted Will Rogers Masters Award and was voted Album of the Year by the Academy of Western Artists. In 2003 the AWA honored Kimes with 12 nominations including Entertainer of the Year.
Then along comes "A Dyin' Breed" (Wonderment Records), is "a straight-shootin', no gimmicks, Country album that celebrates traditional cowboy values," says Cowboys and Indians magazine. Boasting contributing talent from the likes of Sheb Wooley (aka Ben Colter) and actress Leslie Easterbrook, the album had everyone talking, from Country Weekly and American Cowboy magazines to the Outdoor Channel and Kansas City's Fox 4 TV. Kimes' duet with Garth Brooks, "Night Birds," proved hugely popular at home and abroad, climbing all the way to #1 on the E.M.S. European chart.
What do you do after you have proven to the world that your for real, after you have exploded?
What Kimes does next is nothing short of brilliant. He comes with an album called "Cowboy Cool" and puts out a single from that record that no one could have predicted.
"Knocking On Heavens Door" an old Bob Dylan song. The idea that anyone would cut that song and put it out in a country and western market is both couragous and unbelieveably smart. At first glance you would think, "Not Smart" but then when you take a real listen to the lyric, and the way Kimes covered the song, you realize this is cool, "Cowboy Cool."
Kimes said while laughing, "Disc Jokies were calling from all over the country."
"They would say, I sure didn't realize this was a cowboy song." Kimes answered, "Yea sure is, bout as cowboy as it gets, it was written and sung for the "Billy The Kid Movie."
"Cowboy Cool" contains 12 tracks that explain just who a cowboy is. Like "Modern day Drover" a cattle hauler coming out of the big sky country heading home, thus the modern day drover. "Shooting Star" a fast on the draw sheriff, and the colorful way Kimes lays it out is story telling at its best.
Then comes the tender side, "Cowboys Only Cry In The Rain" a cowboy who only crys in the rain can never for sure be tagged as crying at all. A very clever, and thoughtful way of showing the tender side of a cowboy who doesn't want you to know it is there.
This is where I take time to sigh and say.... Yes Royal Wade Kimes shows us that we might all have a little cowboy dewelling within us. we don't have to ride horses and heard cattle to have a trace of cowboy, afterall, a cowboy stands for truth, honor, values, and ready to fight, not to mention have a good time. After hearing this record, I have to believe our make up as Americans comes with a little cowboy.
Update::::
Kimes' rendition of "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" has been said to be the best cover of the song to date.
Keep up with Royal Wade Kimes and Cowboy Cool at www.royalwadekimes.com www.wondermentrecords.com www.mountroyaltrailride.com
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