John Anderson and Jon Anderson

Unlike many country artists, the music that John Anderson grew up with was never country music, instead, Anderson grew up in thrall to the likes of Jimi Hendrix and The Rolling Stones, to the extent that the first band he was ever in was a rock and roll band. However, That came to an end when Anderson was 15, when he discovered the likes of George Jones and Merle Haggard for himself. After that, all bets were off, Anderson wanted nothing more than to be a country singer, and in 1971, he relocated to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue that dream. It was six years before he got his big break, and signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1977. Those six years paid off handsomely as his second single “I've Got A Feelin' (Somebody's Been Stealin')”, his first on a major label, charted on the Billboard country charts after its first week of release.

By the end of 1978, he'd broke the top 40 of the chart with the single “The Girl At The End Of The Bar”, and thanks to his distinctive accent and singing style, he became the forefront of the “New Traditionalist” movement along with Ricky Skaggs and George Strait. His mainstream breakthrough came in 1982 with the release of his album “Wild & Blue”, and most notably with the single “Swingin'” which was a number one hit on the country charts and even cracked the Billboard Hot 100 as well. Ever since then, Anderson has remained one of the most respected songwriters of his generation, with a countless amount of critically acclaimed albums to his name, and the kind of song-writing experience that many would give their left leg for. He's still touring to this day, and for everything he gave to country music, John Anderson comes highly recommended.