Black Oak Arkansas

With roots reaching back to 1963, Southern rock band Black Oak Arkansas was formed in 1970, in Black Oak, Arkansas. Originally, the band’s members – Ronnie ‘Chicky Hawk’ Smith (vocals), Rickie Lee Reynolds (guitar), Stanley ‘Goober Grin’ Knight (guitar), Pat ‘Dirty’ Daugherty (bass), Havey ‘Burley’ Jett (guitar), and Wayne ‘Squeezebox’ Evans (drums) – formed The Knowbody Else when they were still in high school. After a short time, Ronnie ‘Chick Hawk’ Smith handed the lead vocal position to James ‘Jim Dandy’ Mangrum, a friend of the band. They stole a PA system from their school and, after narrowly avoiding prison time, they moved to a rural part of Arkansas and spent all their time rehearsing. After moving to Memphis, Tennessee in 1969, they signed a deal with Stax Records and released their self-titled debut album, which was not a success. In 1970, they signed with Atco Records and changed their name to Black Oak Arkansas. They released their self-titled debut in early 1971. The album was followed by Keep the Faith (1972), If an Angel Came to See You, Would You Make Her Feel at Home? (1972), and Raunch ‘N’ Roll Live (1972) before having their commercial breakthrough with High on the Hog (1973), which reached number 52 on the Billboard 200. Their success meant that their early recordings for Stax were reissued in 1974 as Early Times, which surprisingly reached number 56 on the albums chart. Black Oak Arkansas’ popularity continued with Street Party (1974) before the band started losing their grip on the charts. After the subsequent failure of Ain’t Life Grand (1975), they signed with MCA and issued X-Rated (1975), Balls of Fire (1976), and 10 Yr Overnight Success (1976. The band’s line-up had changed over the years, but in hopes of turning things around commercially, Jim Dandy Mangrum replaced all the members of the band, shortened their name to Black Oak, and signed with Capricorn Records. The two albums released on the label – Race with the Devil (1977) and I’d Rather Be Sailing (1978) – were not commercially successful and they left the label. Mangrum left the band for several years but returned and the band was then billed as Jim Dandy’s Black Oak Arkansas beginning with the release of Ready as Hell (1984) and The Black Attack Is Back (1986). Jim Dandy’s Black Oak Arkansas has continued to be a popular live draw and has released studio albums as well as live releases and compilations over the years including 2023’s The Devil’s Jukebox.

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