Southern rock unit
the Outlaws was formed in Tampa, FL in 1972 by singers/guitarists
Hughie Thomasson and
Henry Paul, bassist
Frank O'Keefe, and drummer
Monte Yoho. With the 1973 addition of guitarist
Billy Jones, the lineup was complete, and after a year of intense touring the band became the first act signed to Arista under
Clive Davis;
the Outlaws' self-titled 1975 album spotlighted their
Eagles-influenced harmonies and
Allman Brothers-like guitar attack, yielding the Top 40 hit "There Goes Another Love Song." In the wake of 1977's
Bill Szymczyk-produced Hurry Sundown, both
Paul and
O'Keefe exited, with guitarist
Freddie Salem, bassist
Harvey Dalton Arnold, and second drummer
David Dix signing on for the 1978 concert set Bring It Back Alive and the studio effort Playin' to Win.
Salem was the next to go, and the lineup shuffles continued when
Arnold announced his departure following 1979's In the Eye of the Storm, with bassist
Rick Cua recruited for the next year's Ghost Riders in the Sky, which netted a Top 40 entry with its title track, a rendition of the
Vaughn Monroe favorite.
Yoho left to rejoin
Henry Paul soon after, and with the subsequent exit of
Jones, only
Thomasson remained from the original
Outlaws roster -- not surprisingly, the group disbanded upon completing 1982's Los Hombres Malo. A year later
Thomasson and
Paul formed a new
Outlaws lineup, adding guitarist
Chris Hicks, bassist
Barry Borden, and drummer
Jeff Howell; after issuing 1986's Soldiers of Fortune,
Paul again quit the band, with the remaining quartet returning in 1993 with Hittin' the Road. While
Paul resurfaced in 1994 in the chart-topping contemporary country band
Blackhawk,
Thomasson later toured with the reformed
Lynyrd Skynyrd while continuing to lead
the Outlaws, releasing So-Low in 2000. Sadly,
Jones and
O'Keefe died within three weeks of one another in early 1985. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide