About
A Little Bit Country
In the last few years the popularity of country music has been steadily on the rise. Not just in the USA but here in the shires of the UK too. There are many British acts working to break the stigma that seems to have befallen this honest musical genre. One of those acts is A Little Bit Country.
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It was back in 2011 that the seeds of A Little Bit Country were first sown. Harriet Stewart, a British born singer and fan of country music wanted to write a song for her EP that not only showed the female side of a break up but that included a male perspective too. Her producer Steve Richmond knew just the man, so enlisted the help of his friend and business colleague "Mr" Paul Adams, a Texas born singer/songwriter, with a very English upbringing.
Although, like most people, Paul was a secret fan of country music, he had been avoiding his country roots! Back when he had started performing - and come to think of it as far back as he could remember - country music, at least in the UK, was seen as a bit of a joke! Whenever he travelled home though, it was played in every bar, on every station and in every truck! Harriet, Paul and Steve locked themselves away in the garden home of SummerHouse Studios in Aylesbury, and began to pen 'Barely Sleeping'. No matter who heard the track, Harriet and Paul were told what people had been telling them both individually for years, that it sounded a little bit country. And so their journey began. The duo played a few open mics and small music venues around the UK whilst Harriet attended university but hit the circuit hard on her return in 2014, playing many prestigious venues, such as the world famous Pinewood Studios. In April 2015 they released their debut single 'Come To The Crossroads', written by ALBC and produced by Steve Richmond. In June that same year they signed an album deal with Steve Lockwood's BFS Records. There was one problem though, they only had one orginal song! |
The challenge was on, and Paul and Harriet rose to it by locking themselves away for the remainder of that month to write a further seven original tracks. They also "borrowed" 'Barely Sleeping' from Harriet's EP and Paul's 'Back On The Road', from his - yet to be released - second LP. They had indeed created a true and honest, original album and hit the recording studio hard in July and the live circuit even harder in August.
The duo worked hard to build up their ever growing fanbase but it was a hard slog. It appeared the stigma was still attached to their chosen genre but the duo were relentles. As time went by they could see that people were becoming increasingly excited about country music. Their plan was working! In October 2016, the pair released their follow up single, 'Shot At Loving You' on the same day they arrived in Nashville, Tennessee. They could not have been happier, and more amazed, at the reception they received there. They were in the home of country music and found themselves right at home. ALBC set about making contacts and even performed intimate shows for a select group of people, including those in the business of country music. Their popularity soared and the single proved more popular than they could ever have imagined, hitting over 67,000 streams and it's still climbing! Definitive proof that original and expressive heartfelt country music is a highly sought after art form. Only history will tell us how far this duo will soar, and with the release of their debut album 'Whisky and Wine' just around the corner, who knows what's in store for A Little Bit Country. |