Nowadays, when you think about the Dixie Chicks, you probably think about lead singer Natalie Maines and all the controversy she has started. But it hasn't always been like this for the Chicks.
When the Chicks started they were a country girl-group quartet rather than the trio we all love. The group was formed by sisters Martie and Emily Erwin, along with Laura Lynch and Robin Lynn Macy. The sisters played the instruments while Lynch and Macy sang. Later the Erwin sisters got married and became Martie Maguire and Emily Robinson.
When they started out, their sound was mainly bluegrass. In 1990, they released their first album with the independent label Crystal Clear Sound called Thank Heavens for Dale Evans. The name was an allusion to the pioneering female performer, Dale Evans. The album had two instrumental tracks. At the Telluride Bluegrass Festival the band won Best Band, earning them some positive reviews. They also found themselves opening for Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, and George Strait. But they still were not receiving any play outside of public radio.
In late 1991, the Chicks released a Christmas single called "Home on the Radar Range." Then in 1992 they released their second album, Little Ol' Cowgirl, in which steel guitar legend, Lloyd Maines, played on. Much of this new album was contemporary. They continued to appear at events, and also continued to get positive reviews. They still were not getting much airplay outside of the Texas and Nashville area.
When the Chicks started they were a country girl-group quartet rather than the trio we all love. The group was formed by sisters Martie and Emily Erwin, along with Laura Lynch and Robin Lynn Macy. The sisters played the instruments while Lynch and Macy sang. Later the Erwin sisters got married and became Martie Maguire and Emily Robinson.
When they started out, their sound was mainly bluegrass. In 1990, they released their first album with the independent label Crystal Clear Sound called Thank Heavens for Dale Evans. The name was an allusion to the pioneering female performer, Dale Evans. The album had two instrumental tracks. At the Telluride Bluegrass Festival the band won Best Band, earning them some positive reviews. They also found themselves opening for Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, and George Strait. But they still were not receiving any play outside of public radio.
In late 1991, the Chicks released a Christmas single called "Home on the Radar Range." Then in 1992 they released their second album, Little Ol' Cowgirl, in which steel guitar legend, Lloyd Maines, played on. Much of this new album was contemporary. They continued to appear at events, and also continued to get positive reviews. They still were not getting much airplay outside of the Texas and Nashville area.
