If you like David or you don't care for his style of country music, it was a more colorful world in those days with David in it! I still respect what this man taught me about real country music through the years that I was able to work, make music, and live with him on and off the stage! Some days were tough, but more were great, and I am thankful to have had the opportunity to share "The Ride" with him. In the early days David had mastered branding, marketing, and songwriting. He was the P.T. Barnum of country music, and what a circus. On the road with painted trucks, forty-eight-foot trailers, buses, fancy cars, and several Harley-Davidson motorcycles for the band! Mickey was there and became an influence in David's look. David's greatest moment was adding his name to a song, brilliant, bringing him infamy for years to come. But then the demons are always just as great as the man. — Donna Lothridge

David Allan Coe,

THE MYSTERIOUS RHINESTONE COWBOY THE ORIGINAL OUTLAW

    David was born in Akron, Ohio in 1940. Coe lived a troubled youth and spent much of his time in and out of various youth correctional facilities. He was arrested at a young age for the possession of burglary tools and convicted and sent off to jail. While he was in and out of prison for the next several years David befriended a lot of black musicians and had his own all-Black band and was strongly influenced by Jimmy Reid and a host of other notable Black blues musicians.

    After David was released from prison, he traveled to Nashville to begin a career in music. He released the historic album, Requiem for a Harlequin, which brought him an instant cult following. He signed on as a staff writer for the legendary Nashville A-Team session steel guitar player Pete Drake, which produced the early recordings of acoustic demo songs. After Pete died, his wife found the early tapes and released an album a few years ago containing those songs. Later he caught the attention of Plantation Record's CEO Shelby Singleton, and recorded and released his debut album Penitentiary Blues in 1970. Coe was fast becoming known among the songwriters on the Nashville scene. He got his big break when Tanya Tucker recorded his song "Would You Lay With Me in a Field of Stone," which became a hit for her in 1973. David recorded "Once Upon a Rhyme," which included a cover of Steve Goodman's and John Prine's, "You Never Even Called Me By My Name." This turned out to be a timeless song to the outlaw country community.

    Coe recorded two independent albums, Nothing Sacred in 1978 and his controversial Underground Album in 1982. Both of these albums still sell today. They would become a major obstacle in Nashville and make him an outcast in the country music industry. Nashville CBS records producer, Billy Sherrill, who produced George Jones and Tammy Wynette, thought David had a great voice and even better songs so he signed him to the label. David later released two of his bigger hits, "The Ride" (1983), written by Nashville songwriter Gary Gentry, and "Mona Lisa Lost Her Smile" (1984). In 1983 David had a huge hit with "Take This Job and Shove It," which later became the movie of the same name. David teamed up with Pantera's Dimebag Darrell and his brother, Vinnie Paul, along with Rex Brown to record "Rebel Meets Rebel." This turned out to be a mixture of hard outlaw country with slamming hard metal! David's three hour "live" non-stop show contains a mixture of country, blues, rock 'n' roll, hard metal, and a little rap. He tells it like he sees it and he does not hold back on the more colorful words.

Mickey Hayes

    Mickey said goodbye to mama and packed the van, picking up his friends. When the van broke down, his mates went back home. Mickey threw his bass over his shoulder and started walking. He stepped from night into his destiny. As the sun came up, he was on his way. He has played with some of the greatest talents. It takes confidence, talent, and a little bit of crazy to do what he did. Doing what you love never comes without a cost. We have all had to walk through the dark to get to the light. But sometimes the trip is worth the ride. Mickey has some amazing stories. Funniest tales to tell. How he survived it all is a surprise. — Donna Lothridge