WEST SILOAM SPRINGS, Okla. — Cherokee Casino & Hotel West Siloam Springs will welcome the Grammy Award-winning band the Kentucky Headhunters at 9 p.m. Friday, April 3, at SEVEN Bar inside the casino.
Declared “the great American rock ‘n’ roll band” by Billboard magazine, the Kentucky Headhunters have built a decades-long career blending honky-tonk, blues and Southern rock into a sound that has resonated with both country and rock audiences.
The band’s roots trace back to 1968 in Edmonton, Kentucky, when brothers Fred and Richard Young joined cousins Greg Martin and Anthony Kenney to form the Southern blues-rock group Itchy Brother. After years of honing their sound and navigating the changing music landscape, the group reemerged in 1986 as the Kentucky Headhunters, adding vocalist Doug Phelps to the lineup.
Their breakout came with the release of 1989’s “Pickin’ on Nashville” on Mercury Records. The album became a commercial and critical success, selling more than 2 million copies and earning a Grammy Award, three Country Music Association Awards, an American Music Award and an Academy of Country Music Award. The project produced four consecutive Top 40 country hits, including “Dumas Walker” and “Oh, Lonesome Me.”
The Kentucky Headhunters continued to evolve throughout the 1990s and 2000s, releasing a string of albums that showcase their genre-spanning influences, from blues collaborations with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame pianist Johnnie Johnson to Southern rock-driven records such as “Electric Barnyard,” “Rave On!” and “Stompin’ Grounds.” Later releases, including “Songs From the Grass String Ranch,” “Soul,” “Big Boss Man,” “Flying Under the Radar” and “Dixie Lullabies,” further cemented the band’s reputation for fearless musical exploration.
In 2010, the group launched its own label, Practice House Records, returning to its Kentucky roots to record new material in the same farmhouse where the band first rehearsed. The move marked a full-circle moment for the musicians, whose bond as family and lifelong collaborators remains at the core of their sound.
Today, the Kentucky Headhunters lineup includes Richard Young, Fred Young, Greg Martin and Doug Phelps. Known for their high-energy live performances and signature harmonies, the band continues to deliver a powerful mix of rock, blues and country to audiences around the world.
The show is free to those 21 and older.
Located off U.S. Highway 412 and State Highway 59 at the Arkansas-Oklahoma state line, Cherokee Casino & Hotel West Siloam Springs is the region’s leading casino entertainment destination, serving northwest Arkansas and the surrounding area. For more information on gaming and amenities, visit www.cherokeecasino.com and click on the West Siloam Springs tab, or call 800-754-4111. More information about One Star Rewards® is available at www.onestarrewards.com.