The hard-gigging West Michigan country band gets inspiration from the likes of Waylon Jennings and Don Williams, but ups the ante with its own revved-up musical style. (Video, podcast)
Country Passion: David Lyle, right, and Sean Kittredge of Stolen Horses on Local Spins Live.
West Michigan singer and guitarist David Lyle spent a year-and-a-half in Nashville, living next door to veteran songwriter Mel McDaniel, soaking up the music scene and “learning the ropes” of the competitive country music business.
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His sobering assessment?
“There are so many fish in that pond,” says Lyle, a Wayland native who returned to the Grand Rapids area in 2007 to reconnect with his highly acclaimed Stolen Horses band which formed back in 1992.
Stolen Horses (Photo/Jodie Roberts Photography)
Since then, the hard-working, blue-collar, fist-pumping country outfit has released an impressive studio album, “Stick in the Mud” (recorded in Nashville and Oklahoma), opened for the likes of country stars Billy Currington, the Zac Brown Band and Joe Nichols, and become regular fixtures at outdoor festivals and clubs such as the Twisted Bull and Back Forty Saloon.
Because for Lyle and his bandmates – drummer Sean Kittredge of Muskegon, guitarist Joe Afton of Casnovia and bassist Kevin Sheppard of Saranac – keep things galloping musically is as much about making Michigan audiences happy as it is about making a dent in the national country music scene.
“What keeps me going is watching the crowd have a good time. I like being responsible for that,” Lyle insists. “It’s hard to keep two feet planted on the ground on stage, that’s for sure. It’s a natural high. Instead of resorting to real drugs, that is our drug.”
On Wednesday, Lyle and Kittredge graced the studios at News Talk 1340 AM (WJRW) for Local Spins Live to talk about Stolen Horses and perform a song, “Live Myself to Death,” which Lyle – a truck driver by day – says is about his hectic work schedule. “If I could slow down to 70 or 80 (hours a week), I’d probably fall asleep,” he jokes. Check out a podcast of the show here and watch a video of the duo’s performance below.
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Sean Kittredge and David Lyle of Stolen Horses
Growing up in a country music-loving household with a dad who played guitar, Lyle said traditional Nashville strains – including the music of Don Williams, Vern Gosdin and Waylon Jennings – got him hooked at an early age. And that still infuses the songs that Stolen Horses unleash today.
“It was good ol’ country music that got me enticed from the get-go,” he says, noting that Jennings remains a favorite. “He’s got that old traditional voice. Even the simplest songs of his cut right through.”
Stolen Horses will be cutting through a lot of live shows in the next few days, playing Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park at 7 p.m. or so on Friday as part of the Taste of Grand Rapids event, heading north to the Dam Festival in Rogers Heights on Saturday and finishing up the weekend with a 1 p.m. appearance at the giant Muskegon Bike Time celebration.
Get the full band schedule, merchandise, music and more information at Stolen Horses’ official website.
Email John Sinkevics at jsinkevics@gmail.com.
Copyright 2013, Spins on Music
Nice write up about The Stolen Horses Band. They did a great acoustic number on their song “Live Myself to Death Before I Die” I love going to their gigs.