February 22, 2015--All-American Rejects, Why Worry

Artist:  The All-American Rejects
Song:  Why Worry
Album:  The All-American Rejects

Alright, so I might have a soft spot for these guys.  Hanging out with a friend the other night who decided to play some of their songs and I realized that I haven't shared any of their music and that is something that I intend to remedy.

Anyway, my soft spot is because these are some home state boys.  They got their start in Stillwater, Oklahoma in 1999.  Tyson Ritter (lead vocals/bass/piano), Nick Wheeler (lead guitar), Mike Kennerty (rhythm guitar), and Chris Gaylor (drums) make up the band.  

The band formed when Tyson Ritter and Nick Wheeler were both still in high school.  Nick had been wanting to start a band and Tyson discovered that he was looking for a bassist.  Ritter, who didn't know how to play at the time, said that he could play bass.  Nick asked him to come try out so Ritter locked himself away until he taught himself to play bass well enough to face Nick again.  Fortunately, he was a fast learner and made the cut.  The fact that he could do vocals as well cemented him into the group.  Kennerty and Gaylor were from a band in Edmond, Oklahoma and after meeting Ritter and Wheeler the four of them joined forces to create The All-American Rejects.

Their song "Swing, Swing' which was released in 2003 is the song that gave them the notoriety that they had been working for since their conception.  "The Last Song" from their debut album also saw success.  Their second album, "Move Along", brought even more success with songs like "Move Along", "Dirty Little Secret", and "Stab My Back".  Their third album, "When The World Comes Down", brought them their most successful song yet, "Gives You Hell".  After the release of "Gives You Hell" the band was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame.  "Gives You Hell" reached #4 on the Billboard Top 100 charts and helped the band become known as one of the hottest musical groups of the 2000s.

I am a fan of a lot of their work.  I can put in an album and not skip a song.  That says a lot about a group, if you ask me.

Enjoy!

--kk