...the tipping point in the creation of Houston County. It looked, after all, like nothing more than a conversation between brothers.
Zack and Adam Hooper were working in their family's meat-and-three restaurant after putting their music careers on hold for a time. Adam had begun writing and cutting demos with John Milldrum, whom he had known since the brothers' and John's bands had shared a billing a few years earlier. When Adam realized just how good their collaboration was, he asked Zack to join them.
"I know Adam better than anybody,” says Zack, “and I had never seen him so passionate about the music. That's what drew me in."
John's studio was in Dothan, Alabama, a six-hour drive from the brothers' north Georgia homes, but that Friday after work they drove down together. They wrote two songs that night and decided then and there they’d found something magical.
They had indeed, and that Friday-night writing session led ultimately to a Nashville record deal and a debut album that captures the perfect storm of creativity unleashed by the trio. With Houston County, Zack, Adam and John announce themselves as one of country music's most compelling new acts.
That "perfect storm" had a number of elements. For starters, all three are superb musicians who had honed their talents for years in their respective bands. Each entered their new partnership with no other motive than making the best music possible, checking their egos at the door. Adam and John's musicianship and musical sensibilities perfectly complemented Zack's way with a lyric. Perhaps most importantly, the three were able to harness the emotions surrounding a turning point in their lives, spinning uncertainty into hope and restless energy into an album's worth of well-crafted music.
Houston County is anchored by the first songs the trio wrote, songs that reflected a rough period in Zack's life that preceded his re-emergence as a creative force.
"I was still talking with a girl I'd broken up with, I knew I wasn't where I was supposed to be in terms of what I was doing for a living, and I wasn't dealing with either as well as I could have," says Zack. "It wasn't so much that I was angry or depressed, but I was really trying to find something new."
The outlet he needed came when, after years of trying to write what he thought the industry wanted, he began writing "what was inside, what I was feeling." In the next few weeks, those ideas, tempered by musical and lyrical give-and-take with Adam and John, became five songs that let them know they were on the right track. “Long, Hard Road”, "Three Dollar Cross," "Drink My Way To Happiness," "I Still Love You" and "The Watcher" all came out of those early sessions. Collectively, they are emotionally powerful treatments of loss, confusion, hope, belief and purpose, brought into sharp focus by their collective musical talents.
"What was coming out was unique," says Zack, "and it just came naturally."
Those early songs quickly earned the respect of entertainment entrepreneur Ronnie Gilley, who introduced them to Stroudavarious Records president and legendary producer James Stroud.
"They were both on the same page we were," says Zack. "We heard where it could go and what it could be, and Ronnie and James said, 'You've got something really cool and we want to take it somewhere.' It really happened fast."
The three spent the following year commuting to Nashville, writing with some of the city's best and fleshing out an album as varied as it is high-powered.
The tracks vary from "Workin' On A Suntan," a summer song par excellence, and "Nothing's Gonna Shake Me," a declaration of steadfast love and "I Can't Make It Rain," the album's poignant and emotionally rich first single.
The album caps a long musical journey for the trio. Zack and Adam grew up in Cleveland, Georgia, with a father who liked Springsteen, Pink Floyd and Bryan Adams as well as country giants like Johnny Cash and Charlie Daniels. "What we listened to mainly," says Adam, "was the guys with great melodies."
Both were sports fanatics in high school--"I was being recruited by colleges for basketball in the tenth grade, but then I never got any taller," Zack says with a laugh--and although much of their extended family played and sang, their formal interest in music came later.
"We loved it, but we never thought about being in a band," says Adam, who learned to play bass by watching his guitar-playing grandfather.
Zack finally started a band as he was about to leave high school, and dropped out after one semester of college to concentrate on music. He recruited Adam on bass and a 15-year-old friend on drums and started playing area clubs as Cloud 10.
"We kind of refused to do covers," says Adam. "What worked for us was how young we were, our high energy and great melodies."
"We would have 300 or 400 kids line up to see us," adds Zack, "and we were a local band doing original material without a record deal. They were drawn to the live shows. It was amazing."
John, meanwhile, was raised listening to '70s music of all kinds, from Waylon and Conway Twitty to Queen, Cheap Trick and Heart.
"I played football growing up and didn't get into music until later," he says. "I was turning 18 when I saw a local band play and thought it was kind of cool. I wanted to give it a try. Within a year I was out playing little bars, country and rock - basically Top 40 stuff."
With a band called Course of Nature, he landed a deal on an Atlantic Records imprint, released a record and toured the country. Course of Nature and Cloud 10 were both managed by Gilley, and when the two shared a bill at the Dothan, Alabama, Civic Center, they set in motion a friendship that reached fruition after all had left their bands behind to regroup.
Named for the southern Alabama county where John lived, Houston County brings a decade of musical groundwork to bear on their collaboration.
"With this project," says Adam, "we were writing from the heart. That’s something you can do with country music, and it opened doors creatively for us.”
"This isn't about complicated guitar parts or posing," says John. "It's about simple and straightforward music that reflects real life experiences."
"I can truly say," adds Zack, "that this album is an honest portrait of the last four years of my life. I'm sure that's true for all three of us. It's something that's real and something we're very proud of."
Houston County serves as an introduction to a world-class combination of superb musicianship, musical honesty and great three-way chemistry. The passion and honesty the trio brings to this collaboration shows through in every note of their debut CD, one that brings an important new act to the contemporary country scene.
I love your song "I Can't Make it Rain"! It's awesome. I'll definitely be coming to see you guys when you come back to Alabama. Have a good Thanksgiving & be careful! :)
Thanks for the add!! LOVE the debut single and it's definitely a HOT song right now in Green Bay, WI! It was #3 on the top 8 @ 8 last night! Congrats on the debut single. Looking forward to hearing more from you guys in the near future! :)
hey zach ur still soundin great and everyone down here in florida loves u and the guys. send me yalls new schedule of events when u know it.The whole emerald coast is ready to be at event. can't wait to get that info and see ya'll guys there!!!!!!
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Zach, John, & Adam 
hey zach ur still soundin great and everyone down here in florida loves u and the guys. send me yalls new schedule of events when u know it.The whole emerald coast is ready to be at event. can't wait to get that info and see ya'll guys there!!!!!!
