The Oak Ridge Boys: A new sound for an old band

By JOHN BENSON

entertainment@vindy.com

Over the past seven decades there have been many different incarnations and lineups of The Oak Ridge Boys. The latest transformation finds the classic country and gospel act — known for more than a dozen No. 1 singles such as “Elvira,” “Bobbie Sue,” “Thank God For Kids,” “American Made” and “Gonna Take A Lot Of River” — updating its sound into not only the new millennium but also different genres.

This makeover of sorts is documented on the act’s 2009 effort “The Boys are Back,” which includes unexpected covers ranging from The White Stripes’ “Seventh Nation Army” to John Lee Hooker’s “Boom Boom.”

“How this all came about is an interesting story,” said veteran Oak Ridge Boys bass singer Richard Sterban, calling from a tour stop in Las Vegas. “A few years ago we got a call from Shooter Jennings, who is Waylon’s son. He wanted us to sing on a song he wrote called ‘Slow Train.’ So we went to the studio one night, cut the song and then had a chance to hang out with Shooter and his young producer, a fellow named David Cobb. He’s a young guy who is really a rock ’n’ roll producer. We hit it off with him.”

At that point, Sterban and company didn’t think anything else would come from their efforts. However, after Jennings had the band sing at his Nashville show, where younger audiences went crazy when the country act appeared on stage, The Oak Ridge Boys got an idea.

“We got to thinking maybe seriously we can record some music that would appeal to a younger audience and expand our audience,” Sterban said. “So the idea was born that night to do this project and work with this young producer. Basically we just put ourselves in his hand and told him to take us where you see us going. He basically took us down some different roads that we haven’t traveled before and probably wouldn’t have traveled down on our own. Cobb told us he wanted to do a project that kind of sounded like an American songbook, and I think that’s kind of what we did. It showed all the different sides of The Oak Ridge Boys and the ability that we had to do a lot of styles of music.”

He added, “The closest thing that I can compare it to, which I now have on my iPod, is what (uber-producer) Rick Rubin did with Johnny Cash. So while this music is different, there aren’t a lot of fancy bells and whistles.”

The Oak Ridge Boys bring its new sound to the area for a Saturday show at Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pa. However, even though the Oak Ridge Boys may be attempting to attract a younger audience, Sterban had this message for the act’s diehard fans.

“This new album is just typical Oak Ridge Boys,” Sterban said. “We’ve been around for a long, long time, and we’ve had a long successful career. A big reason for that is periodically we’ve been able to reinvent ourselves. We haven’t just rested on our laurels, but we’ve tried to stay on top of what’s happening in the music business, and I think this is part of that. So this is just another step in the reinvention of the Oak Ridge Boys. It keeps us fresh, it really does.”