America 

The folk-rock trio America formed in Watford, England in 1968 as Gerry Beckley, Dan Peek, and Lee "Dewey" Bunnell; all three singer-songwriters were sons of U.S. soldiers based in Britain. After honing their live show opening for Elton John and Cat Stevens, the group signed a record deal with Warner Brothers and released their eponymous debut album in 1971. At first the record went largely unnoticed, but a few weeks later the group released a long, dramatic single called "A Horse With No Name," which became an instant hit in early 1972, reaching No. 1 on the U.S. charts. The single was added to a new pressing of America, and the album, too, reached No. 1 and went platinum, also spawning the Top 10 single "I Need You." With a sound much like the superstar group Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, America quickly won over fans, but drew fire from critics. Nonetheless, their Top 10 1972 follow-up Homecoming, which contained the Top 10 hit "Ventura Highway," went gold, and the group won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1972.

America's 1973 album Hat Trick incorporated synthesizers and other new sounds, surprising fans. The group staged a comeback with 1974's Holiday, produced by George Martin, a more innovative record which contained fanciful arrangements; Martin continued working with America for the next few years, the only group besides the Beatles he worked with on a continuing basis. Holiday reached No. 3 and spun off the Top 10 singles "Tin Man" and "Lonely People." Their 1975 follow-up Hearts was another hit, riding to No. 4 on the strength of the Top 10 single "Sister Golden Hair." A 1975 "greatest hits" collection, remixed by Martin, went to No. 3 and eventually sold almost five million copies. 1976's Hideaway reached the Top 20, while 1977's Harbor peaked at No. 21.

In 1977 Dan Peek left America to become a Christian Contemporary solo performer, recording several successful albums on his own before joining the Christian soft rock band Peace in 1997. The other two members of America kept the group going with the help of guitarist Michael Woods, fulfilling their contract with Warner Bros. with a 1978 live album and then moving to Capitol. The new America made its debut in 1979 with Silent Letter, followed by 1980's Alibi, before making another comeback in 1983 with View From the Ground and the Top 10 track "You Can Do Magic." After the release of 1983's Your Move the group tried a new approach in an attempt to regain market share, switching to synthesizers and bringing in numerous studio musicians for 1984's Perspective, produced by dance guru Richie Zito (Berlin). The album peaked at No. 185 and a subsequent live album failed to chart; America broke up.

In 1991 America (Beckley and Bunnell) reformed to contributed four cuts to a new Rhino Records "greatest hits" package. The reunion became permanent and the group began to tour. In 1994 America released the eclectic Hourglass, their first studio album in ten years, after which Beckley recorded a solo album. Nearly thirty years after the band first formed America continues to tour; the duo released their latest album, Human Nature, in 1998.