The Kentucky Headhunters - Musical Styles

Musical Styles

The band's sound is influenced by country music, blues, Southern rock and heavy metal, and has been described as "guitar-heavy, rambunctious music." Lead singer Doug Phelps' voice has been described as "alternately suggest Count Basie's storied blues shouter Jimmy Rushing and the laid-back cool of Eagle Glenn Frey." The band's combination of styles is most notable in its cover song choices on early albums. All three Mercury albums contain a Bill Monroe cover, and other covers on these albums include Waylon Jennings, Carl Perkins, Norman Greenbaum and The Lovin' Spoonful. Soul showcased the band's blues and R&B influences through its use of Hammond organ and a horn section. The band's original compositions, such as "Dumas Walker" and the title track to Songs from the Grass String Ranch, often develop a regional theme.

At its peak in the early 1990s, The Kentucky Headhunters were considered a dark horse in country music, due to the significant mainstream attention that the band received despite their rougher sound and the members' rural Southern image. In 1991, Entertainment Weekly critic Alanna Nash wrote that although the band did not sell as many albums as contemporaries George Strait or Garth Brooks, "they may just end up redefining country for the '90s" given the diverse range of influences and styles. Billboard critic Ray Waddell called the band "arguably the most consistent and durable Southern rock outfit on the planet."