The legendary country/pop band Exile has been on the road for over four decades churning out top hits in different genres of music along the way.
Now, that chart-topping road is leading the band back to South Mississippi for the rest time in almost 20 years.
Exile, one of America’s longest-running bands, will be featured as part of Grand Magnolia Music’s “Fall Festival Series” at The Grand Magnolia Ballroom in Pascagoula on Friday, Oct. 13th. Tickets are already on sale at www.grandmagmusic.com as well as in person at Scranton’s Restaurant in Pascagoula.
“I think it’s the music, man, I really do. It just keeps us young, keeps us with a spring in our step,” founding member and lead singer J.P. Pennington said, in a recent interview. “As long as there’s a light at the end of the tunnel we’ll keep on goin’.”
In late 1978, the award-winning band who had initially set out to play small clubs in Kentucky skyrocketed to world-wide fame with their multi-week chart-topping pop and rock hit “Kiss You All Over.” That song catapulted Exile from bar shows in the South to the national spotlight as they appeared on NBC’s popular late-night music variety series “The Midnight Special”and “American Bandstand” and they then jumped on tour with Aerosmith and Fleetwood Mac.
The iconic song has been showcased in feature films such as “Happy Gilmore,” “Employee of the Month,” “Zookeeper and “Wildhogs”.
Soon after, in the early 1980s, the band began to focus on country music. During their run on the country charts Exile had 11 number-one singles including “I Don’t Want To Be A Memory,” “Give Me One More Chance” and “She’s A Miracle” along with “Woke Up in Love”, “I could get used to you”, “Crazy for your Love” and “Super Love” among many others.
The band not only wrote their own songs and played on all their recordings but also proved to be prolific songwriters composing hits for other artists such as Alabama “The Closer you Get, “Take me Down”), Restless Heart (“When she cries”), Huey Lewis, Diamond Rio (“What a beautiful Mess”). Janie Fricke (“It ain’t easy being easy”) and many more.
“There seemed to be elements of country music at the time that were being utilized or modernized that kind of lent itself to us and what we were as a band, and we felt like with a few minor changes, we had a shot to do something,” Pennington said
During this country phase of their career, Exile received 11 nominations including Vocal Group of The Year and Best Instrumental Performance for the Country Music Association and Academy of Country Music awards. In addition to their 11 number one hits they have had four additional top ten hits as well. The ultimate, cross-over band has sold over 8 million records worldwide, with three Gold albums. Exile has lasted longer than most marriages.
The current line-up has played together off and on for over 40 years.
