Rascal Flatts – Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian

There are times when I really miss having a real picture to hold on to. Back when MySpace and Facebook first got off the ground, we all seemed to post our pictures on those sites not knowing that over time, they would lose quality and become more pixilated. That’s the case with my photo today.

I thought I had a hard copy of this photo, but I was unable to find it. I also looked through some of my flash drives with no luck, so, I pulled this one off Facebook.

I post this one today because Joe Don Rooney (the guy to the right of me in this photo) celebrates his 49th birthday today. He was the group’s lead guitar player and sang a lot of the high harmonies on their songs. He played in Chely Wright’s band before he was in Rascal Flatts. He was once married to model and 2005 Playboy Playmate of the Year, Tiffany Fallon.

This photo was taken at DTE Energy Music theater in Michigan when Rascal Flatts came through on a summer tour. I would guess that they probably only had 2 albums out at the time, and I think they were they headliners of this tour.

Depending on the artist, the radio people either went first at the meet and greets or last. At this meet and greet, the fans got to go first and I always enjoyed watching them interact with an act. The guys were very gracious to them, signing autographs and posing for photos, and making sure to chat a little, too.

I am holding what looks like some sort of poster here. I am sure that I had stuff for them to sign for our St. Jude Auction at the radio station. A lot of times, the folks working with a band or artist want to keep things moving and simple. They had to keep them on schedule for the show. Whenever I mentioned that I had stuff for St. Jude, they allowed the artist to sign as much as they could to raise money.

I am sure that I met the guys a couple times. I may have to dig into the radio stuff to see if there is a better photo to post. Until I find one, this one will have to do ….

Today the beautiful Michelle Branch celebrates birthday 41. She broke onto the music scene in 2001 when she released her debut album, The Spirit Room. The album produced hits like Everywhere and All You Wanted. In 2003 she released her follow up album, Hotel Paper, which offered the top 20 hit, Are You Happy Now?

It was in 2005 that she teamed up with her backup singer (and good friend) Jessica Harp to form a group called “The Wreckers.” Her husband, as a joke, called the group the “Cass County Homewreckers” at first, but they shortened it to the Wreckers. The sound was a mixture of pop and country.

Their debut album (Stand Still, Look Pretty) was supposed to be released in 2005, but Michelle was pregnant at the time, so it wasn’t released until May of 2006. Their first single was released in February of 2006 and was called “Leave the Pieces.” They followed that with “My, Oh My” which I liked just as much. I had the chance to meet them when they came to town. I apologize for the quality of the photo, as I only have a digital scan of it. (I hate how digital photos loose sharpness the older they get.)

In 2005, the Wreckers appeared on the song “I’m Feeling You” with Santana on his All That I Am album. They also opened for Rascal Flatts on their US tour and appeared on the TV show One Tree Hill. he group was nominated for Vocal Duo of the Year at the 2006 CMA Awards and a Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group. I truly loved this group and wish that they had made more music together, but they split in 2007 to focus on their solo careers.

It’s a Tune Tuesday Two-Fer today! Here are both of the Wreckers songs I mentioned …