It’s the kind of story you read about in books and watch on the big screen at the movies. For the band ALABAMA, it’s not just a story, it’s their life. It’s a classic American tale of rags to riches. From humble beginnings picking cotton in the fields, to international stars that went on to sell millions of albums while changing the face and sound of country music.

It's been 50 years since Jeff Cook, Teddy Gentry and Randy Owen left the cotton farms of Fort Payne, Alabama, to spend the summer playing in a Myrtle Beach, South Carolina bar called The Bowery. Having grown up working in the fields, the cousins were no strangers to hard work. They didn’t flinch when it took six long years of working for tips and living hand to mouth playing in the bar.

Of the early days and their humble beginnings, Jeff says, "I don't think we thought too far ahead. We were more concerned with paying our bills at the end of the week and playing music."

Finally, word of mouth earned the major label deal they'd been dreaming of. In 1980 the band broke through with their first Top 20 hit “My Home’s In Alabama.”

ALABAMA is the band that changed everything. They brought country music to the mainstream and from side stage to the main stage. ALABAMA introduced rock style guitars, lights, pyrotechnics and sounds to the country audience.