Country Music Lovers Take Note: 10 time Grammy Winner ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL Heads to Burlington

Have you seen signs around Burlington that read Asleep At The Wheel and found yourself wondering what it’s all about?

Here’s the scoop! Asleep At The Wheel is a legendary country music band that specializes in Texas swing, a combination of elements of American blues, swing and traditional fiddling. They have 10 Grammy Awards, have released over twenty albums and charted more than 20 singles on the Billboard country charts.

Want more? The band has been voted Best Country and Western Band by Rolling Stone, awarded Touring Band of the Year by the Academy of Country Music, honored by the Americana Music Association with a Lifetime Achievement Award and inducted into the 2015 Austin City Limits Hall of Fame.

On June 9, at 7:30 pm, Asleep At The Wheel will make a rare New England appearance when they take the stage at the Fogelberg Performing Arts Center of Burlington High School. Their performance is the final concert of the Burlington Community Concert Series season.

The Wheel has been around for more than 40 years, founded in 1969 by Ray Benson and co-founder Lucky Oceans in Paw Paw, West Virginia. They soon became the opening act for Alice Cooper and Hot Tuna, and not long after moved to East Oakland, California. With mentions by such music greats as Van Morrison and Willy Nelson, they landed a record deal with United Artists, and moved to Austin, Texas, at the suggestion of Nelson.

Asleep At The Wheel’s music found its niche at the height of the Vietnam era. “Many Americans were using their choice of music to express their stance on the conflict in Southeast Asia,” front man Benson stated in a recent interview with the Grand Ole Opry. “We wanted to break that mold. We were concerned more with this amazing roots music, which we felt was being lost amid the politics. We were too country for the rock folks and we were too long-haired for the country folks. But everybody got over it once the music started playing.”

Today the band is comprised of eight members who perform on a range of instruments including the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, horn, percussion and keyboards. Their hits abound and include “Route 66,” “The Letter That Johnnie Walker Read,” “Boogie Back to Texas,” and “Hot Rod Lincoln.”

There’s nothing like Asleep At The Wheel heritage country music! “Jazz with a cowboy hat” is how Ray Benson describes it. “We’re a dance band. That’s what we’re about. And that’s plenty,” and adds, “The Wheel keeps rolling!”

Tickets are $5 for students, $20 for senior citizens and $25 for adults; available at www.BurlingtonTheatre.com, 781-A-FUN-TIC and at the door. Fogelberg Performing Arts Center, an accessible venue, is located on the campus of Burlington High School, 123 Cambridge Street, Burlington MA. Co-sponsored by Burlington Public Schools and Burlington Area Chamber of Commerce.