 In the spring of 1986, the Sweethearts Of The Rodeo took country music by storm. Although the Sweethearts, sisters Janis Gill and Kristine Arnold, had paid nearly 20 years of dues for their "overnight" success, when it finally hit, it was, as Janis recalls, "like a jet airplane taking off, with us just hanging onto the wings for dear life." With their first two albums spawning seven consecutive Top 10 hits, the Sweethearts filled country airwaves for the most of the latter '80s with classics like "Midnight Girl/Sunset Town," "Chains of Gold," "Satisfy You" and "Blue To The Bone." But the Sweethearts' glittering success had an adverse flipside that only gradually began to show itself. While they coped for a while with the pressure of recording, touring and the constant self-promotion that's required to stay on top, Janis and Kristine began to find themselves boxed into the sound and image that had worked so well for them. What the Sweethearts resurfaced with was a new record label, Sugar Hill, and a creative freedom unlike anything they had ever known before. But rather than reinventing themselves for their Sugar Hill debut, "Rodeo Waltz", they returned to their roots. The Sweethearts Of The Rodeo have added bluegrass and folk festivals to their touring schedule now, while still maintaining a strong fan base from their years at the top of the country charts. They perform now with a small acoustic band as well as doing occasional duo dates that include both their newer repertoire and acoustic reworking of their chart hits.
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