Copperhead (1986–1995)
Byrd co-founded Copperhead in 1986 in Morganton, North Carolina, alongside vocalist Neil Carswell. The band built a local following through outdoor performances in Burke County before signing an eight-album deal with Mercury Records in 1992. [10] Their self-titled debut album, produced by former Lynyrd Skynyrd producers Tom Dowd and mixed by Rodney Mills, was released the same year. [11] It featured singles including "Whiskey" and "The Scar", which received regional and national airplay on rock radio formats. The band’s song "Long Way from Home" was featured on the soundtrack of the 1991 film Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man . [12]
Copperhead toured nationally with bands such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, .38 Special, and Foreigner but in 1994 after internal conflicts within the band, being unable to get along to complete tour dates, failure to appear in the studio to work on new material, along with the rise of grunge reduced commercial support for southern rock, Mercury terminated the band’s record deal. As tensions continued and the band struggled to function, lead singer Neil Carswell accused other members of jealousy over his public recognition as the band’s frontman. He left the group in early 1995 to pursue a solo career. Byrd, Hawkins, Durden, and Suttlemyre continued briefly with a D.B. Bryant as lead vocalist, though this was short-lived and within months disbanded completely.
Jonas Ridge (1996–2000)
Following the demise of Copperhead in 1995, Byrd and Hawkins co-founded the band Jonas Ridge in 1996, alongside vocalist Jason Davis and drummer Okey Parsons. The band blended elements of alternative rock and post-grunge in the style of Matchbox Twenty and Sister Hazel.
In 1997, Jonas Ridge independently released their self-titled debut album, Jonas Ridge. The album featured 11 tracks, including "Talk," "Inside," and "Peace of Mind." [14] Despite the album's moderate success and the band's active performance schedule, Jonas Ridge disbanded in 2000 shortly after they finished recording their second full-length album at Trees Studios in Hickory, North Carolina that went unreleased but later uploaded on the internet by the band members in the early 2020s. The experience and musical synergy from this laid the groundwork for Byrd’s subsequent formation of the next band, A Course of Action. [15]
Hybrid, A Course of Action (2000–2016)
After Jonas Ridge ended Byrd and Hawkins once again formed a new band together originally named "Hybrid" along with Jonas Ridge drummer Okey Parsons and new lead vocalist, John Culberson. [16] By 2003 the band began to craft their new sound with a more hard rock sound but also sticking to a formula like that of alternative rock and alternative metal bands like A Perfect Circle, Deftones, and Chevelle. [17] The band recruited lead singer John Culberson in 2003, releasing their self-titled debut album in 2004 and their 2006 “Now You See” -EP before rebranding the band’s name as A Course of Action in November 2006. [18]
The group released their first full-length album under the name A Course of Action on May 1, 2011 via the band's own independent record label Spire Records. The album spawned the single “Never There”, which received moderate satellite radio play in 2013 [19] [20]
In early 2014 A Course of Action released a demo version of their new song “Who We Are” as a free download on their Reverbnation profile that went viral and achieved great regional success on local and satellite radio, also earning the band a nomination for the “Rock Band of the Year” award at the 2014 North Carolina Music Awards, although they lost to the band "What Happened Yesterday". [21] [22] The widespread success and viral attention “Who We Are” brought to the band led them to being booked to perform at the 2014 Rocklahoma music festival, prompting the band to release a new EP, Rocklahoma, to promote their new material to a national audience. [23] [24]
Byrd continued to achieve success with A Course of Action throughout 2014 which included touring as support for the bands Saving Abel, Tantric, Saliva, Puddle of Mudd, Nothing More, and Halestorm and also performing at the 2014 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally with Buckcherry. [25]
In January 2015 it was announced the band was signing a record deal with Star 1 Music Group to release their new album, which was later revealed to be titled Treason, scheduled for release on June 8, 2015. [26] The album produced the three singles "Beautiful", "107", and "Who We Are" before Byrd announced his departure from the band in April 2016 citing he will be retiring from the music industry. Although the band initially announced plans to continue after Byrd’s exit, A Course of Action has remained on indefinite hiatus and appears to have dissolved.
