Atlanta Rhythm Section

• Genre: Lite Rock
• Hometown: Atlanta
• Atlanta Rhythm Section Website

About

Best known for the smoldering lite-rock staple "So Into You," Atlanta Rhythm Section started out as the house band for Studio One, a recording studio based in Doraville, Ga., that saw the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Billy Joe Royal, Al Kooper and Bonnie Bramlett, among others, pass through its doors. Members of another shadowy band made up of session players, Classics IV ("Spooky"), formed the nucleus of the group. With a propensity for playing well beyond the parameters of Southern rock, incorporating anything from jazz to reggae into the reservedly boogie-ing mash, Atlanta Rhythm Section built up a local following throughout the early '70s. But it wasn't until the appearance of their fifth album, A Rock and Roll Alternative, with its No. 7 hit "So Into You," that the band became known outside the South. "Imaginary Lover," from 1978's Champagne Jam, also managed to reach No. 7 on the charts, but from there Atlanta Rhythm Section's popularity began to wane. Despite lagging sales and their growing status as a one-hit wonder, the band continued to release new albums (as well as nearly annual greatest-hits packages) into the '00s.

- Mike McGuirk