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Trick Pony
Trick Pony in concert (L-R: Keith Burns, Heidi Newfield, Ira Dean)
Background information
Origin	Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Genres	Country
Years active	1996-2008
Labels	Warner Bros. Nashville, Asylum-Curb
Associated acts	Burns & Poe, Chuck Howard
Former members
Keith Burns Ira Dean Aubrey Collins Heidi Newfield

Trick Pony was an American country music group. It was formed in 1996 by Keith Burns (lead guitar, vocals), Ira Dean (bass guitar, upright bass, vocals), and Heidi Newfield (lead vocals, harmonica, acoustic guitar). Under this original lineup, the group recorded three studio albums: Trick Pony, On a Mission and R.I.D.E., released in 2001 in 2002 and 2005, respectively. These albums produced eight charted singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, of which the highest peaking was 2002's "On a Night Like This" at #4.

In 2006, Newfield departed for a solo career, with Aubrey Collins taking her place on lead vocals. The group subssequently disbanded after Collins and Burns left in 2007 and 2008, respectively. Newfield released a solo debut album, What Am I Waiting For, in 2008 on Curb Records, while Burns joined singer Michelle Poe to form a duo called Burns & Poe.

History

Trick Pony was formed in 1996 by guitarist Keith Burns and bass guitarist Ira Dean. Both musicians had experience as backing musicians for other country music acts; Burns had previously worked with Joe Diffie, and Dean with Tanya Tucker.¹ Keith and Ira decided to form a group composed of two men and a woman. Completing the lineup was lead singer Heidi Newfield, a friend of Burns' then-wife.¹ The trio began touring throughout the Southern United States.¹

Musical career

Ira Dean, Heidi Newfield, and Keith Burns signing autographs at the CMA Music Festival in 2006. (Photo by Sisterphotography)

By 2000, Trick Pony was signed to a record deal with Warner Bros. Records. The trio released its self-titled debut album that year. Serving as its lead-off single was "Pour Me," which reached a peak of #12 on the Billboard country music charts. Two additional singles ("On a Night Like This" and the Grammy Award-nominated "Just What I Do") were issued from the album, which earned RIAA gold certification in the United States.¹ Of these, "Just What I Do" was the only single to feature Keith Burns on lead vocals, although all three members alternated as lead vocalists on the album cuts.² In 2001, the trio also received the Artist of the Year award from the Country Music Association, as well as the American Music Association's Top New Arist award.³

On a Mission was the title of Trick Pony's second album. Although its David Lee Murphy-penned title track reached Top 20 on the country charts, the second single (2003's "A Boy Like You") failed to enter Top 40, and the group was dropped from Warner Bros.' roster shortly afterward.

In 2004, Trick Pony was signed to its second record deal, this time with Asylum-Curb Records.³ Their sixth single overall, entitled "The Bride", was issued that year, serving as the lead-off to their third studio album, R.I.D.E. (an abbreviation for "Rebellious Individuals Delivering Entertainment⁴). The second single from R.I.D.E. was a cover of "It's a Heartache", a country pop standard made famous by Bonnie Tyler. Trick Pony's version of the song peaked at #22 on the country music charts. The third single from R.I.D.E., "Ain't Wastin' Good Whiskey on You", featured guest vocals from Tracy Byrd, Joe Diffie, Mel Tillis, Tanya Tucker and Darryl Worley.

Departure of Heidi Newfield and subsequent disbanding

In October 2006, lead singer Heidi Newfield announced that she would be leaving Trick Pony in pursuit of a solo career. She made her official departure at the end of the group's December 2006 tour.⁵ Newfield began recording her first solo album for Asylum-Curb in June 2007.⁶ She made her solo debut on Cledus T. Judd's 2007 album Boogity, Boogity - A Tribute to the Comedic Genius of Ray Stevens, on which she, Judd, and Keith Urban performed a cover of Ray Stevens' 1969 single "Gitarzan".

Aubrey Collins, a singer-songwriter from Littleton, Colorado who had previously been eliminated from ABC's television program The One: Making a Music Star, was chosen as Newfield's replacement in 2007.⁷ Collins made her official debut as lead singer in April 2007 at the Country Thunder festival in Arizona.⁸ Collins left the group in October, saying that although she enjoyed working with the group's other two members, she and they "had different creative and musical visions".⁹ Ira Dean announced his departure in February 2008, and Trick Pony was disbanded.¹⁰ In April 2009, Warner Bros. released The Best of Trick Pony, a compilation composed of songs from the trio's first two albums.

Status of former members

Newfield released her solo debut album, What Am I Waiting For, via Curb Records in 2008. Burns, meanwhile, founded the duo Burns and Poe with former DreamWorks Records Nashville artist Michelle Poe.¹¹ Dean has begun writing songs for other artists, including Montgomery Gentry's 2009 single "One in Every Crowd".

Discography

Albums

Singles

Music videos

References

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