The Judds News

Country singer Joanna Smith was raised in Georgia red clay country in Arlington, and after hearing the likes of Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, and the Judds as a child, she made it her aspiration to be a singer, entering every talent show she could and doing whatever it took to get on-stage and sing.

She tells The Daily News, "I was so far away from ever achieving that, it almost made it seem more attainable, because I was in a dream world.

This Raleigh singer/songwriter's road to country music has been anything but the traditional route.

Together they were the toast of the Rochester music scene in the late 1960s and early '70s. Then Bat McGrath and Don Potter went their separate ways.

The members of The Lone Bellow were standing around after opening for Dwight Yoakam at a recent show when they overheard three good ol' boys discussing their music.