The title Rewind suggests Rascal Flatts are ready to turn back the clock, perhaps to the start of their career or something even earlier, but the first song on this 2014 album drops an allusion to Instagram, so the trio is hardly unaware of the digital age. Throughout Rewind, Rascal Flatts reference other wonders of the modern age while also taking pains to position themselves as part of a lineage -- the title track casually mentions George Strait as a common thread between alienated lovers -- but there's never any indication that this Ohio band considers the past as more worthy than the present. This embrace of the now is one of the hallmarks of Rascal Flatts, a group that thoroughly inhabits the new suburban country, a country that resides not in the sticks but on the outskirts of a major urban center, the place where big box stores stretch as far as the eye can see. To that end, the trio brings in Howard Benson -- a producer better known for active rockers like 3 Doors Down, Saliva, Hoobastank, and DAUGHTRY who has also often worked with Kelly Clarkson -- to give Rewind a stainless gleam suited for the suburbs and this makes Rewind far livelier than any of its immediate predecessors, which by and large favored the softer, slower side of the trio. Certainly, that sweetness is evident on Rewind -- not so coincidentally, it surfaces strongly on the title track and the syrupy "I Have Never Been to Memphis" -- but the record thrives on its brighter moments, the times where it adopts either the sound or sentiment of "DJ Tonight," "Powerful Stuff," and "I Like the Sound of That," songs that consciously weave modern catch phrases into friendly, hooky songs designed to be heard everywhere a radio could be played. Occasionally, there are hints that Rascal Flatts are getting a little bit old to be pandering for big hits -- Gary LeVox does not easily drop references to phone apps -- but when the music is as carefully constructed as "I'm on Fire," a song that expertly fuses their arena-rock stomp and their waiting-room sentimentality, it's hard not to succumb to Rascal Flatts' smooth touch.The title Rewind suggests Rascal Flatts are ready to turn back the clock, perhaps to the start of their career or something even earlier, but the first song on this 2014 album drops an allusion to Instagram, so the trio is hardly unaware of the digital age. Throughout Rewind, Rascal Flatts reference other wonders of the modern age while also taking pains to position themselves as part of a lineage -- the title track casually mentions George Strait as a common thread between alienated lovers -- but there's never any indication that this Ohio band considers the past as more worthy than the present. This embrace of the now is one of the hallmarks of Rascal Flatts, a group that thoroughly inhabits the new suburban country, a country that resides not in the sticks but on the outskirts of a major urban center, the place where big box stores stretch as far as the eye can see. To that end, the trio brings in Howard Benson -- a producer better known for active rockers like 3 Doors Down, Saliva, Hoobastank, and DAUGHTRY who has also often worked with Kelly Clarkson -- to give Rewind a stainless gleam suited for the suburbs and this makes Rewind far livelier than any of its immediate predecessors, which by and large favored the softer, slower side of the trio. Certainly, that sweetness is evident on Rewind -- not so coincidentally, it surfaces strongly on the title track and the syrupy "I Have Never Been to Memphis" -- but the record thrives on its brighter moments, the times where it adopts either the sound or sentiment of "DJ Tonight," "Powerful Stuff," and "I Like the Sound of That," songs that consciously weave modern catch phrases into friendly, hooky songs designed to be heard everywhere a radio could be played. Occasionally, there are hints that Rascal Flatts are getting a little bit old to be pandering for big hits -- Gary LeVox does not easily drop references to phone apps -- but when the music is as carefully constructed as "I'm on Fire," a song that expertly fuses their arena-rock stomp and their waiting-room sentimentality, it's hard not to succumb to Rascal Flatts' smooth touch.false2022-10-16 17:21:41Rewind620142014-01-012014-01-0148CountryPopRockContemporary Country1115092207914b2a27046-a80c-4d75-87a1-465e92d557916e0ae159-8449-4262-bba5-18ec87fa529fa3f73bc8-1dec-4cf1-a305-8086dfcf02e4/media/data/media2/Music/Rascal Flatts/Rewind (2014)/folder.jpgRascal FlattsAlbumArtistRascal FlattsArtistRascal FlattsRascal FlattsRascal Flatts were an American country music band founded in 1999 in Nashville, Tennessee. The group consisted of Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background vocals). DeMarcus is LeVox's second cousin, a brother-in-law of country music singer James Otto, and was previously a member of the contemporary Christian music duo East to West. LeVox and DeMarcus are both natives of Columbus, Ohio.
From 2000 to 2010, the band recorded for Disney Music Group's former Lyric Street Records division. While on that label, it released six studio albums, all of which were certified platinum or higher by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The group's self-titled debut Rascal Flatts was released in 2000, and Melt (2002), garnered their first number-one single, "These Days". Feels Like Today (2004), Me and My Gang (2006), Still Feels Good (2007), and Unstoppable (2009) all topped the US Billboard 200 upon release. After Lyric Street closed in 2010, they moved to Big Machine Records. During their tenure with that label, they recorded five more studio albums: Nothing Like This (2010), Changed (2012), Rewind (2014), a Christmas album entitled The Greatest Gift of All (2016), and their final studio album Back to Us (2017).
Rascal Flatts released more than forty singles, sixteen of which reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs, Country Airplay, and/or Canada Country charts. Their longest-running number-one, a cover of Marcus Hummon's "Bless the Broken Road", spent five weeks at number one on Hot Country Songs in 2005. Through 2006 and 2007, "What Hurts the Most" was number one on both the Hot Country Songs and Adult Contemporary charts, and garnered their highest peak on the Billboard Hot 100 at number six. The band also had commercial success with a cover of Tom Cochrane's "Life Is a Highway", which they recorded for the soundtrack of the Pixar animated film Cars (2006). Rascal Flatts' music is defined by country pop influences, as well as their distinct vocal harmonies. In addition to their own music, DeMarcus has produced albums for Chicago, Jennette McCurdy, and Brooks & Dunn member Kix Brooks.
The band was named Vocal Group of the Year by the Country Music Association every year from 2003 to 2008, Top Vocal Group by the Academy of Country Music from 2003 to 2009 and won the American Music Award for Artist of the Year in 2006. They were inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 2011 and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2012. "Bless the Broken Road" was also named Best Country Song at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards.
On January 7, 2020, Rascal Flatts announced that they would be disbanding following a farewell tour after twenty years together. However, this farewell tour was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic; the group's disbandment was officially confirmed in October 2021.