Multi-platinum country band Alabama to play Xcel Energy Center in June

Ross Raihala, Pioneer Press
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Multi-platinum country band Alabama will headline St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center on June 22.

Tickets, at prices to be announced, go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday through Ticketmaster. Eddie Montgomery, of Montgomery Gentry, will open.

Cousins Randy Owen, Teddy Gentry and Jeff Cook began performing together in 1969 and spent much of the next decade headlining bars as Wildcountry. They took on the name Alabama in 1977 and soon after signed to RCA Records.

Alabama ruled the country charts in the ’80s with a breathtaking 27 No. 1 singles, including “Feels So Right,” “Love in the First Degree,” “Mountain Music,” “Touch Me When We’re Dancing” and “Southern Star.” Many of the songs crossed over to pop radio as Alabama toured relentlessly with stages reminiscent of those that rock bands of the era used on the road.

In 2002, the group announced they were embarking on their farewell tour, which wrapped in October 2004 in Bismarck, N.D. They reunited in 2011 to play a benefit for victims of tornadoes in their home state and two years later they decided to make it permanent. They have since toured extensively and released a new album, “Southern Drawl,” in 2015.

In 2016, Alabama headlined the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand for the 19th time, a feat no other act has achieved. During that show, Cook appeared to be struggling with a health-related issue. The following year, he announced he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and stopped touring with the band soon after. He died from complications from the disease in November at the age of 73.

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