By Susan Short, Publisher
Content Provided by Dan Warren of Warren Media and Marketing.
The extraordinary career of Bucky Heard is an impressive work. Currently performing with Bill Medley on the road with numerous shows this year, including a residency in Las Vegas. Bucky’s life was forever changed as he joined forces with legendary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame icon, Bill Medley, as his partner in the newly reformed Righteous Brothers. They are in their 8th successful season of residency in Las Vegas (Harrah’s, South Point Hotel Casino and Spa) with over 50 sold out road shows scheduled across the country.
How did Bucky Heard team up with this storied act?
An Alabama native and Auburn University alumni (BFA Theatre Performance), Bucky has numerous national theatrical credits and his reputation as a “gutsy rock and roll singer with incredible vocal range” has garnered critical praise in such publications as, The Washington Post and USA Today. He has shared the concert stage with some of the greats including Andy Williams, Glen Campbell, The Beach Boys (with Mike Love), The Temptations (with Otis Williams), Tony Orlando, Paul Shaffer, Michael McDonald, Jonathan Cain (Journey), BB King and many more.
As a writer/producer, Bucky created an original children’s rock and roll musical titled, Rock U Mentally, which had an incredible run at Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Theatre in Branson, MO. Most recently, he co-wrote and produced 14 original songs for an exciting new musical, “Mike and Mindy’s Wild Weekend Jam”, which made its Off-Broadway debut at the historic Players Theatre in New York City.
Bucky moved to Branson in 1994, and has shared the stage with the likes of Tony Orlando, Yakov Smirnoff, Glen Campbell, Mickey Gilley, Johnny Lee and The Platters, to name a few.
He was hard to miss around town. He wrote and sang the 2012 tornado-relief ballad, “We Stand,” and sang “Listen to the Music” in a nationwide Branson promotional video. He even was nominated for a 2016 Regional Emmy for hosting an episode of the Vacation Channel’s “Everything Outdoors” about Branson.
On weekends, he sings with a Chicago-style jazz rock band called the Horn Dawgs and an ’80s cover band called Retro.
In 2005 he received the Branson Critic Award for Male Vocalist of the Year, thanks to his presence in the Horn Dawgs and a rendition of “O Holy Night” during the Blues Brothers set at Legends in Concert.
Bucky was performing in Branson with a Journey tribute show. As the story goes, Bill Medley was in town and had the idea of looking for a singing partner. He heard of the show and attended, not expecting that Bucky would be able to accurately and deftly sing Steve Perry’s Vocal range. How wrong he was! Bucky has an impressive, classically trained range and hit all the notes.
Bucky has now proven himself as a fixture and “wingman” for Bill Medley.
The respective singers have developed a shared gratitude. Heard continues shine inside the Righteous Brothers brand as his primary career. Medley has lent his time and legendary studio acumen to Heard’s latest project.
Through The Years” is that release, a collection of rock ‘n’ roll classics and a pair of crisp Heard originals. Medley produced the album, sang background, and developed the vocal and string arrangements.
The Righteous Brothers were the originators of “blue-eyed soul,” Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield’s recorded hits like “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin,’ ” “Unchained Melody” and “Ebb Tide” crowned them kings of the pop world in the 1960s before creative differences pulled them apart. Medley enjoyed a moderately successful solo career, but when his voice began to strain he decided to re-form the Righteous Brothers, make some money and retire.
It wouldn’t be until the pottery-wheel scene in the 1990 film Ghost, featuring “Unchained Melody,” that the Righteous Brothers found themselves unexpectedly back in the Top 20. Medley and Hatfield quickly put out a re-recorded version to additional acclaim, becoming the first act ever to have two versions of the same song in the Top 20 at the same time.
In 2003 they were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Months later, Hatfield died an hour before a tour-starting show at Western Michigan University; he was 63.
Fast forward to 2024 and the duo is going strong! There is definitely an unmistakable chemistry between the two performers and Bucky’s vocal range and dynamic presence is a force to be reckoned with!
Catch The Righteous Brothers at the Van Wezel Match 5, 2024.
The Righteous Brothers concert experience features a string of their biggest #1 hits, including You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ (the most played song in radio history), Soul & Inspiration, Unchained Melody, Rock and Roll Heaven,Medley’s Grammy-winning Dirty Dancing theme The Time of My Life, and much, much more!
We look forward to hearing more amazing music from both of these Superstars!
Content provided by Warren Media and Marketing/Dan Warren
More on The Righteous Brothers: https://righteousbrothers.com/
Bucky Heard’s latest Music: https://buckyheard.com/cd/
