Dewey Bunnell & The History of America

By Kevin Murphy Wilson 

Holding something creative together for 50-plus years is an extraordinary accomplishment. Amazingly, that’s how long it has been since the band America’s founding members--Dewey Bunnell, Gerry Beckley and Dan Peek--first assembled in, ahem, Great Britain. As Bunnell explained straightaway when we first spoke over the phone, “The name America came from a lot of little things, but it was mainly [intended] to reflect the fact that we were American kids in England, which we felt gave us an edge over some of the British upstarts we were competing against.” In Bunnell’s own words, the band has seen its share of “peaks and valleys” over the years, including the departure of Peek in 1977 and Beckley’s retirement from the road in 2024 [although he still remains an official member of the group]. These days, however, Bunnell is primarily concerned with presenting America’s history in the best possible light by playing shows built around all the hits that comprise the act’s lengthy legacy. And as part of that mission, Bunnell’s America returns to town for an intimate concert at Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts on April 2. Read on for more of our conversation.

VOICE-TRIBUNE: Were the late 1960s and early 1970s strange days to be teenagers on the loose in London? 

Dewey Bunnell: “Being young and out of our element, we really clung to each other over there and we were always running around taking in all kinds of great music together including Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and the Rolling Stones.” 

VT: It wasn’t too long before everything clicked for America and you found yourself sharing stages with some larger than life figures, right? 

DB: “Yeah, that’s correct. We actually opened for Pink Floyd, Elton John, the Who, Traffic, Rod Stewart and the Faces, and Cat Stevens, which was a real learning experience for us. It’s fair to say that we had to pay some dues along the way, but you couldn’t have asked for any more success than what we had with our first album and single. From there we were able to just continue doing what we do best.” 

VT: Working with legendary L.A. drummer and band leader Hal Blaine seems like it must have been an impactful collaboration. Was that the case? 

DB: “Well, our managers at the time were David Geffen and Elliot Roberts and they set it up. We didn’t even know who the Wrecking Crew were at that age and at that stage of our career. We were oblivious to the world of session musicians. So, that was all part of our ongoing education.” 

VT: The double-team of [producer] George Martin and [engineer] Geoff Emerick, who famously functioned as the Beatles’ two-man hit factory, were also along for the ride at one point. What do you remember from that period? 

DB: “We had a long, beautiful relationship with them--something like seven projects in all, five which were studio albums of original material, one of remixes created for our initial greatest hits package, plus a live release.” 

VT: Later on, there were even some noteworthy America sessions with James Iha, of Smashing Pumpkins, at the helm. At this juncture, what is your take on that? 

DB: “It was nice to find out that there were a lot of younger musicians who wanted to get involved with us. I was actually coaxed into recording a version of ‘Golden,’ which was written by Jim James from My Morning Jacket. That experience forced me to go outside my comfort zone.” 

VT: You have had a hand in writing some of the classic rock era’s most enduring songs, including “A Horse With No Name,” “Ventura Highway,” and “Sister Golden Hair.” Do you have any thoughts on where these tunes came from? 

DB: “A lot of my lyrical imagery comes from spending so much time outdoors, but there must be some kind of magical thing that happens, because if there was a formula, everyone who owns a guitar would be following it and writing popular music.” 

For more information on Dewey Bunnell and America, visit venturahighway.com.