Underrated Country Songs: Albuquerque by Sons of the Desert
Listen to the Across The Country podcast for all the latest country music and deep dives into music history.
This series explores underrated country songs that missed the top 20, delving into their backstories, chart history, and radio impact.
In this episode, we look back at Sons of the Desert and their song "Albuquerque." Known for their rich harmonies and moody country sound, the band first made waves in 1997 with "Whatever Comes First", a top-ten hit.
They also contributed background vocals for artists like Ty Herndon and Lee Ann Womack, even winning major awards for I Hope You Dance. Despite label disputes and an unreleased album, "Albuquerque" found its place on their 2000 album Change under MCA Records. Sons of the Desert eventually disbanded in 2002, but lead singer Drew Womack later became the frontman for Lonestar.
A hidden gem of '90s country, "Albuquerque" stands out for its haunting, pensive style—showcasing why this group remains one of Nashville’s most underrated vocal acts.
Get Connected:
-
While many bands attempted moody and pensive sounds midway through the decade, no one pulled off desolation as well as Sons of the Desert.
We're kicking off this list at number 90 with Sons of the Desert and a single they released in 1999, called “Albuquerque.” The Sons of the Desert came on the country radio scene in 1997 with their first release, called “Whatever Comes First.” That was a top ten single - I feel like it's one of the forgotten singles of 1997, but it did hit the top ten.
Sons of the Desert were a group of five guys, you could hear them on records by Joe Diffie and Ty Herndon, who were their labelmates. They performed the background vocals on Ty’s number one hit, “It Must Be Love." During this time, lead singer Drew Womack, wrote Kenny Chesney's, "She's Got It All," which was Kenny's first number-one hit. It was a huge three-week number one on country radio.
In 1999, Sons of the Desert had an entire album recorded, they had already released the lead single from that album, which charted in the lower '40s. And then in October, they released, "Albuquerque." They were signed to Epic Records, and they recorded a song they planned to release as a future single. The song was called "Goodbye Earl," which their labelmates, The Chicks, also recorded and had planned to use as a single. There was a supposed dispute between Sons of the Desert and the label. And, of course, we know how that one ended - The Chicks released that song in early 2000. Sons of the Desert leave Epic Records. The album that was completely finished never saw the light of day, it was never released.
They were signed to MCA Records almost immediately. In June of 2000, they released an album called Change, which did feature "Albuquerque." At this point in their career, the Sons of the Desert are now a trio. Around this time when Lee Ann Womack’s "I Hope You Dance" was released - the band provided background vocals for the song. And this was a worldwide hit. It led them to win the CMA Single of the Year and Song of the Year, ACM Single, Song, and Vocal Event of the Year, and the band was also nominated for Top New Vocal Duo or Group by the Academy of Country Music Awards.
The trio had eight singles in their career before they did eventually disband in 2002. Lead singer Drew Womack is now the frontman for Lonestar, replacing Richie McDonald. And during the late '90s, we were seeing a lot of the pop country dominance take over the country charts. "Albuquerque" was a bit heavier. It had this pensive and moody type feel, which I thought Sons of the Desert always excelled at - it was a very unique sounding song. And I still think they were one of the most fantastic vocal groups to come out of Nashville during the '90s.