Editing 38 Special (band) (section)

=== 1980–1999 ===
The band's first two albums had a strong [[Southern rock]] influence. By the early 1980s, .38 Special had shifted to a more accessible guitar-driven [[arena rock]] style without completely abandoning the Southern rock roots.<ref name="LarkinHM" /> This shift helped to usher in a string of successful albums and singles. Engineer [[Rodney Mills]], who had worked with [[Atlanta Rhythm Section]] and others, assumed the producer's reins, and [[Survivor (band)|Survivor]] co-founder [[Jim Peterik]] became a frequent songwriting collaborator with the band from 1979 on, which helped account for this change in sound and subsequent success.

"[[Rockin' into the Night (song)|Rockin' into the Night]]", the title track from the group's third album (released in October 1979), which Peterik and his bandmates had originally written for [[Survivor (band)|Survivor]], found its way to 38 Special's manager, Mark Spector (who'd left his job at [[A&M Records]] to manage the group), and was given to the band. Sung by 38's guitarist Don Barnes (who would sing lead vocals on all of the band's hits through 1987), the tune became their first song to receive national airplay, peaking at No. 43 on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]] in early 1980.<ref name="LarkinHM" />

This paved the way for their platinum-selling fourth record, ''[[Wild-Eyed Southern Boys]]'' (January 1981), and its bigger hit "[[Hold On Loosely]]" (which reached No. 27 in 1981).<ref name="LarkinHM" />

Their next release, ''[[Special Forces (.38 Special album)|Special Forces]]'' (May 1982),<ref name="LarkinHM" /> contained the Top 10 hit "[[Caught Up in You]]" (just like "Hold On Loosely", composed by Barnes, Carlisi, and Peterik), which hit No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Rock Tracks chart, as did the single "If I'd Been the One" (October 1983) from their November 1983 release ''[[Tour de Force (38 Special album)|Tour de Force]]''. "You Keep Runnin' Away" (August 1982) and "Back Where You Belong" (February 1984) continued the sequence of hit radio favorites.

In the fall of 1984, they had another hit with "[[Teacher, Teacher (38 Special song)|Teacher, Teacher]]", from the soundtrack of the 1984 film ''[[Teachers (film)|Teachers]]'', written by [[Jim Vallance]] and [[Bryan Adams]]. The song climbed to No. 4 on the Billboard Top Tracks Chart, spending ten weeks on the chart.{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}}

In 1984 38 Special toured with the up-and-coming [[Huey Lewis and the News]], who were just breaking huge with their ''[[Sports (Huey Lewis and the News album)|Sports]]'' album, and in 1986 they shared the bill with the soon-to-be-platinum-selling hard rock band [[Bon Jovi]].

By 1987, Don Barnes, who was having differences with Carlisi and some of the others, had decided to leave the band to go out on his own.<ref name="LarkinHM" /> He recorded an album called ''Ride the Storm'', which, though slated for release in 1989, was shelved after A&M Records was sold, and was not released until 2017 – some 28 years later.

In the meantime, the group moved on, bringing in [[San Francisco]] guitarist [[Danny Chauncey]], after drummer Steve Brookins also decided to leave, and singer/keyboardist [[Max Carl]], from West Coast [[rhythm and blues]] group Jack Mack & the Heart Attack.<ref name="LarkinHM" />

The next release, ''[[Rock & Roll Strategy]]'' (June 1988),<ref name="LarkinHM" /> saw the group playing down their heavy guitar sound and putting forth a more 1980s pop keyboard-oriented approach, led by Carl's more R&B-style voice. "[[Second Chance (38 Special song)|Second Chance]]" (taken from ''Rock & Roll Strategy'') was a No. 1 hit on ''Billboard'''s [[Adult Contemporary (chart)|adult contemporary chart]] in early 1989.

Carl was also lead singer on "The Sound of Your Voice" ([[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] No. 33 in 1991) from ''[[Bone Against Steel]]'' (July 1991), which saw the group moving from A&M to the American iteration of the British label [[Charisma Records]].<ref name="LarkinHM" /> That same year, [[Arkansas]] native Bobby Capps (from [[Johnny Van Zant]] Band) came aboard as keyboardist/co-singer and drummer Scott Meeder replaced Jack Grondin after Grondin decided to leave the music business to pursue a career as a Christian missionary. The band found themselves without a home after Charisma folded in 1992.

After touring with the band through the spring of 1992, Max Carl decided to depart, making way for the return of Don Barnes. Since that time, the band has mostly concentrated on touring, with an occasional release of new material. [[Scott Hoffman]] took over the drum chair from Meeder later in 1992. [[Donny Baldwin]] (ex-[[Jefferson Starship]]) filled in for Hoffman on some 1996 tour dates after Hoffman was down with a broken arm, but Gary "Madman" Moffatt (formerly of [[Cactus (American band)|Cactus]]) has been the band's drummer since 1997.{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}}

In early 1997, 38's long time guitarist/co-founder Jeff Carlisi, tired of the endless touring, decided to leave to form the Bonnie Blue Band, which led to the [[supergroup (music)|supergroup]] Big People, which also featured [[Benjamin Orr]] (from [[the Cars]]), [[Liberty DeVitto]] (from [[Billy Joel]]'s band), [[Derek St. Holmes]] (ex-[[Ted Nugent]]) and [[Pat Travers]]. Unfortunately Big People failed to launch after the death of Benjamin Orr in 2000.

Through the small [[Razor & Tie]] label, 38 Special released "Fade to Blue" from the album ''[[Resolution (38 Special album)|Resolution]]'' (The last album to feature Carlisi, released in June 1997). The single hit No. 33 on the Mainstream Rock chart in 1997.{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}}

Since 1997's ''Resolution'', two more releases have followed on the [[CMC International]] and [[Sanctuary Records]] labels, respectively ''[[A Wild-Eyed Christmas Night]]'' (September 2001) and ''[[Drivetrain (album)|Drivetrain]]'' (July 2004).{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}}