Editing Alabama (band) (section)

===1980–1987: Mainstream success and superstardom===
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 |quote  = When it happened, it happened so fast we didn't have time to think&nbsp;... One day we were in [[Myrtle Beach]], and a few days later we were on [[Dick Clark]]'s ''[[American Bandstand]]''. We were scared to death. It was amazing. The next thing you know, you are Group of the Year on nationwide TV.
 |source = Randy Owen on the group's surprise success<ref name="billboard1"/>
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The group's next single, "[[My Home's in Alabama (song)|My Home's in Alabama]]", received an even better response, reaching the top 20.<ref name="billboard3"/> Their early chart successes led to an invitation to appear at the "New Faces" show at [[Nashville]]'s annual [[Country Radio Seminar]], along with other new acts, such as [[Reba McEntire]].<ref name="tenn"/> The band had to perform with [[studio musicians]], rather than as a band, and left the session believing they had destroyed their chances. Despite this, the group drew interest from several labels, among those RCA Records,<ref name=billboard1>{{cite magazine| last =Price| first =Deborah Evans| date =August 29, 1998| title =Can't Keep a Good Band Down| magazine =[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| volume =110| issue = 35| pages =46–48 | publisher =[[Prometheus Global Media]]| location =[[New York City]]| issn =0006-2510}}</ref> with whom they signed in April 1980.{{sfn|McCall|Rumble|Kingsbury|2012|p=5}} Their first single on RCA, "[[Tennessee River (song)|Tennessee River]]", was produced by [[Harold Shedd]] and was their first to hit number one on the ''Billboard'' country chart, beginning a streak of over 30 number one hits.{{sfn|Erlewine|Woodstra|Bogdanov|Erlewine|1997|p=4}} ''[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cashbox]]'' named the band the New Vocal Group of the Year, marking the band's first award.{{sfn|Stambler|Landon|2000|p=5}} In July 1980, the band left their long-time gig at the Bowery,<ref name="billboard1"/> promoting their single which they initially believed to be fluke.<ref name="tenn"/> The success took the band by surprise and soon became "all but consuming."<ref name="billboard1"/>

Alabama enjoyed a great deal of creative freedom at RCA; they followed up "Tennessee River" with "[[Why Lady Why (Alabama song)|Why Lady Why]]" despite the objections of executives and trade publications,<ref name="billboard2"/> The song became their second number one on the charts.<ref name="billboard3"/> They toured extensively, headlining small clubs and opening for bigger acts in major venues.{{sfn|Stambler|Landon|2000|p=5}} In addition, the group also received television exposure on ''[[The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson]]'' and ''[[The Merv Griffin Show]]''.{{sfn|Stambler|Landon|2000|p=5}} In February 1981, Alabama released its second major label album, ''[[Feels So Right]]''; it peaked at number 16 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] and stayed for more than three years, longer than any other Alabama album.<ref>Whitburn, Joel. ''The Billboard Book of Top Pop Albums 1955–1985'', Record Research Inc., 1985, p. 11, 493.</ref> "[[Old Flame (Alabama song)|Old Flame]]" was their next number one in February 1981, followed by "[[Feels So Right (song)|Feels So Right]]" in May, and "[[Love in the First Degree (Alabama song)|Love in the First Degree]]" that October.<ref name="billboard3"/><ref name="chart">{{cite book |last=Roland |first=Tom |title=The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits |publisher=Billboard Books, Watson-Guptill Publications |date=1991 |location=New York |isbn=0-8230-7553-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/billboardbookofn0000rola }}</ref> That year, Alabama received a great deal of industry attention: ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' named them New Group for the Year, ''[[Radio & Records]]'' called them Group of the Year, and the [[Academy of Country Music]] (ACM) deemed the band the Vocal Group of the Year.{{sfn|Stambler|Landon|2000|p=5}} The quartet performed on the 1981 [[Country Music Association Awards]], where it received both Instrumental Group of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year.{{sfn|Stambler|Landon|2000|p=5}} Although the band received unprecedented success, Owen's personal life was falling apart: his father died while he was on the road, affecting him greatly.<ref name="tenn"/>
{{Listen
 |filename     = Love in the First Degree Alabama.ogg
 |title        = "Love in the First Degree"
 |description  = "[[Love in the First Degree (Alabama song)|Love in the First Degree]]" became Alabama's biggest [[crossover (music)|crossover]] hit, peaking at number 15 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]].<ref name="chart2"/>
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''[[Mountain Music (Alabama album)|Mountain Music]]'', released in February 1982, is considered their final release before a significant upgrade in production and sound.<ref name="wolff"/> All three of the album's singles reached number one: "[[Mountain Music (song)|Mountain Music]]" in May 1982, followed two months later by "[[Take Me Down]]" that July, and "[[Close Enough to Perfect]]" in October.<ref name="billboard3"/> That year, both ''Mountain Music'' and ''Feels So Right'' would go quadruple platinum; by late 1982, the band had sold over six million albums, despite just two years on the national circuit.<ref name=billboard3>{{cite magazine| last =Allen| first =Sharon| date =October 30, 1982| title =Chart Fax: Alabama Does It Again: 'Close Enough' Hits Top| magazine =[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| volume =94| issue = 43| page =43 | publisher =[[Prometheus Global Media]]| location =[[New York City]]| issn =0006-2510}}</ref> "[[Christmas in Dixie]]", a seasonal song released in 1982, charted on two of [[Billboard (magazine)|''Billboard'' magazine]]'s music popularity charts in six different calendar years.<ref name="Whitburn">{{cite book |last=Whitburn |first=Joel |title=Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004) |publisher=Record Research Inc |date=2004 |location=Wisconsin  |page=17 |isbn = 0-89820-161-6}}</ref> Alabama became the first group to win CMA's prestigious Entertainer of the Year award, which they collected three years in a row, from 1982 to 1984.<ref name="wolff"/> The group received a [[Grammy Award]] for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, for ''Mountain Music''.{{sfn|Stambler|Landon|2000|p=5}}

''[[The Closer You Get...]]'', released in March 1983, was certified platinum within two months, and also won the Grammy for Best Country Performance.<ref name="alabamaRIAA">{{cite web|url=https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?content_selector=gold-platinum-searchable-database# |title=Alabama – Gold & Platinum Certifications |publisher=[[Recording Industry Association of America]] |access-date=July 6, 2014 |at=''If necessary, click ''Advanced'', then click ''Format'', then select ''Album'', then click ''SEARCH |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130905082250/http://riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?content_selector=gold-platinum-searchable-database |archive-date=September 5, 2013 }}</ref>{{sfn|Stambler|Landon|2000|p=5}} Each of the album's singles—"[[Dixieland Delight]]", "[[The Closer You Get (song)|The Closer You Get]]", and "[[Lady Down on Love]]"—were number ones in both the U.S. and Canada.<ref name="chart"/> ''[[Roll On (Alabama album)|Roll On]]'' was Alabama's next LP, and its four singles,  "[[Roll On (Eighteen Wheeler)]]", "[[When We Make Love (Alabama song)|When We Make Love]]", "[[If You're Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band)]]", "[[(There's A) Fire in the Night]]", all went to the top in both countries.<ref name="chart"/> ''[[40-Hour Week]]'' (1985) continued the band's string of multinational successes, with "[[40 Hour Week (For a Livin')]]" and "[[Can't Keep a Good Man Down (Alabama song)|Can't Keep a Good Man Down]]" peaking at number one in both territories, with only the [[lead single]], "[[There's No Way (Alabama song)|There's No Way]]", falling short in Canada (although it peaked at number two).<ref name="chart"/> ''40-Hour Week'' was one of Alabama's most popular albums, crossing over in the pop album charts.{{sfn|Erlewine|Woodstra|Bogdanov|Erlewine|1997|p=6}} ''[[Alabama Christmas]]'', a collection of nine holiday songs plus "Christmas in Dixie", became Alabama's first release on [[compact disc]] that September; it was also the centerpiece of a retail and television promotion (sponsored by [[the Nashville Network]]).<ref name=billboard4>{{cite magazine| date =October 12, 1985| title ='Alabama Christmas' Album Getting Very Merry Push| magazine =[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| volume =94| issue = 43| page =61; 64 | publisher =[[Prometheus Global Media]]| location =[[New York City]]| issn =0006-2510}}</ref>

RCA issued an Alabama ''Greatest Hits'' compilation in January 1986, which went over five times platinum,<ref name="alabamaRIAA"/> making the band the most successful country act of the 1980s.{{sfn|Erlewine|Woodstra|Bogdanov|Erlewine|1997|p=4}} ''[[The Touch (album)|The Touch]]'' followed in September 1986, and although considered one of the weakest in the band's catalogue,{{sfn|Erlewine|Woodstra|Bogdanov|Erlewine|1997|p=4}} it did have two number one hits: "[["You've Got" the Touch]]" and "[[Touch Me When We're Dancing]]".<ref name="chart3"/> Their next record, ''[[Just Us (Alabama album)|Just Us]]'', received a similar critical response, but produced two number ones: "[[Face to Face (Alabama song)|Face to Face]]" and "[[Fallin' Again]]".<ref name="chart3"/>   They also contributed their vocals to "[[Deep River Woman]]", a single by [[Lionel Richie]], from Richie's third solo album ''[[Dancing on the Ceiling]]''.  Released in December 1986, the single peaked at number 10 on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Hot Country Songs|Hot Country Singles]] chart and number 71 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Lionel Richie singles |url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=lionel-richie-p5267/charts-awards/billboard-singles|pure_url=yes}} |work=[[Allmusic]] |access-date=November 27, 2011}}</ref>