Best known for their 1990 cover of the Don Gibson classic “Oh Lonesome Me”, the Kentucky Headhunters have courted both country and rock audiences with their distinct hybrid of honky tonk, blues, and Southern rock. Existing under this name since 1986, the Kentucky Headhunters consist of brothers Richard (rhythm guitar and vocals) and Fred Young (drums and vocals), along with bassist/vocalist Doug Phelps and lead guitarist/vocalist Greg Martin. Today we’re taking a look at the life and career of Fred Young, born in Glasgow, Kentucky on this day (July 8) in 1958.
Music Was Always a Family Affair For Fred Young
The Young brothers grew up as many farm boys did, enjoying tractors, hunting and music. Fred took up the drums at age 10, while Richard learned the guitar.
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In the 1960s, the siblings teamed up with cousins Greg Martin and Anthony Kenney to form the band Itchy Brother. They took the name from Fred’s favorite cartoon character from NBC’s early-’60s animated series King Leonardo and His Short Subjects.
Itchy Brother sprang from family jam sessions in a shack on the family property that they still refer to as the Practice House.
“We’ve always been interested in rock music, even when we were kids before we even started playing,” Fred Young told Saving Country Music in 2025.
Becoming the Kentucky Headhunters
Itchy Brother performed together for more than a decade, attaining regional fame before disbanding in 1982. Richard began writing songs for Acuff-Rose, whereas Fred Young joined country singer Sylvia as a backup singer. Meanwhile, Martin played bass and sang backup for legendary country singer Ronnie McDowell.
The Young brothers reunited with Martin in 1986, welcoming bassist Doug Phelps and his brother, Ricky Lee Phelps. Soon, they had renamed themselves the Kentucky Headhunters.
They built up a following through twice-monthly performances on The Chitlin’ Show, a program on Munfordville, Kentucky radio station WLOC.
Eventually, the Kentucky Headhunters borrowed $4,500 to record an eight-song demo, which they sent to Mercury Records. The label signed them, and that demo became the basis for the band’s 1989 debut album, Pickin’ on Nashville.
Critics and listeners alike loved Pickin’ on Nashville, and it spawned four top 40 country singles in “Walk Softly on This Heart of Mine”, “Oh Lonesome Me”, “Dumas Walker”, and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Angel”.
“Oh Lonesome Me” charted the highest, reaching number eight. Pickin’ on Nashville also won the band a Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 1991.
The band’s sophomore album, Electric Barnyard, failed to live up to the same standard, and the Phelps brothers departed from the Kentucky Headhunters in 1992 to found the spin-off Brother Phelps.
Doug Phelps rejoined the band in the late 1990s, eventually taking over on bass after Kenney’s exit.
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As of 2026, the Kentucky Headhunters have released 10 albums and picked up three trophies from the Country Music Association, along with one from the Academy of Country Music.
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