Artist · chart history
.38 Special
Band Jacksonville United States Formed 1974 American rock band
.38 Special formed in 1974 in Jacksonville, United States. .38 Special has 181 chart appearances on 88 radio countdowns from 28 stations on RockLists, spanning 1981–2026. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Hold On Loosely”, which appears on 84 lists with a best position of #12. The station that charted .38 Special most often is 97 Rock (Buffalo, NY), with 18 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 1981.
.38 Special came out of Jacksonville, Florida, in 1974, when Donnie Van Zant and guitarist Don Barnes, who both sang, put together a Southern rock band with an unusual engine room: two drummers, Jack Grondin and Steve Brookins, pounding away side by side. Jeff Carlisi added a second guitar, and Larry Junstrom soon took over the bass from Ken Lyons.
The early records were tough, rowdy boogie, and Rockin' Into the Night in 1979 gave them a title track to match. But on Wild-Eyed Southern Boys in 1980 they found the formula that made them: the Southern swagger stayed, and the choruses got bigger and slicker. "Hold On Loosely" is the proof, a lean, riffing rocker with a chorus that won't let go, and Special Forces in 1982 followed it with "Caught Up In You", every bit as sleek and hooky.
The hits kept coming through the '80s and into the early '90s: "Fantasy Girl", "You Keep Runnin' Away", "If I'd Been the One", "Back Where You Belong", "Teacher, Teacher", "Like No Other Night", "Second Chance" and "The Sound of Your Voice". Barnes left in 1987 and Max Carl took over keyboards and lead vocals for a while, while Van Zant stayed on until 2013.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by .38 Special on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hold On Loosely#315 of all time | 84 | #12 | – | 1981 | |
| 2 | Caught Up In You | 69 | #12 | – | – | |
| 3 | Rockin' Into The Night | 18 | #149 | – | – | |
| 4 | Fantasy Girl | 5 | #345 | – | – | |
| 5 | If I'd Been the One | 2 | #456 | – | – | |
| 6 | Chain Lightning | 1 | #546 | – | – | |
| 7 | Back Where You Belong | 1 | #697 | – | – | |
| 8 | Second Chance | 1 | #901 | – | – |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
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