Three well know country singer/songwriters got together and produced an album of work: Alex Dezen, Billy Harvey, and Salim Nourallah.

In a 2020 interview, Nourallah explained how the band and first album came together:

At the beginning of 2014, my personal life was sort of in shambles, due to a divorce. I decided I wanted to start getting out and playing more. I’d always been active playing in the Dallas Metroplex area, but only occasionally toured since the birth of my two kids, Gavin and Miette. I thought it would be cool to put together a Texas tour with a couple of friends.

The first two that came to mind were Alex Dezen and Billy Harvey. They didn’t actually know each other yet and I remember them both being slightly suspicious of the other. I strung together eight dates in May and by the end of our run, Alex and Billy were fast friends. We’d basically started NHD, Nourallah Harvey Dezen. We did two more similar Texas tours in March and December of 2015, then decided to finally make a record together.

Our friend, Martie Maguire from the Dixie Chicks, graciously let us record in her wonderful home studio. We had Jim Vollentine engineer. He’d masterfully recorded the Old 97’s Grand Theatre, Most Messed Up, as well as my Hit Parade and Skeleton Closet records.

We tracked the entire And the Devil Went Up To Portland record in just seven days at Martie’s place.

Top Song