There’s Nothing--and Everything--Borderline About Foster & Lloyd’s Success

Foster & Lloyd figure they wouldn’t have been around very long in country music if they had shown up about 10 years ago.

That’s because nobody in country radio would have played their records.

But Radney Foster, who hails from Del Rio, Tex., and Bill Lloyd, a native of Bowling Green, Ky., figure that they lucked out.

“We were at the right place at the right time,” Foster said.

Foster & Lloyd are country rockers, or rocking countrians, depending on the way one looks at things. But either way, one thing is clear: Country music fans like ‘em.

Their current single, “Fair Shake,” from their new album “Faster and Louder,” is already in the top 10, following a string of chart successes.

They were asked about being on the borderline, the edge of what is considered country and what is not.

“I think we’re just making music we enjoy and were influenced by as kids,” Foster said.

“Whether it was the rock side of things--the Beatles and the Byrds--or the country side of things--like Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and Glen Campbell--in the ‘60s there was tons of stuff on radio.

“Bill and I have been influenced by all those things, and I think we’re trying to throw all those together.

“Obviously, there’s a lot of rock influence and a lot of country influence. It works for us. I don’t think there’s a need to apologize for either one of them.”

Lloyd said “strict credentials” are primarily for marketing purposes and not for listening purposes: “People will listen to whatever they like. And if you present them a good song, they should like it. There’s all kinds of formulas for hit records, but the basic one is, ‘Do you like it? Will you buy it?’ ”

“Faster & Louder” has a list of “guest pickers,” the two singers said. They include John Cowan and Sam Bush of the New Grass Revival, great dobroist Jerry Douglas, and pop revisionist Marshall Crenshaw.

“We were able to stretch some of the boundaries on songs and think about different ideas,” said Foster, adding that the album “was a great experience for me.”

Foster & Lloyd sing Friday at the Coach House, 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano. The Jack Rather Band opens at 9 p.m. Tickets: $13.50. Information: (714) 496-8930.