Ray, most people who end up in country usually gravitate out of rock into country. But it is not usually their fault. It is that music changes around them.

When Kenny Rogers started his career from the New Christy Minstrals, he was a folk artist. Folk changed with Bob Dylan and Kenny went into rock with the FIRST EDITION. Then rock changed with the advent of the Beatles, the British invasion and then harder edge rock of people like Led Zepplin and others. So rock left him. He could not get arrested anymore in rock with the fans, so he came back as a country artist.

Same with Conway. The "crooner" pop stylings he started with, Elvis, etc. changed in the 70's and he morphed into country.

Exile, my favorite group started off as a pop band with "I want to Kiss You All Over" and then morphed to country in the 80's.

When Elvis left for the army, his fans changed. He came back in HOLLYWOOD as an actor, for several years and had to redefine himself as he and his fans changed over the years.

You can look at pretty much any artist and the process repeats as they age, and are shunned by the newer fans of whatever genre they started in.

And that is the bottom line.
Your FANS change too. If your fans no longer accept you or that type of music, you have to make the changes as well.

Fans age. They are replaced by YOUNGER FANS in the genre and so everything moves into different phases.

Part of a career. Change. The only thing in music that's constant.

MAB