Assembled to be the house band of a studio in Doraville, Georgia, the Atlanta Rhythm Section (or the ARS as they were known) contained members of the Candymen and the Classics IV. By the early 1970s, they were known as one of the best studio bands below the Mason Dixon line. Producer and studio owner Buddy Buie felt they were good enough to have hit records of their own.
He wrote and produced a number of tracks, and in 1972 they landed a deal with Polydor Records. They released five albums in four years, and although they had some minor radio hits, the band did not see platinum success until releasing 1976's A Rock and Roll Alternative. That album would yield the hit, "So Into You," but it would not be until 1978, with Champagne Jam, that the band would see its biggest chart success.