Rebel Saints’ long-time friendship meshes in music

ALBANY – It was inevitable that Kiley Reynolds and Barbara Cornett would eventually play music together.

The long-time friends, who met when they were students at Byne Christian School, did everything from slipping out to listen to music – and sing along – together during the school day to riding bikes hell-bent-for-leather around their neighborhood to putting their own spin on the recurring Cheri Oteri/Will Farrell “Spartan Cheerleaders” skit on Saturday Night Live.

During all of those early days, music was part of the glue that held them together.

The two friends, drawn back together at the funeral of a mutual acquaintance after a period of separation – life would pull them apart, but they always found their way back to each other – used that sad event to make a decision that had been staring them in the face for decades. 

“We hadn’t talked in a little while, but we both attended the funeral of our friend Kaleb Cribb,” Cornett, who is set to complete a student-teaching session that is one of the last steps in completing requirements for a degree in early childhood special education, said. “We were talking afterward, and we started talking about playing music together.

“Finally, we just said, ‘Life is short; let’s do this.’”

And, thus, was born the Rebel Saints, an early-stages duet that is preparing to go live in clubs and bars around southwest Georgia.

About that name … Rebel Saints?

“Our roots grew from being at Byne together, and Byne’s nickname is ‘Saints,’” Reynolds, a bartender at the iconic Billy Joe’s Pool Room at 1505 N. Monroe St., said. “A lot of our time together was at Byne.”

But Rebel?

“I was a bit of a rebel as I got older, and I tried to corrupt Bub a bit during that time,” Reynolds says with a wry laugh. “She did everything she could to try and keep me in line, and I did my best to drag her toward the dark side.”

The pair wove their way in and out of each other’s lives over the course of their adulthood, the rigors of raising kids and navigating through the ups and downs of life often dragging them apart for periods.

Finally, though, the shock of their friend’s death and the reality of life’s fragile nature brought them together for good. Now, they say they’re “maybe a couple of months” away from taking Rebel Saints from concept to reality.

“My dad had an old Yamaha guitar, and I took his Eagles and Jin Croce songbooks and taught myself to play,” Reynolds said. “Bub and I were invited to sing at a gathering of 20 or so friends at Lake Blackshear, and we just said, ‘Let’s do it.’”

A spark was lit.

Cornett, meanwhile, sang at local venues with Jim Blackwell – as Jim and Barb – for a short period, and she played in the local group Barb Wired for about five years, until COVID ended that venture.

“We used to play open mic nights at places like Charley B’s, MC’s, the Cove and the Oglethorpe Lounge,” Cornett said. “I’m also proud of the fact I was the first girl to perform at the Tift Park Market.

“There were just so many more places like that to play back around 2000. Now, it’s really hard to find a place to play.”

But four rehearsals into their new musical direction, the Rebel Saints are methodically mapping out a plan that they hope will allow them to perform live and build their repertoire … as well as their reputation.

During a recent rehearsal at Billy Joe’s, Reynolds played acoustic guitar, Cornett kept beat with tambourines, and the pair swapped leads and sang in harmony as they performed some of the songs from what is a growing setlist. Their take on John Prine’s iconic “Angel From Montgomery” was a standout.

Other songs and artists on their playlist include Jewel, Susan Tedesci, Janis Joplin (“Me and Bobby McGee”), J.J. Gray, Gov’t Mule, Credence (“Green River,” “Proud Mary”).

“I’m a little nervous; I’m not the greatest guitar player,” Reynolds said. “I didn’t progress a lot because I didn’t really work on it as much as I should. It’s really been to just play here and there when I could.

“But we decided, ‘If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it right.’ We’re working on these songs, and we have some originals that we’re going to play. One of the things we’ve always done together is write poetry, so I think we’ll be able to put together some originals.”

And while Rebel Saints plan to remain a duet, they have, Cornett says, lined up local musicians to play with them.

“I have folks who will sit in and play, a drummer, a bassist, other folks,” she said. “Mostly, we plan to do small gigs, especially at first, but if we want to bring some other folks in to broaden our sound, we can do that.

“The biggest thing for us is keeping it fun. And getting out there. The only way we’re going to see where this goes is to get out there and play. We feel we were pulled back together for a reason. So we’re looking at this as our chance.”

Fate, it seems, had a plan for these two friends whose lives were intertwined primarily through their love for music. The fruit of their collaboration? Well, they have the talent and they have the determination. The rest is up to them.