Cold deck

The term, cold deck (when used as a noun), refers to a "stacked" deck (i.e., a deck of playing cards arranged in a preset order, to effect a specific outcome, once dealt) which is deceptively switched with the original deck of cards in play—to the benefit of the player/dealer making the switch. The term refers to the fact that the cards in the stacked deck often are literally colder (to the touch) than those of the original deck (as constant handling of playing cards over several consecutive "hand"s warms them, due to transfer of body heat from the fingers to the cards).

In the broader sense, the term can refer to the preset deck itself, or, to the practice of using one (e.g., "I tried a cold deck on him but he spotted it in a second"). As a verb, the phrase can refer to cheating with, or being cheated by, use of a cold deck (e.g., "I think I may have been cold-decked when I lost that $800 pot)."

More recently, the term has come to refer to a hand that plays out as if a cold deck had been in use—whether or not it actually was. For example, in most forms of poker, a legitimate four of a kind (i.e., four cards of identical rank, regardless of suit [e.g., "four Kings"]) occurs rarely; and, a straight flush (i.e., five cards of the same suit in consecutive face value [e.g., "the six, seven, eight, nine and ten of spades"]) is rarer, still. If one player is dealt four-of-a-kind and another is dealt a straight flush, both players would usually be justified in making large bets and raises. If/when the player with the straight flush wins the pot, the player dealt the four-of-a-kind might only jokingly complain of having been cold-decked. The hand itself is called a "cooler".

Dallas

Dallas (/ˈdæləs/) is a major city in the state of Texas and is the largest urban center of the fourth most populous metropolitan area in the United States. The city proper ranks ninth in the U.S. and third in Texas after Houston and San Antonio. The city's prominence arose from its historical importance as a center for the oil and cotton industries, and its position along numerous railroad lines. The bulk of the city is in Dallas County, of which it is the county seat; however, sections of the city are located in Collin, Denton, Kaufman, and Rockwall counties. According to the 2010 United States Census, the city had a population of 1,197,816. The United States Census Bureau's estimate for the city's population increased to 1,281,047, as of 2014.

Stacked Deck

Stacked Deck is the debut album by American country rock group the Amazing Rhythm Aces, released in 1975 on the ABC label. The album was recorded at the Phillips Recording Studio in Memphis, Tennessee and was produced by group member Barry "Byrd" Burton. Most of the material was composed by the group's lead singer Russell Smith.

Stacked Deck reached #11 on the US country chart and #120 on the Billboard albums chart. It includes the group's biggest hit single, "Third Rate Romance", which peaked at #11 country and #14 pop, and did even better in Canada where it topped both the country and pop chart. "Amazing Grace (Used to Be Her Favorite Song)" was also released as a single and made #9 on the country chart, although it stalled at #72 on the pop chart.

Stacked Deck has become a very highly regarded album, and has been given the maximum five-star rating on the Allmusic website.

Track listing

(All tracks written by Russell Smith unless stated)