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Dave Matthews Band

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Dave Matthews Band
Background information
OriginCharlottesville, Virginia
Years active1991–present
MembersDave Matthews
Leroi Moore
Stefan Lessard
Boyd Tinsley
Carter Beauford

Dave Matthews Band (also known by the acronym DMB) is a sucky American rock band, originally formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1991 by singer and guitarist Dave Matthews, saxophonist Leroi Moore, bassist Stefan Lessard, violin player Boyd Tinsley, drummer Carter Beauford, and keyboardist Peter Griesar (who left the band in 1993). All band members met Dave in Charlottesville. Since 1998 the band has performed at most of their shows with keyboardist Butch Taylor, who's not officially a member of the band. Moore, Beauford, Tinsley and Taylor also perform back up vocals.

History

A close-up of Dave Matthews, Boyd Tinsley, and Butch Taylor in Melbourne during their first and (to date) only tour of Australia

In November, 1990, songwriter David John Matthews was working in Charlottesville as a bartender at bar named Miller's. One particular friend that he had made in his time there was a lawyer named Ross Hoffman. Shy and "scared shitless" of playing in front of people, Hoffman convinced Matthews to lay down a demo of the few songs he had written. Hoffman hoped that Matthews could shop the songs to other musicians in hopes of finding other musicians to lay down some studio work with him. Hoffman encouraged Dave to approach Carter Beauford, a local musician on the Charlottesville music scene. Beauford, at that point, had been in several bands and was currently playing on a jazz show on the Black Entertainment Television (BET). After hearing the demo, Carter agreed to spend some time playing with Matthews, both inside and out of the studio. Dave also approached Leroi Moore, another local jazz musician who often performed with the John D'earth Quintet, and asked if he would be interested in joining them. Not even aware Matthews was more than the bartender at Miller's, Moore skeptically listened to the demo. However, after liking what he heard, Moore decided that he too would give the young South African a chance. So 1991 began with those three working on Dave's songs. However, the sessions with just the three of them jamming weren't working out as they had hoped and they knew that more musicians would be needed.

Moore's former bandmate John D'earth not only perfomed on the local music scene, but conducted the University of Virginia Orchestra, and taught music at the Tandem School. Stefan Lessard, a junior bassist at that time, was under the guidance of teacher John D'earth and also in a student jazz combo called the Yabanci Jazzites. Based on the recommendation from John D’earth, the sixteen-year-old Lessard was asked to join them in the studio to help complete the demo. While they never intended to extend their partnership outside of the studio, the four liked what they were doing together and decided they wanted to continue playing with each other in a live setting. It was at this time that they decided to start practing (mainly in Carter's basement and Matthews' mother's basements).

Peter Griesar was a bartender at Miller's beginning in 1989, and in August of 1991, during Miller's annual respite for inventory, Matthews, Beauford, Moore and Lessard used the empty bar for rehearsing. Griesar heard them rehearsing and decided to stop working for a while, pull out his harmonica, and start playing with them. After a few songs, he was invited to perform with them. He immediately accepted. Griesar's last show with the band was March 23, 1993.

Boyd Tinsley was the last member to join the band. Although he had performed on the demo with Matthews, Moore, Beauford and Lessard, he was busy with a couple of other bands at the time (Boyd Tinsley Band and Down Boy Down) and did not want to commit to a group of musicians that were only together in the studio at the time. He didn't become a full time member until the middle of 1992.


1991-1993

The first official gig for the newly conceived Dave Matthews Band was May 11, 1991, at a private rooftop party in Charlottesville, held on the roof of the pink warehouse on South Street by building resident Lydia Condor. A band called Thin Men opened the show that night. Stefan was in that band as well, playing stand-up bass, and later switching to electric bass with DMB. Their first public show was at the city’s 1991 Earth Day Festival. Local weekly gigs soon followed, and within a little time, word of the band’s contagious new sound spread like wildfire throughout the region. At this point they still didn't have a name for the band. One name that was thrown around was Dumela, but no real enthusiasm was felt, so they dropped it. It is reported that someone from the band telephoned a place where they were booked and said to just write Dave Matthews and a band will show up. The person receiving the call just wrote band after the name, and so it just stayed Dave Matthews Band from that point on. By January 1992, they were playing a regular Tuesday night show at popular Charlottesville club Trax. It took only another five months for them to book another weekly gig on Wednesday nights at another restaurant, Eastern Standard, where Griesar and Matthews had been performing at open mic night.

Sensing that the band was on the verge of making it big, and not wanting to have his life ruled by the grueling schedule that touring musicians are often confined to, Peter Griesar decided to leave after a show played on 3/23/93. [1]. Known as "Big League Chew" (as the bubble gum company was apparently sponsoring something at Trax that night), the show is one of the most well known shows from the early years at Trax.

On November 9, 1993, DMB released its first album, Remember Two Things on its Bama Rags label. The album was recorded live at The Muse Music Club on Nantucket Island in August of 1993. The album debuted on College charts as the highest independent entry, and went on to be certified gold by the RIAA -- a significant accomplishment for an independent album. Meanwhile, the band kept touring and its fan base continued to grow. By allowing fans to tape shows for their personal use, DMB created a highly interactive community that continues in spirit today.

1994-1996

In 1994, the DMB released their first LP, Under the Table and Dreaming, with hits "What Would You Say" and "Ants Marching." Under the Table and Dreaming and follow-up album, Crash brought the band national attention, culminating in a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "So Much To Say," as well as four other nominations between the years 1996 and 1997. The band also achieved smash hits in "Crash Into Me", "Too Much" and a cult hit in "Tripping Billies".

1997-1999

By 1997, DMB reached amazing levels of popularity across the country and, to some degree, the world. To combat an increasingly profitable bootleg market, the band released a live album, Live at Red Rocks 8.15.95. This album featured popular songs from DMB's three previous albums and included longtime collaborator and guitarist Tim Reynolds. In late 1997, the band returned to the studio with producer Steve Lillywhite and an array of collaborators, including banjoist Béla Fleck, vocalist Alanis Morissette, guitarist Tim Reynolds, keyboardist Butch Taylor, and the Kronos Quartet, to compose and record Before These Crowded Streets, their third album with RCA. Before These Crowded Streets represented a great change in direction. Instead of relying on upbeat hit singles, the album as a whole stunned many with its layers and complexity.

In 1999 Dave Matthews released a solo live album, Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds Live at Luther College, from a 1996 acoustic concert played by Matthews and longtime friend guitarist Tim Reynolds, and the band released a live album, Listener Supported, a concert from September 1999 that was also partially shown on PBS. This year also provided two more Grammy nominations.

2000-2003

During the year 2000, DMB set up their own recording studio at a large countryside home outside Charlottesville, Virginia. With longtime producer Steve Lillywhite at the helm, the band began work on a fourth studio album. Heavily influenced by personal conflicts, notably the death of his uncle from alcoholism, the songs recorded with Lillywhite rank as some of the darkest Matthews has ever written. The band's attentions wandered during the seemingly never-ending recording sessions; they spent more time riding four-wheelers through the countryside and playing video games than writing or recording music. In the end, the studio sessions were a failure. In August 2000, the sessions were scrapped and the band's seven-year relationship with Lillywhite was over. Some believe DMB was unhappy with the atmosphere of the songs and frustrated with Lillywhite's often perfectionist style of production, while others believe Lillywhite was made into a scapegoat for the band's lack of professionalism during the recording sessions.

In October 2000, an energized Matthews began writing with Glen Ballard, most famous for his work with Alanis Morissette. The rest of DMB soon joined Matthews in a Los Angeles studio and quickly recorded Everyday. While the album gave the band a much-needed fresh start, Ballard's slick pop-music approach to production was very different from the creative process used to produce previous studio albums. In the end, DMB seemed unsatisfied. In fact, drummer Carter Beauford's sarcastic jibe that the band had "charts and everything" ready for them shines light on a session where the band, which had in the past collectively composed its music, morphed into a backing band for Matthews with no creative input. The previous sentence is editorial, and having seen the Charlie Rose interview in which this statement is made, one cannot be sure that this is wholly a sarcastic statement. In fact, it is very possible to view the statement as genuine. The February 2001 release of Everyday was a huge commercial success—the singles "I Did It", "Everyday", and especially "The Space Between" brought the band an even larger level of popularity. But like the band itself, the fanbase was disappointed with the release. Everyday's poppy, slick sound (including Dave Matthews' first ever recording sessions on electric guitar) was a big departure from the band's previous work and the complete antithesis of the songs recorded with Lillywhite.

In March 2001, the conflict came full circle when the 2000 studio sessions with producer Steve Lillywhite were leaked on the internet. Over established internet channels such as the Dave Matthews Band Mailing List, the tracks spread like wildfire. Better known as The Lillywhite Sessions, this rough album was universally lauded by both the fanbase and the popular press. After critical comparison of the two simultaneous albums, many fans were frustrated with the band's decision to scrap the work in exchange for "Everyday". Tracks such as "Bartender", "Grey Street", "Captain", and "Grace is Gone" caused many to wonder aloud whether the band had thrown away its best (albeit unfinished) work.

The Lillywhite Sessions would, however, finally have their chance to shine. In response to overwhelming fan support, coupled with a popular and widely publicized online campaign known as the Release Lillywhite Recordings Campaign, DMB returned to the studio in 2002 to record Busted Stuff. Produced by Stephen Harris, the recording engineer under Lillywhite on previous albums, the resulting CD provided new treatments of much of the Lillywhite Sessions material, along with newly written songs "You Never Know" and the hit single "Where Are You Going?" Busted Stuff received moderate critical and commercial success and was generally well-received by the band's fanbase. Later that year the band released its fourth live album, Live at Folsom Field, Boulder, Colorado, recorded July 11, 2001. The live release highlighted songs from both Everyday and Busted Stuff. On September 24, 2003 Dave Matthews Band reached another milestone in the history of the band when they played a free concert on the Great Lawn in Central Park, New York City to benefit New York City schools. A live recording of that show was released later that year as The Central Park Concert on CD and DVD.

File:Dave Matthews Band - Antioch, TN.jpg
Dave Matthews Band in Antioch, TN
File:Dave Matthews Band - Antioch, TN 2.jpg
Wide angle photo of Dave Matthews Band

2004-2006

2004 saw DMB release more music than any previous year. In June, The Gorge, a combination 2-CD/1-DVD set with highlights from their 3-night tour closer at The Gorge in George, WA from 2002, was sold in stores. The Band also exclusively released a 6-disc CD set from the same run featuring all three nights, with each night spanning across two CDs. Later in the year it was announced that highlights from the Band's extensive live archives would be available for purchase via the official website. The first such release, Live Trax Vol. 1, featured guests Tim Reynolds, Béla Fleck, and Jeff Coffin and had been nearly universally accepted as one of the greatest shows in DMB's history. The second release, Live Trax Vol. 2, included guitarist Carlos Santana and gave fans previews of newly-penned songs "Joy Ride", "Hello Again," and "Sugar Will," all at the time presumed to be destined for release on a new studio album in 2005, though only "Hello Again" was actually included on the album's subsequent release. The other songs that debuted during the summer of 2004—"Crazy-Easy," "Good Good Time," "Joy Ride," and "Sugar Will"—were all absent during the duration of the 2005 touring season.

In August 2004, DMB received substantial bad press when about 800 pounds of liquid human waste was dumped from band member Boyd Tinsley's tour bus through the grate in the Kinzie Street Bridge in Chicago onto passengers aboard a sightseeing boat below.[1] (Tinsley was not on board the bus at the time.) The bus driver pleaded guilty, and the band has donated $50,000 to the Friends of the Chicago River and $50,000 to the Chicago Park District.[2] In April 2005, the band paid $200,000 to settle the civil lawsuit that followed. [2]

In Fall 2004, DMB returned to their studio in Charlottesville, Virginia with a new producer, Mark Batson. The band considered itself to be at a crucial crossroads in its evolution. The negative reaction of many of its fans to Everyday and the middling success of Busted Stuff, coupled with Dave Matthews' belief that the band has not made a great album since Before These Crowded Streets, all worked to create a sense of eagerness, if not urgency, to create a stellar album. Stand Up was released on May 10, 2005, debuting at #1 on the Billboard charts with sales of 465,000. Fan reaction towards the album was mixed. Some felt the band had new energy, while others felt the album was too simplistic, resembling Matthews' 2003 solo outing Some Devil. Regardless, Stand Up spawned the hit singles "American Baby," "Dreamgirl," and the title track. The band supported the album with a summer-long tour culminating in a four-night stand at one of their favorite jaunts, Colorado's Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Red Rocks holds special signifigance for the band, as it was the site of their first live album a decade earlier. On the third night of the stand, the fans started a massive "Halloween" chant, a favorite song off the album Before These Crowded Streets. Although the song is rarely played, the band gave into the chant and played an impromptu version of it. Old and new fans alike were delighted. All proceeds from the fourth Red Rocks show, which totalled over $1 million, went to the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

DMB embarked on a brief tour in Fall 2005, with dates throughout November and December. Overall, the 2005 winter tour was quite a success. It featured the return of old school songs such as "Minarets," "Halloween," "Pig," "Christmas Song," and "Recently." The 2005 Red Rocks concerts were released on November 29 as a "best of" CD/DVD combo entitled Weekend on the Rocks. The Complete Weekend On The Rocks, a box set of all four Red Rocks concerts, is also exclusively available from DMB's official store.

Dave Matthews undertook a solo tour in the UK from 12th May-15th May, playing at Birmingham on the 12th, Manchester on the 13th, and Hammersmith Apollo on the 15th.

Dave Matthews Band announced on April 25, 2006, a $1.5 million challenge grant to help build the New Orleans Habitat Musicians' Village. The band returned to the studio in March 2006 (with the resultant album slated for release in winter) before embarking on their annual summer tour. It features 51 shows across North America, having begun May 30 in St. Louis, Missouri, and will conclude with a two-night stand on September 22-23 in the band's home town of Charlottesville, Virginia. Arguably this summer's most notable locale for the 2006 tour is a two-night stand at Boston's Fenway Park, that took place on July 7th and 8th, and will be featured as the next release in their "Live Trax" series. Along with the original five members and Butch, this summer features new addition Rashawn Ross touring full time. The trumpet player, who received recognition with DMB's fans while playing with the jazz band Soulive, guested on several shows in the summer of 2005 and the majority of the shows during the Winter 2005 tour. Rashawn has been added on as a full time for this tour, and the band has also indiciated that Rashawn will be around for quite some time (mentioning it during several shows in the first leg of the summer 2006 tour and due to the fact that he has been an important member of the recent studio sessions that have taken place both before and during the summer 2006 tour). The band has used the summer tour to debut new songs such as 'Sister', a song performed solo by Dave Matthews, 'The Idea of You', 'Kill the King', 'Shotgun', 'Break Free', and 'Can't Stop'. Many older songs also made a tour debut during the summer 2006 tour, having not been played for over a year. Such songs include 'The Song That Jane Likes' and 'Proudest Monkey', as well as numerous songs that had not been played for several years, including 'JTR', 'Pay For What You Get', 'Sleep To Dream Her', and 'The Last Stop'.

Taping and bootlegs

DMB occupies a somewhat unique place in music history. On the one hand, the band allows audience members to record their live shows, permits not-for-profit trading of the recordings, and cites college students trading these tapes in the early 1990s as a key reason for their current fame. On the other hand, the band and its management worked with the US federal government in 1996 to launch a crackdown on bootleggers, which resulted in large-scale arrests of those responsible for illegally manufacturing and selling copies of DMB material. To further combat bootleggers, the band released Live at Red Rocks 8.15.95, which was an unexpected success and became the first in a regular series of official live releases, all of which have debuted in the top 20 of Billboard's Top 200 albums.

Warehouse Fan Association

Another fan-friendly trend of DMB (in the tradition of The Grateful Dead, Phish, and Barenaked Ladies) is allowing their fans to purchase concert tickets before being sold to the general public. This, however, does not mean that Warehouse tickets will always be the best seats. Seat locations are not disclosed until approximately one month prior to the show date. Their Warehouse Fan Association pioneered the internet-based ticket pre-sales used by many artists today. Other benefits of the Warehouse Fan Association is members receive bonus companion CDs when they pre-order official Audio and Video releases. Members who have been active since the establishment of the Warehouse often receive some of the best seats available.

Discography

Main article: Dave Matthews Band discography

Independent albums

Studio albums

Live albums

The band has also released several live albums in their Live Trax series, which are not available in stores. See Dave Matthews Band discography for more information.

Awards

Grammys

  • Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group (1996) — nominated
  • Best Music Video, Short Form ("What Would You Say," 1996)
  • Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group ("So Much To Say", 1997) — WON
  • Best Rock Song ("Too Much", 1997) — nominated
  • Best Rock Album (Crash, 1997) — nominated
  • Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group (1998) — nominated
  • Best Rock Song ("Crash Into Me", 1998) — nominated
  • Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal ("Crush", 1999) — nominated
  • Best Rock Album (Before These Crowded Streets, 1999) — nominated
  • Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals ("Love Of My Life" with Santana, 2000) — nominated
  • Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group ("The Space Between", 2002) — nominated
  • Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal ("Where Are You Going", 2003) — nominated

My VH1 awards

  • Coolest Fan Website (2000) (for nancies.org) — WON
  • My Favorite Group (2001) — WON
  • Must Have Album , for Everyday (2001) — WON
  • Damn I Wish I Wrote That! (Song of the Year), for "The Space Between" (2001) — WON
  • Coolest Fan Website (2001) (for nancies.org) — WON

NAACP Image awards

  • Chairman's Award (2004), "in recognition of their diverse talents put to exceptional use...The special awards are a salute to both professional as well as personal excellence."[3]

Music samples

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Trivia

Notes

  1. ^ Waldo Jaquith (2000). "Interview with Peter Griesar" nancies.org (accessed July 18, 2006)
  2. ^ CBS staff writer (2004). "Dave Matthews Band Blamed For Human Waste" CBStoChicago.com (accessed May 29, 2006).
  3. ^ Press Release (2004). "The Dave Matthews Band to Receive Special NAACP Image Award" NAACP.org (accessed June 20, 2006)
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