Whiskeytown
Biography
A band with as turbulent an existence as Whiskeytown was bound to implode sooner or later, but by the time they did, they had one of the largest cult followings of any alt-country band. Most accounts traced the source of all the turmoil to bandleader Ryan Adams, a gifted young songwriter whose flashes of brilliance came hand in hand with a volatile temper and an appetite for alcohol. Adams became notorious for his outbursts and erratic performances, and countless disputes with bandmates (some of them on-stage) inevitably led to frequent personnel changes. Yet during their five-year lifespan, Whiskeytown made some undeniably compelling music that only increased the mystique around their enfant terrible leader.Whiskeytown was formed in 1994 in Raleigh, NC, by singer/guitarist/banjoist Adams, a 20-year-old ex-punk rocker who'd discovered the country-rock of Gram Parsons. The band's other charter members were fiddler/occasional lead singer Caitlin Cary, guitarist Phil Wandscher, bassist Steve Grothmann, and drummer Eric "Skillet" Gilmore. They cut a seven-song EP called Angels for the local indie Mood Food in 1995 and quickly followed it with their full-length debut, Faithless Street, in early 1996.
Selected Discography
Pneumonia
2001
Strangers Almanac
1997
Awesome sound. Ryan Adams is great on his own but Whiskeytown had a great thing going.
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Would love to see them back together. No better drinking music. Conjurs up things you have tried to forget. Art is alive.
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WHISKEYTOWN! ! ! ! ! F*CK Yeah! Nothing better to listen to when your driven down the road, with a pack of smokes and cup of coffee... Or at night with bottle of beer upon bottle of beer, thinking about the past.
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