The Wallflowers
A Blues Rock/ Alternative Rock band formed in 1989. It consists of Jakob Dylan (lead vocals, lead guitar), Fred Eltringham (drums), Greg Richling (Bass guitar), Stuart Mathis (Lead guitar), Rami Jaffee (keyboards). There also used to be a slew of musicians that used to be part of the band.
Jakob Dylan, being the son of Bob Dylan, started the band in 1989. Looking to write classic Blues Rock with a modern edge to it, the band worked hard on songwriting for their first 3 years. Their self titled album was released in 1992, and went largely ignored at the time of its release due to the rise of Grunge. The album was also met with lukewarm reviews, most critics saying that Jakob was trying to be too much like his father.
They spent the next year trying to support the album, but Jakob's refusal to advertise himself as Bob Dylan's son and Virgin Record's failure to properly promote the album caused the band to have a fallout. They left Virgin and dropped most of the original lineup and signed to Interscope Records for their second album Bringing Down The Horse. This time, the band focused on a more edgy sound, straying away from the casual roots-rock formulas on their first album. This time, it was a commercial success. It went 4x platinum, and the songs "One Headlight" and "6th Avenue Heartache" were both chart toppers. The critical response was also MUCH more welcoming, with most publications giving the album a near-perfect rating.
They took a short break and then started recording again. They contributed a David Bowie cover with the song "Heroes" to the 1998 American Godzilla movie, that earned them a Grammy. They released (Breach) in 2000 to even more critical acclaim. This is often considered to be their best work, but it the album was mostly a commercial flop.
Desperate for another hit, the band didn't take long to record their third album, Red Letter Days. Released in 2002, the album became an indie hit, but failed to chart high. The critical reception was also diminished, once again receiving lukewarm reviews.
Then in 2005, they released their most recent album, Rebel, Sweetheart, to more positive reviews, but even poorer sales. Exhausted, the band went on hiatus for six years, with Jakob Dylan pursuing a mostly successful solo career. They reunited in November 2011, and are currently on tour, with a new studio album scheduled to be released in September 2012.
The Other Wiki has a fully detailed page. Also, the band has its own webpage, which can be found here.
- The Wallflowers (1992)
- Bringing Down the Horse (1996)
- (Breach) (2000)
- Red Letter Days (2002)
- Rebel, Sweetheart (2005)
- Collected: 1996–2005 (2009)
- Artifact Title: Originally it was going to be on the album of the same name but due to meddling it was dropped.
- Greatest Hits Album: Collected: 1996–2005, a greatest hits album that completely ignored their first self titled album on Virgin Records
- He Also Did: Rami plays keyboards for the Foo Fighters during the band's breaks.
- Reclusive Artist: Jakob is this to an extent. He refuses to give interviews to people that want to compare him to his father.
- Self-Titled Album
- Signature Song: "One Headlight"