Cracker

Cracker biography

Cracker is an American alternative rock band featuring founders/songwriters singer David Lowery and guitarist Johnny Hickman. They are best known for their platinum-selling 1993 album, Kerosene Hat, featuring the hit songs "Low", "Euro-Trash Girl", and "Get Off This".

Founders Lowery and Hickman formed the band in 1991, soon releasing the album Cracker (featuring the hits "Happy Birthday to Me" and "Teen Angst") on Virgin Records. The band has been touring continually ever since, releasing 10 studio albums (plus several compilations, collaborations, solo projects and live albums). Their most recent album is Sunrise in the Land of Milk and Honey, released May 5, 2009 on 429/Savoy Records. Cracker mixes influences and sounds ranging from rock, punk, alt-country, psychedelia, blues, and folk.

History

1990s

Shortly after Lowery's former group Camper Van Beethoven called it quits in 1990, he began demoing material along with guitarist and boyhood friend Johnny Hickman. After moving from California to Richmond Virginia, Lowery and Hickman recorded a demo tape, later nicknamed Big Dirty Yellow Demos by the group's fan base, which included early versions of songs that would appear on later albums. The pair eventually chose the name Cracker and teamed up with fellow Redlands Californian bassist Davey Faragher. A brief tour with Virginia drummer Greg Weatherford followed.

By 1991, the newly formed band had signed a recording contract with Virgin Records and enlisted the help of several drummers/percussionists (Jim Keltner, Michael Urbano and Phil Jones), issuing their self-titled debut in 1992. The album featured the radio hit "Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)", which peaked at #1 on Modern Rock Tracks, and a second single entitled "Happy Birthday to Me".

A year later, Cracker issued their best-selling album, Kerosene Hat, which featured the hits "Low" and "Get Off This", as well as a cover of the Grateful Dead's "Loser". The album sold close to half a million copies that year and eventually reached near platinum status. Urbano performed on Kerosene Hat and toured with Cracker before leaving the band, along with Faragher. After a short stint with Bruce Hughes, Lowery and Hickman added Bob Rupe, formerly of The Silos as bassist and Charlie Quintana (Bob Dylan, The JuJu Hounds)on drums. In 1993, Cracker contributed the song "Good Times Bad Times" to the Encomium tribute album to Led Zeppelin (which was recorded after their rendition of "When the Levee Breaks" was deemed "too weird").

Three years later, The Golden Age was released, with "I Hate My Generation" as the lead single. However, the music scene was shifting away from guitar-driven alternative rock, and although critically acclaimed, the album sold only moderately. Following the long-term additions of drummer Frank Funaro and keyboardist Kenny Margolis, the band tried again in 1998 with Gentleman's Blues, featuring "The Good Life" as the lead single. Although the album received only a lukewarm critical response, it solidified an ever growing and devout following both in the U.S. and Europe who referred to themselves as "Crumbs".

Biography from , the free encyclopedia.
It may not have been reviewed by a professional editor, and recent changes may not show up straight away. See the latest version of this article. Used under licence. Subject to disclaimers.