| The Band of Heathens | |
| Landscape: | Yes |
| Origin: | Austin, Texas |
| Years Active: | 2005–present |
| Label: | BOH Records, Blue Rose Records |
| Associated Acts: | Raul Malo |
| Website: | www.bandofheathens.com |
| Current Members: | Ed Jurdi Gordy Quist Trevor Nealon Richard Millsap Jesse Wilson |
| Past Members: | Colin Brooks Seth Whitney John Chipman Ryan Bowman Brian Keane Eldridge Goins Scott Davis |
The Band of Heathens is an American rock and roll band from Austin, Texas. The band was originally formed by Colin Brooks, Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist in 2005.
The three original principal songwriters - Colin Brooks, Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist - shared the bill at Momo's, an Austin club.[1] Originally, each singer/songwriter performed his own set. However, they eventually started sharing the stage, and collaborating with bassist Seth Whitney. The Wednesday night series was billed as "The Good Time Supper Club". A misprint in a local paper billed the act as "The Heathens." Drummer John Chipman joined the band in 2007, and Keyboardist Trevor Nealon, who played in the studio during the recording of both "One Foot in the Ether" and "Top Hat Crown & the Clapmaster's Son", joined the touring unit in 2011.
Their first recording, "Live from Momo's", recorded at the now closed club on West 6th Street in Austin brought the band national attention and they were voted "Best New Band" at the 2007 Austin Music Awards. Following the Momo's release, the band released a second live recording, the CD/DVD "Live at Antone's" which was recorded at the venerable Austin club.
May 20, 2008 the band released their first, self-titled, studio album. Produced by Ray Wylie Hubbard, and featuring notable guests Patty Griffin, Stephen Bruton, and Gurf Morlix, the record went to #1 on the Americana Music Association's radio charts. In November 2008 the album was ranked 8th place on the Americana Music Association's Top 100 Albums of the Americana Charts for 2008.[2]
In July 2009 BOH taped an Austin City Limits show that aired in the Fall of 2009. The year was especially significant for ACL in that Austin City Limits was celebrating its 35th anniversary year. The band's unique genesis and creativity were highlighted during the Austin City Limits interview conducted after their performance.[3] The TV performance showcased a set by both the Band Of Heathens and Elvis Costello.[4]
Following the Austin City Limits PBS show, the band also played on the German television live concert series Rockpalast on October 9, 2009, performing 14 songs, many from the albums "Band Of Heathens" and "One Foot In The Ether.".[5] "One Foot In The Ether", BOH's second studio release once again charted to the #1 slot on the Americana Radio Charts.
In 2009, the band was nominated for a "New Emerging Artist" award at the Americana Music Honors & Awards. In 2010, the band was again honored by the Americana Music Association as nominees for the "Best Duo/Group of the Year".[6]
In 2011, the band released their fifth album overall (third studio album) Top Hat Crown & the Clapmaster's Son. The album was listed in the top 10 most played Americana Albums of 2011, marking the third album in a row to make the year end top 10 list. This album is also the last studio project featuring founding member Colin Brooks, who announced in November of that year that he was leaving the band to pursue other interests after six years.
2013 provided the critically acclaimed album titled "Sunday Morning Record". The "Bakersfield Californian Review" aptly stated "Sunday Morning Record is a love letter to the past and, at the same time, a postcard to the future."[7] The album charted to the number 2 spot on the Americana Charts Americana Music Association and was selected as the Number one album in 2013 by "The Alternative Root". In addition, "The Alternative Root" in referring to its "Top Fifty" Americana Bands stated the following: "The number one spot was the easiest to place. Band of Heathens epitomize Indie, building their band business from the ground up and keeping everything in-house".[8]
Highway Prayer: A Tribute to Adam Carroll, released in late 2016 on Austin-based Eight 30 Records, featured The Band of Heathens' version of Carroll's "Oklahoma Gypsy Shuffler."[9] Additionally, The Band of Heathens' version of "The Dirty South" was included on the satirical album Floater: A Tribute to the Tributes to Gary Floater, released early in 2018 on the Austin-based Eight 30 Records.[10]
The band started recording all of their live performances in February 2012 and making them available at the conclusion of each show on a USB drive. Each drive contains that night's audio recording, photos from the day of touring, and a video (when possible). Later, the band launched live.bandofheathens.com where the audio recordings are available either by subscription or a la carte download. Ed Jurdi said the band embraced the idea of sharing as much of their music as possible, "We play different set lists night to night and we’ll play songs differently over time and they will evolve. And that’s another outlet for fans to follow the band and explore what we are doing. So our attitude is to share it as much as we can."[11]
The first two recordings were live - a live album at Momo's was recorded in 2006, and in 2007, "Live at Antone's" with a DVD/CD set was completed. In May 2008, the band released its first studio production simply titled "The Band of Heathens". Produced by Ray Wylie Hubbard, the album reached #1 on the Americana Charts and the EuroAmericana charts. What is significant however is that it was only the second independently released album to ever reach #1 on the Chart.[12] [13]
In September 2009 the band released the album "One Foot in the Ether" which again made it to number one on the Americana as well as the Euroamericana charts.
A cover of Leon Everette's "Hurricane" charted at number 18 on Hot Rock Songs in 2018.[14]