Forgotten Journal

Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King, the Dave Matthews Band’s first studio album in four years, will be released on June 2nd by RCA Records. On Friday, June 5th, Dave Matthews Band will perform on NBC’s “TODAY” show on Rockefeller Plaza, marking the first morning television appearance in the band’s career.

With its celebratory spirit and lyrical ruminations on fragile mortality, the album pays tribute to saxophonist LeRoi Moore, the band’s fallen partner. Moore passed away in the summer of 2008 while the group was on tour and midway through making the album. “When Roi died, it shook the whole band and left us saying, ‘What do we do now?’” recalls Matthews. “We knew that first of all, we had to finish this record that he was already in love with. So all of us went back in with the attitude ‘We can’t mess around with this one, because this one is an ode.”

When the remaining members regrouped in a New Orleans, LA studio in early 2009 to complete the album, they found they were able to integrate much of the material Moore had recorded during their 2008 sessions in Charlottesville, VA and Seattle, WA. “It’s so powerful to have Roi here with us for one last time on an album,” says violin player Boyd Tinsley. Guitarist Tim Reynolds, trumpeter Rashawn Ross and saxophonist Jeff Coffin also played on the album and will join the band on tour.

Produced by Rob Cavallo (Green Day, My Chemical Romance), Big Whiskey has been hailed by Rolling Stone as the group’s “heaviest album yet, both musically and emotionally,” which went on to note: “Throughout, Carter Beauford beats out elaborate, propulsive groves; bassist Stefan Lessard lays down Flea-style funk bass lines; violinist Boyd Tinsley plays cresting, intense runs; and Matthews mirrors Moore’s saxophone lines with scatlike singing.” Billboard, in a cover story on Dave Matthews Band, praised Big Whiskey

Matthews created all of the artwork for Big Whiskey, including the richly detailed cover illustration that puts a GrooGrux spin on New Orleans’ traditional Mardi Gras parades while evoking the joy and the sorrow expressed in the album’s songs. Matthews has designed logos and other elements in the past, but this is the first time he has created the entire packaging for a Dave Matthews Band album. For a limited time, fans can have fun unscrambling the cover at Dave MatthewsBand.com.

Big Whiskey is the follow-up to 2005’s Stand Up, the fourth consecutive Dave Matthews Band studio album to enter The Billboard 200 at No. 1. It will be available in three versions: standard, deluxe (with Scenes from Big Whiskey, a documentary on the making of the album) and super-deluxe, which includes bonus tracks, a photo book and lithographs in addition to the CD and documentary. Check out Billboard.com for an exclusive preview of footage from Scenes from Big Whiskey.

The track listing for Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King is as follows:

1. Grux
2. Shake Me Like A Monkey
3. Funny The Way It Is
4. Lying In The Hands Of God
5. Why I Am
6. Dive In
7. Spaceman
8. Squirm
9. Alligator Pie (Cockadile)
10. Seven
11. Time Bomb
12. My Baby Blue
13. You and Me

Category : Album, Dave Matthews Band

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Through a “tweet” on Twitter.com today, DAVE MATTHEWS BAND have announced that they are giving away their new single, “Funny the Way It Is,” as a free download for one week. Dave (@davejmatthews) and bassist Stefan Lessard (@slessard) are both very active on Twitter, keeping touch with their huge fanbase and decided it was the perfect place to get the word out. The song comes off their upcoming album, Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King, which hits stores on June 2nd. It will be the band’s first studio album since the death of saxophonist LeRoi Moore last summer. The “GrooGrux King” in the album title refers to Moore’s nickname within the group. Matthews created all of the artwork for Big Whiskey, including the richly detailed cover illustration that puts a GrooGrux spin on New Orleans’ traditional Mardi Gras parades while evoking the joy and the sorrow expressed in the album’s songs. Matthews has designed logos and other elements in the past, but this is the first time he has created the entire packaging for a Dave Matthews Band album.

Guitarist Tim Reynolds will play on the album, making it his first recording with DMB since 1998’s Before These Crowded Streets. The album was produced by Rob Cavallo (Green Day, My Chemical Romance, Goo Goo Dolls). Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King will also feature the recording debuts of Rashawn Ross who joined the band in 1996 but hadn’t played on any of their studio releases yet and Moore’s replacement, saxophonist Jeff Coffin who also is a member of Béla Fleck and the Flecktones. DMB just released a trailer for the new album which can be seen below.

Dave Matthews Band kicks off its 2009 tour tonight with a show at Madison Square Garden in New York City and will be on the road through October 2nd. Please visit http://www.davematthewsband.com for a full itinerary of the band’s spring and summer tours – and also check the website for the launch of the Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King pre-order later this week. Fans who pre-order the CD at the band’s website will receive the group’s upcoming live album, Live Trax 15, for free. Live Trax 15 captures the group’s August 9th, 2008 show at Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, WI, one of the most fan-requested shows for release from last year’s summer tour.

Download “Funny the Way It Is” for FREE here all this week: www.rcarecords.com/dmbfreedownload

Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King is out June 2nd.

VIDEO ALBUM TRAILER:

Category : Dave Matthews Band, Free Download

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The people behind the Grammys have a lot of explaining and apologizing to do. In their annual Memorial Tribute which pays respect to members of the music industry who have passed away in the previous year, they managed to leave out a 12 time nominee and 1 time winner. LeRoi Moore, one of the founding members and the saxophonist for the Dave Matthews Band, was a surprisingly absent from the video. The musician passed away last August due to complications from an ATV accident. Is there a reason that the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences somehow “forgot” to put him in the video?

Category : Dave Matthews Band, Grammy Awards, Leroi Moore

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Leroi Moore, the iconic saxophone player for the Dave Matthews Band, has passed away yesterday from complications from an ATV accident on his farm last June.
According to reports and the band’s official website, Leroi died at the Hollywood Presbyterian Medical center. This is where he was admitted with complications that arose weeks after his June 30 accident at his farm. The statement did not specify the exact reasons that led to his death and, nursing supervisor Galina Shinder said the hospital is not allowed to release details of his death.
Dave Matthews Band played last night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Dave, who always credited Leroi for arranging the band’s songs, dedicated this nights show to his late band mate and friend. he told his audience, that “It’s always easier to leave than be left”.
The music industry mourns the loss of one of the best saxophone players. Our prayers and thoughts are with his family and friends.

Category : Dave Matthews Band, Leroi Moore

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