The Minus 5 is an American

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, ear ...

band headed by musician

Scott McCaughey Scott Lewis McCaughey is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter and the leader of the Seattle and Portland-based bands The Young Fresh Fellows and The Minus 5. He was also an auxiliary member of the American rock band R.E.M. from 199 ...

of Young Fresh Fellows, often in partnership with R.E.M. guitarist

Peter Buck Peter Lawrence Buck (born December 6, 1956) is an American musician and songwriter. He was a co-founder and the lead guitarist of the alternative rock band R.E.M. He also plays the banjo and mandolin on several R.E.M. songs. Throughout his ca ...

Band history

McCaughey formed the band in 1993 as a side project with Buck, Jon Auer and

Ken Stringfellow Kenneth Stuart Stringfellow (born October 30, 1968) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, and producer. Best known for his work with The Posies, R.E.M., and the re-formed Big Star, Stringfellow's discography includ ...

The Posies The Posies were an American power pop group. The band was formed in 1986 in Bellingham, Washington, United States, by primary songwriters Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow. Their music has its origins in Merseybeat and the Hollies. They are ...

. Buck had moved to the Seattle area in 1992; the other principals were longtime fixtures of the Seattle music scene. The four musicians had numerous personal and professional connections: both the Posies and McCaughey's The Young Fresh Fellows had recorded at

Conrad Uno Conrad Uno is an American record producer and founder of the independent record label PopLlama Records. Uno began his career making his own music as a teenager in his makeshift basement studio. At the request of his friends, the Young Fresh Fell ...

's Egg Studios and released albums on Uno's PopLlama Records label. The Young Fresh Fellows and The Posies were fixtures of Seattle's

Crocodile Cafe The Crocodile (formerly the Crocodile Cafe, and sometimes called The Croc) is a music club at 2505 1st Avenue at Wall Street in the Belltown neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. Opened by Stephanie Dorgan as the "Crocodile Cafe" ...

, owned and managed by Buck's then-girlfriend (later wife) Stephanie Dorgan. The Young Fresh Fellows were the opening band at a

Kevn Kinney Kevin Kinney, known professionally as Kevn Kinney (born March 12, 1961),"The Baseball Project at Wux ...

gig at the Croc On July 4, 1992; Buck backed Kinney along with R.E.M.'s Mike Mills and

Bill Berry William Thomas Berry (born July 31, 1958) is an American musician who was the drummer for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Although best known for his economical drumming style, Berry also played other instruments, including guitar, bass guitar ...

. The band's name is a nod to classic-rock quintets such as

The Count Five Count Five was an American garage rock band, formed in San Jose, California in 1964, known for their hit single " Psychotic Reaction". Background The band was founded in 1964 by lead guitarist John "Mouse" Michalski (born 1948, Cleveland, Ohio) ...

, MC5 and

The Dave Clark Five The Dave Clark Five, also known as the DC5, were an English rock and roll band formed in 1958 in Tottenham, London. Drummer Dave Clark (musician), Dave Clark served as the group's leader, producer and co-songwriter. In January 1964 they had thei ...

and part of a trend of intentionally-misnamed groups such as

Ben Folds Five Ben Folds Five is an American alternative rock trio formed in 1993 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The group comprises Ben Folds (lead vocals, piano), Robert Sledge ( bass guitar, backing vocals) and Darren Jessee (drums, backing vocals). The gr ...

and

Pizzicato Five Pizzicato Five (formerly typeset as Pizzicato V and sometimes abbreviated to P5)Yang Jeff, Dina Can, Terry Hong, (1997) ''Eastern Standard Time'' pg 277 New York: Mariner Books was a Japanese pop band formed in Tokyo in 1979 by multi-instrume ...

which had fewer than five members. The use of a

negative number In mathematics, a negative number represents an opposite. In the real number system, a negative number is a number that is less than zero. Negative numbers are often used to represent the magnitude of a loss or deficiency. A debt that is owed ma ...

in the band name is typical of the self-deprecating humor pervasive in the then grunge-saturated Seattle music scene. The song titles of the group's earliest output—among them, "Loser So Supreme," "Drunkard's Lullaby," and "Brotherhood Of Pain"—are indicative of the downbeat nature of the band's initial output. Themes of

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

, and self-hatred are recurrent in each subsequent Minus 5 release. "McCaughey realized he had a dumptruck-load of songs that the Young Fresh Fellows would either never get around to, or would wisely choose not to," read one press release. " uck, Stringfellow and Auerwere quick to volunteer to help Scott capture his 'Let The Bad Times Roll' vision."

Hello Recording Club EP

The band assembled at Uno's Egg Studio in summer 1993 and recorded their debut EP for the Hello CD of the Month Club, a subscription-only mail order club run by

John Flansburgh John Conant Flansburgh (born May 6, 1960) is an American musician. He is half of the long-standing Brooklyn, New York-based alternative rock duo They Might Be Giants with John Linnell, for which he writes, sings, and plays rhythm guitar. Commo ...

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a dr ...

. For this EP the band was supplemented by

NRBQ NRBQ is an American rock band founded by Terry Adams (piano), Steve Ferguson (guitar) and Joey Spampinato (bass). Originally the "New Rhythm and Blues Quintet", the group was formed around 1965. Adams disbanded it for a time, and the group re ...

members Tom Ardolino and Terry Adams and Young Fresh Fellows bassist Jim Sangster. McCaughey's darkly humorous lyrics and

minor key In Western music, the adjectives major and minor may describe a chord, scale, or key. As such, composition, movement, section, or phrase may be referred to by its key, including whether that key is major or minor. Intervals Some intervals ...

compositions meshed seamlessly with Buck's bright guitar hooks. The band's aesthetic is defined by opener "Loser So Supreme," which pairs the chiming mandolin licks Buck popularized on "

Losing My Religion "Losing My Religion" is a song by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released in February 1991 as the first single from the group's seventh album, '' Out of Time'' (1991). Built on a mandolin riff, the song was an unlikely hit for the gro ...

" with downbeat observations like "No one can reveal what has always been revealed/No one can invent a world that already exists." Auer and Stringfellow, known more for their power-pop inflected

vocal harmonies Vocal harmony is a style of vocal music in which a consonant note or notes are simultaneously sung as a main melody in a predominantly homophonic texture. Vocal harmonies are used in many subgenres of European art music, including Classical chora ...

and

guitar solo A guitar solo is a melodic passage, instrumental section, or entire piece of music, pre-written (or improvised) to be played on a classical guitar, electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. In 20th and 21st century traditional music and popular ...

s, added cacophonous textures on piano, keyboards and guitar. For this release only the band's name was stylized as 'The Minus Five'; all subsequent releases have used a numeral. The EP was sent to subscribers as the December 1993/January 1994 release.

Live debut and 1994 recording sessions

The Minus 5 made their live debut at the Crocodile Cafe on November 9, 1993, on a bill supporting jangly indie heroes The Silos. As Auer and Stringfellow were in Europe touring behind the Posies'

Frosting On The Beater ''Frosting on the Beater'' is the third album by American rock band The Posies, released in 1993. It featured a darker sound than the band's prior works, in part due to production duties being handled by Don Fleming. "Dream All Day", "Solar Siste ...

, the Minus 5 performed as a duo with backing from The Silos' Walter Salas-Humara,

Tom Freund Tom Freund (born August 28, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Freund's music consists of elements of folk rock, americana and alternative rock. Freund met Ben Harper when he was attending Pitzer College in Clare ...

and Manuel Versoza for the last three songs. The set included lively covers of Johnny Cash's "I Still Miss Someone" and Neil Young's "Barstool Blues" as well as four freshly-written McCaughey compositions. At the time, it was widely assumed that the Minus 5 was a one-off proposition that might not record again, and certainly never tour due to the primary obligations of the principal musicians. However, McCaughey continued to record at various Seattle studios including Egg, Down In The Hole and Private Radio throughout 1994.

's Ardolino and Adams contributed to two more cuts;

The Walkabouts The Walkabouts were an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984. The core members were vocalist Carla Torgerson and vocalist and songwriter Chris Eckman. Although the rest of the line-up changed occasionally, for most of the time ...

' Carla Torgerson and Chris Eckman added cello and guitar; legendary Seattle street performer Richard Peterson played various horns. McCaughey also recorded Young Fresh Fellows' ''Temptation On A Saturday'' EP during this period using some of the same musicians. Due to recording duties on R.E.M.'s ''Monster'', Buck was away from Seattle for much of 1994, returning only briefly for the birth of his twin daughters. When mixing on R.E.M.'s album was complete, Buck turned his attention to McCaughey's new songs. The Minus 5 played their second show at the Crocodile Cafe on September 15, 1994, just a week before ''Monster'''s release. For this gig McCaughey, Buck and Stringfellow were joined by The Model Rockets' John Ramberg. By fall 1994, McCaughey was caught up in the promotional blitz behind ''Monster'', making his live debut with R.E.M. on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves ...

'' November 12, 1994. McCaughey was subsequently recruited to join R.E.M. on their worldwide tour which kicked off in January 1995. The Minus 5's cover of Johnny Cash's "I Still Miss Someone" was released on a 1994 German compilation titled ''Love Is My Only Crime – Part Two''. The CD also featured rare or previously unreleased songs from The Young Fresh Fellows and future McCaughey collaborator

Steve Wynn Stephen Alan Wynn (''né'' Weinberg; born January 27, 1942) is an American real estate developer and art collector. He is known for his involvement in the American luxury casino and hotel industry. Early in his career he oversaw the construction ...

''Old Liquidator''

In April 1995, R.E.M. drummer

suffered a

brain aneurysm An intracranial aneurysm, also known as a brain aneurysm, is a cerebrovascular disorder in which weakness in the wall of a cerebral artery or vein causes a localized dilation or ballooning of the blood vessel. Aneurysms in the posterior circ ...

, causing more than two months of planned tour dates to be abruptly cancelled. In the unexpected downtime, McCaughey and Buck put the finishing touches on what would become the Minus 5's debut LP—at the time titled ''Last Call, Corporal.'' The finished product, hastily retitled '' Old Liquidator'', was at first a hard-to-find, low-key release on German indie label Glitterhouse. Though pressed in modest numbers and at first only available in the U.S. as an import, the cache of being an 'R.E.M. side project' in 1995 was an irresistible lure to thirsty collectors. It wasn't long before Minneapolis distributor

East Side Digital East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

released the album in the U.S. as well. ''Old Liquidator'' is haunted by the unexpected Christmas 1994 death of McCaughey's friend Jimmy Silva, who had collaborated with Young Fresh Fellows, Stringfellow, Uno and members of

The Smithereens The Smithereens are an American rock band from Carteret, New Jersey, United States. The group formed in 1980 with members Pat DiNizio (vocals & guitar), Jim Babjak (guitar & vocals), Mike Mesaros (bass guitar & vocals), and Dennis Diken (drum ...

. "Worse," the second track on the album, was co-written with Silva. Other cuts such as "Story" are influenced by the surrealist imagery of mid-60s Bob Dylan, invoking fictional misadventures of figures including

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typ ...

. Another inspiration is

Nick Lowe Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,Country Feedback." Elsewhere, Buck's exotic bouzouki and dulcimer textures proved welcome departures from ''Monster'''s fuzzed-out glam riffs.

The Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole con ...

-influenced

Rickenbacker Rickenbacker International Corporation is a string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. The company is credited as the first known maker of electric guitars – a steel guitar in 1932 – and today produces a range ...

jangle of single "Emperor Of The Bathroom" is unmistakably Buck. Auer and Stringfellow are more tangible on this album, harmonizing amiably on opener "Winter Goes Away" and closing singalong "When It Comes My Way." ''Old Liquidator'' begins The Minus 5's custom of numbering their releases, including singles, in chronological order. On the back cover, the subtitle "The Minus 5 No. 2 Record" is prominently displayed above the musicians' names. A CD single for " The Emperor Of The Bathroom" was released in fall 1995 with alternate versions of three album cuts, a country-fried outtake called "Heartache For Sale" and a cover of the Fantastic Baggys' "This Little Woody." When the ''Monster'' tour resumed in summer 1995, R.E.M. began recording what would later become the ''New Adventures In Hi-Fi'' album using recordings of new songs made in concert, at soundchecks, in dressing rooms and even on the tour bus. McCaughey, again called along for the ride, contributed significantly to these recordings playing piano, organ, synths and autoharp. Between R.E.M. gigs on June 1, 1995, The Minus 5 played their first show outside of Seattle at the Lounge Ax in Chicago. Without Auer and Stringfellow, Buck and McCaughey were supported by

Wilco Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently d ...

frontman

Jeff Tweedy Jeffrey Scot Tweedy (born August 25, 1967) is an American musician, songwriter, author, and record producer best known as the singer and guitarist of the band Wilco. Tweedy, originally from Belleville, Illinois, started his music career in hi ...

, R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills, and Mark Greenberg. New songs "Moonshine Girl" and "Wouldn't Want To Care" were debuted alongside Johnny Cash, Nick Lowe, Gram Parsons and Porter Wagoner covers. During another tour hiatus, The Minus 5 played gigs at the Tractor Tavern and Crocodile Cafe in Seattle at the end of August 1995. New song "Bullfight" was debuted at these shows, which featured Young Fresh Fellows and Fastbacks guitarist Kurt Bloch in addition to McCaughey, Buck and Auer. In December 1995, The Minus 5 played two nights at the Crocodile Cafe in support of Kevn Kinney, supplemented by Screaming Trees'

Barrett Martin Barrett Martin (born April 14, 1967) is an American record producer, percussionist, writer, and ethnomusicologist from Washington. As a producer he has won one Latin Grammy and has been nominated in two other categories. As an ethnomusicologist ...

on upright bass. The Minus 5 and Kevn Kinney also played at the Aladdin Theater in Portland as The Barrett Martin Quartet.

Hollywood Records deal and ''The Lonesome Death of Buck McCoy''

The modest success of ''Old Liquidator'' and continued cultural cache of R.E.M. brought The Minus 5 a great deal of attention in 1996. Not only were the group signed to

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

-affiliated

Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label focuses in pop, rock, alternative, hip hop, and country genres, as well as specializing in mature recordings not suitable for the flagship Walt Disney Records ...

, but the label agreed to finance a follow-up record and even reissue some of McCaughey's back catalog. Moreover, McCaughey was given his own label imprint, Malt Records, with distribution through Hollywood. Though the bulk of recording for ''New Adventures In Hi-Fi'' had taken place on the road, Buck was occupied through early 1996 with recording and mixing the new R.E.M. album. Nonetheless, McCaughey and Buck continued to record in piecemeal sessions with Avast! engineer Kevin Suggs, Conrad Uno, John Keane, and Water Music's Rob Grenoble. In late summer, The Minus 5 played

KISW KISW (99.9 FM) – branded 99.9 KISW, The Rock of Seattle – is a commercial mainstream rock radio station licensed to Seattle, Washington. Owned by Audacy, Inc., the station serves the Seattle metropolitan area; live shows include ''The Me ...

's Pain In The Grass concert in support of

, who were busy touring behind their 1996 release ''

Amazing Disgrace ''Amazing Disgrace'' is the fourth album by the Seattle alternative rock band the Posies, released in 1996. It was their final release for DGC Records. Production As was the case on previous albums, the band's label told the Posies to return to ...

''. New songs "Cross Every Line" and "Empty Room" were premiered by a lineup including McCaughey, Buck, Auer, Stringfellow and John Ramberg. ''New Adventures In Hi-Fi'' was released September 10, 1996. With no tour planned to promote the album, Buck was free to explore other musical pursuits. In early fall 1996, Buck embarked on two new musical collaborations: the instrumental supergroup

Tuatara Tuatara (''Sphenodon punctatus'') are reptiles endemic to New Zealand. Despite their close resemblance to lizards, they are part of a distinct lineage, the order Rhynchocephalia. The name ''tuatara'' is derived from the Māori language and m ...

with Barrett Martin, and a collaborative album with

American Music Club American Music Club was an American, San Francisco-based indie rock band, led by singer-songwriter Mark Eitzel. Formed in 1983, the band released seven albums before splitting up in 1995. They reformed in 2003 and released two further albums. ...

Mark Eitzel Mark Eitzel (born January 30, 1959) is an American musician, best known as a songwriter and lead singer of the San Francisco band American Music Club. Biography Eitzel spent his formative years in a military family living in Okinawa, Taiwan, Ohi ...

. Martin joined the Minus 5 for a Crocodile Cafe gig on October 7, 1996, where new songs "Hate Me More" and "Dear Employer (The Reason I Quit") were debuted. McCaughey's then-wife

Christy McWilson Christy McWilson is an American singer-songwriter based in the Pacific Northwest. She has performed with the Dynette Set, the Picketts, as a solo artist, and with many other artists, including Dave Alvin and The Young Fresh Fellows. Early li ...

also joined the group for this show. The following week, Tuatara made their live debut at the Croc. In December 1996, Buck booked a week with engineer Ed Brooks at Ironwood in Seattle to record Eitzel's ''West'' album. McCaughey, Martin, and

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, g ...

Mike McCready Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician who serves as the lead guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of the band. McCready ...

were all on hand for the sessions. At the end of the sessions, The Minus 5 opened for Eitzel at the Crocodile Cafe. Martin and Eitzel both joined The Minus 5 for several songs and McCaughey premiered new song "Boeing Spacearium." The second Minus 5 full-length, dubbed '' The Lonesome Death of Buck McCoy'', was completed at Ironwood shortly thereafter. ''The Lonesome Death of Buck McCoy'', cobbled together from McCaughey's many 1996 sessions, featured an impressive roster of guests including Guided by Voices'

Robert Pollard Robert Ellsworth Pollard Jr. (born October 31, 1957) is an American singer and songwriter who is the leader and creative force behind indie rock group Guided by Voices. In addition to his work with Guided by Voices, he continues to have a prol ...

, The Presidents of the United States of America, McWilson, Barrett Martin and Mike McCready. Unlike previous releases, each song was credited equally to McCaughey and Buck. In the liner notes each player was assigned a "role" as in a rock opera, with McCaughey himself playing "Buck McCoy" and others assuming roles like "Admiral Boot," "The Constable" and "Ancient Roomer." In reference to the creative process of the album, the liner notes provide a synopsis: "Little Buck McCoy wakes up born in the middle of a wheatfield. He decides to carry on alone, despite his many acquaintances, until dying years later." The songs did not actually constitute a narrative or refer to these characters at all. Critics took note of the haphazard nature of the proceedings, which included Small Faces pastiche "Popsycle Shoppe" and a cover of

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

's harrowing "My Mummy's Dead." No Depression called the album "Surprisingly bitter froth...Most of the record's 12 songs quake with the severely compressed intimacy and hazy chamber-ballad tension of recent R.E.M. (no surprise) and John Lennon." Hollywood Records did not release a single to promote the album.

The Magnificent Seven vs. The United States tour

In early 1997, R.E.M. began the process of writing demos for a new album both in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...

in February and Buck's Hawaiian residence in April. The three albums Buck had contributed to in 1996 were all released within weeks of one another. Tuatara's ''Breaking The Ethers'' was released March 1, 1997, followed by Eitzel's ''West'' and '' The Lonesome Death of Buck McCoy'' on the same day: May 5, 1997. A U.S. tour was assembled that would allow Buck to tour both coasts with all three acts, under the title ''The Magnificent Seven vs. The United States.'' The Magnificent Seven referred to McCaughey, Stringfellow, Eitzel, Martin and the three remaining members of Tuatara—though counting Buck there were actually eight. American Music Club bassist Dan Pearson later joined the tour to augment Eitzel's sets. For this tour The Minus 5 consisted of Buck, McCaughey, Stringfellow, Martin, and Tuatara's Justin Harwood. The tour kicked off May 1, 1997 with two hometown gigs at the Crocodile. Each show featured Tuatara and Eitzel performing two sets each, with a short Minus 5 set between and occasionally McCaughey performing solo. The 22-date tour continued for two months, with many media appearances along the way. Buck and Eitzel performed on

KFOG KNBR-FM (104.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to San Francisco, California, serving the greater San Francisco Bay Area. Owned by Cumulus Media, KNBR-FM features a sports radio format in a simulcast with co-owned KNBR. Both stati ...

in San Francisco,

Late Night With Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien. NBC aired 2,725 episodes from September 13, 1993, to February 20, 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and music ...

and then on WBCN radio in Boston. All three groups played

Morning Becomes Eclectic ''Morning Becomes Eclectic'' (MBE) is a three-hour adult album alternative radio program first aired in 1977 and broadcast live every weekday from KCRW in Santa Monica, California. The show's name is a play on the Eugene O'Neill trilogy of plays, ...

KCRW KCRW (89.9 MHz FM) is a National Public Radio member station broadcasting from the campus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, where the station is licensed. KCRW airs original news and music programming in addition to program ...

in Santa Monica and Idiot's Delight on WNEW in New York. Near the end of the tour all three groups played a free in-store at New York record mecca

Other Music Other Music was a music retail store that sold CDs, records and cassettes online and at their brick-and-mortar location in the Noho neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The store specialized in the sale of closely curated underground, ...

. The East Coast leg of the tour was peppered with surprise guests:

and

John Wesley Harding ''John Wesley Harding'' is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on December 27, 1967, by Columbia Records. Produced by Bob Johnston, the album marked Dylan's return to semi-acoustic instrumentation and fol ...

showed up in New York, Mike Mills joined The Minus 5 in Philadelphia and Atlanta, and

Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of alternative rock band R.E.M. He is known for his vocal quality, poetic lyrics and unique stage presence. Pos ...

joined his R.E.M. bandmates for a four-song encore in Atlanta. Reaction to the tour was mixed. None of the three records sold particularly well, and the critics' approval was tepid: "A three-hour marathon that was simply too much to absorb," Sara Scribner wrote in the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

. "The Minus 5, despite some catchy, jangling tunes from its new album...never got its footing."

Geoffrey Himes Geoffrey Himes is an American music critic who has written weekly for ''the Washington Post'' since 1977. He also wrote for '' No Depression'' as a contributing editor in its first print era in the late 1990s to the early 2000s and has written for ...

wrote in

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...

: "Genuinely amusing when the tunes were bouncy and catchy, but the slow numbers didn't have the humor or melody to justify the dreary pacing." In June 1997, Buck recorded some tracks with

Robyn Hitchcock Robyn Rowan Hitchcock (born 3 March 1953) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano, and bass guitar. After leading the Soft Boys in the late 1970s and releasing the ...

for his album Jewels For Sophia in Seattle. After the session, McCaughey joined Hitchcock and Buck for a Crocodile Cafe gig under the name "Popscyle Shoppe Incident: Viva Sea Tac II."

Tim Keegan Tim Keegan is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. Vocalist and principal songwriter with Departure Lounge (band), Departure Lounge since 1999, Keegan has recorded and performed with various bands and as a solo artist. He has worked w ...

and Kurt Bloch joined in the set, and Young Fresh Fellows were the opening act.

Hollywood Records deluxe reissues

In August 1997, Hollywood Records reissued '' Old Liquidator'' and, curiously, McCaughey's 1989 solo album ''

My Chartreuse Opinion ''My Chartreuse Opinion'' is a 1989 solo album by Scott McCaughey, later reissued as an album by The Minus 5 on Hollywood Records on August 26, 1997. Critical reception The editorial staff of AllMusic Guide gave the album three out of five star ...

'' in deluxe editions with bonus tracks. ''My Chartreuse Opinion'', a Conrad Uno-recorded affair which featured cameos from Jimmy Silva and Christy McWilson, was now credited to "The Minus 5 of Scott McCaughey." The reissue actually featured fewer bonus tracks than the now out-of-print original release, which featured four unrelated Silva recordings at the end. Nonetheless, it was a great way of drawing attention to McCaughey's back catalog and much easier to find than the initial release. ''Old Liquidator'' was also expanded, adding two songs from the Hello Recording Club EP, "Heartache For Sale" from the "Emperor of the Bathroom" single, and two short instrumentals. These would prove to be The Minus 5's final releases on Hollywood. Just weeks before the release of ''The Lonesome Death of Buck McCoy'', longtime Hollywood Records president Bob Pfeifer resigned. Under a reorganization plan, Disney acquired established indie

Mammoth Records Mammoth Records was an independent record label founded in 1989 by Jay Faires in the Carrboro area of Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The majority of the acts on Mammoth were executive-produced by Faires and the label's general manager, Steve Balcom ...

for $25 million in an attempt to diversify its roster. Mammoth founder

Jay Faires Jay Faires is an American businessman who is the CEO and founder of The Wellness Agency, which provides support services to companies in the wellness industry, including: incubator services, connection to venture capital sources, DTC strategy ...

was now charged with breaking The Minus 5 to a larger audience, but industry watchers such as

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

's Adam Sandler questioned why Disney didn't focus on "pop music, which is a better fit with its TV and film programming, rather than indie-inspired repertoire."

McCaughey joins R.E.M. and Tuatara in the studio

While R.E.M. was in Georgia recording demos for what would become ''Up'', The Minus 5 played its first two shows without Buck: at Chicago's Lounge Ax on August 16, 1997, the band consisted of McCaughey, Stringfellow,

Jason Finn Jason Finn (born October 27, 1967) is an American musician, best known as the former drummer and singer for The Presidents of the United States of America. He was previously the drummer of Love Battery until 1995 (and also played drums for the ...

and Dharma Bums' Jim Talstra. The raucous gig was by far the band's longest to date: an 11-song McCaughey solo set followed by a 22-song Minus 5 powerhouse that included unreleased songs, several nuggets from ''My Chartreuse Opinion'' and covers of John Lennon and

The Modern Lovers The Modern Lovers were an American rock band led by Jonathan Richman in the 1970s and 1980s. The original band existed from 1970 to 1974 but their recordings were not released until 1976 or later. It featured Richman and bassist Ernie Brooks w ...

. The following week, McCaughey played a gig with John Wesley Harding at the Croc in Seattle which included a handful of Minus 5 tunes and as-yet-unreleased Young Fresh Fellows songs. In October 1997, Bill Berry announced he was leaving R.E.M. Having completed more than eight months of writing and recording demos for ''Up'', R.E.M. made the decision to continue as a three-piece. As the recording process continued in 1998, McCaughey became an important contributor in the studio, usually on keyboards. Ken Stringfellow and Barrett Martin were also recruited for some of these sessions. McCaughey was also roped into Tuatara in 1998, contributing three tracks to sophomore album ''

Trading With The Enemy Trading with the enemy is a legal term of English origin that is used with a number of related meanings. It refers to: #An offence at common law and under statute #A ground for condemnation of ships in prize proceedings #A ground for illegality ...

''. Near the end of 1997, The Minus 5 played the two-night Crocodile Cafe's An Evenings In Edenbrook Forest event, with a lineup that included McCaughey, Buck, Martin and John Ramberg. A special double CD compilation was given away at the shows which included The Minus 5's cover of The Modern Lovers' "Government Center" and rare or unreleased cuts from Young Fresh Fellows, The Lowe Beats (McCaughey's Nick Lowe cover band), The Model Rockets, Fastbacks and others. The CD was the inaugural release of Book Records, a new label McCaughey started for extremely limited or tour-only releases. In 1999, the group accepted an invitation to participate in a

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

Moby Grape Moby Grape is an American rock band founded in 1966, known for having all five members contribute to singing and songwriting, and who collectively merged elements of folk music, blues, country, and jazz with rock and psychedelic music. They were ...

co-founder

Skip Spence Alexander Lee "Skip" Spence (April 18, 1946 – April 16, 1999) was a Canadian-born American singer, songwriter, and musician. He was co-founder of Moby Grape, and played guitar with them until 1969. In the same year, he released his only s ...

, who was terminally ill with cancer, for the purpose of raising funds to assist with medical expenses. Since McCaughey had made The Minus 5 his primary musical outlet, new material from The Young Fresh Fellows had slowed to a trickle. In 1994 and 1995 the group had released three singles and an EP. Nonetheless, McCaughey often recorded new songs with the Fellows and by summer 1999, had enough to release as an album. ''A Tribute To Music'' was released on Spanish indie label Rock and Roll Inc. and never released in the U.S. Though most of the tracks were originals, the Fellows made an unremarkable pass at R.E.M.'s rocker "Circus Envy" on the LP. Considered a minor release by both fans and critics, ''A Tribute To Music'' left many wondering if McCaughey was saving his best tunes for his other band. "There's a tossed-off feeling to the record," Bart Bealmear wrote for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

. " ost of the songsare missing the group's unique mix of humor, energy, spirit, and melody."

''In Rock''

On January 9, 2000 The Minus 5 played a secret show at Lounge Ax in Chicago, opening for Wilco (billed as "Summer Teeth") for 300 lucky fans. This was a farewell gig as the beloved

Lincoln Park Lincoln Park is a park along Lake Michigan on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Named after US President Abraham Lincoln, it is the city's largest public park and stretches for seven miles (11 km) from Grand Avenue (500 N), on the south, ...

venue would shut its doors just one week later. For this gig the Minus 5 was just McCaughey fronting Wilco, with frontman Jeff Tweedy playing bass. The group raced through a handful of brand-new, unrehearsed songs alongside covers of influences as diverse as Mott The Hoople, Johnny Cash and Neutral Milk Hotel. A few weeks later (January 20) a more conventional Minus 5 lineup (McCaughey, Buck, Ramberg, Chris Ballew and R.E.M. session drummer Bill Rieflin) premiered eight of these new songs at the Crocodile Cafe back in Seattle. John Wesley Harding and Kurt Bloch sat in on a few numbers. In early February McCaughey and Stringfellow joined R.E.M. in Georgia to record instrumental demos for the ''Reveal'' album. On February 25, McCaughey, Buck, Ramberg and Rieflin played another Minus 5 gig at the Crocodile, premiering new tracks "Over The Sea" and "Beyond The Sea" alongside more recent compositions. On March 13, 2000, McCaughey assembled a skeleton crew of himself, Buck, Ramberg and R.E.M. session drummer Bill Rieflin at Jupiter Studios in Seattle and recorded ten of his latest compositions in one day. The session included spirited takes on the Nightcrawlers' power-pop anthem "

The Little Black Egg "The Little Black Egg" is a song first performed by Daytona Beach, Florida garage band The Nightcrawlers in 1965. It was a minor hit in both the US and Canada, reaching number 85 on the US ''Billboard'' charts in 1967, while doing slightly bette ...

", an ode to the demise of the Lounge Ax ("The Night Chicago Died (The Death of The Minus 5)") and even a tribute to Dr. Evil, the villain in the ''Austin Powers'' film series. On April 25, 2000, The Minus 5 played another Croc show with a lineup of McCaughey, Buck, Stringfellow, Ramberg and Barrett Martin. John Wesley Harding, Sean Nelson and The Long Winters' John Roderick sat in on the set, which included

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry Gibb, Barry, Robin Gibb, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in ...

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

and

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

covers. The Minus 5 returned to the Croc on June 8 with McCaughey, Buck, Ramberg, Rieflin and John Wesley Harding playing a set which included some improvised one-off songs,

Faces The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may affe ...

and

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

covers. Despite a rigorous recording schedule for R.E.M. with sessions in Georgia and

Dublin, Ireland Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, Buck was nonetheless available for Minus 5 gigs on July 7 at Tractor Tavern at September 2 at Bumbershoot Festival at Memorial Stadium. The Minus 5 were a last-minute replacement for a band that dropped out of the fest and for this show consisted of McCaughey, Buck, Ramberg, John Wesley Harding, Robert Lloyd (of Harding's band) and members of the

Walkabouts The Walkabouts were an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984. The core members were vocalist Carla Torgerson and vocalist and songwriter Chris Eckman. Although the rest of the line-up changed occasionally, for most of the time ...

. McCaughey pressed 1,000 copies of the March session as a surprise album, titled '' In Rock''. Because it was made as a limited-edition, tour-only CD McCaughey released it on his Book label. The CD was only available at Minus 5 shows at first, though it was later sold through the R.E.M. fanclub. The CD was sold for the first time at an October 14, 2000 Crocodile Cafe show with McCaughey, Buck, Stringfellow, Ramberg and Rieflin. A

Sonics Sonic or Sonics may refer to: Companies *Sonic Drive-In, an American drive-in fast-food restaurant chain * Sonic (ISP), an Internet provider and CLEC, serving more than 100 California communities * Sonic Foundry, a computer software company wh ...

cover band (The New Original Sonic Sound) featuring members of

Mudhoney Mudhoney is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1988, following the demise of Green River. Its members are singer and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner, bassist Guy Maddison and drummer Dan Peters. ...

, Tuatara, and

Gas Huffer Gas Huffer was an American garage rock band from Washington. They were known for their informal and comical lyrics and their antic-laden stage presence. History Gas Huffer classified themselves loosely in the garage punk genre. The band cre ...

with McCaughey on keyboards also played. In October 2000 McCaughey and Stringfellow returned to Georgia to record with R.E.M. During the sessions, McCaughey, Stringfellow and Mike Mills joined local group The Possibilities for a loose set that included

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Fu ...

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

, Chris Bell,

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her st ...

and

Gram Parsons Ingram Cecil Connor III (November 5, 1946 – September 19, 1973) who was known professionally as Gram Parsons, was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist who recorded as a solo artist and with the International Submarine Band, ...

covers. The Minus 5's cover of the band's "You Don't Mean It" would be released as a radio single just a few months later. The Minus 5 closed out an eventful year with a Croc set on December 8, 2000, with the lineup of McCaughey, Buck, Ramberg, and Rieflin with guests John Wesley Harding, Sean Nelson, Britt Speakman, Carla Tongerson and Peter Blackstock. A number of new songs were debuted at this show including "A Thousand Years Away" and "You Don't Mean It."

''Let the War Against Music Begin''

In 2001, the Minus Five and the Young Fresh Fellows, another McCaughey project, released a split double album, ''Let the War Against Music Begin/Because We Hate You''; the "Let the War Against Music Begin" half was the Minus 5 submission. After a change of guard at

, the Minus 5 found themselves releasing music via independent channels, with the Return to Sender label releasing a collection of outtakes from ''Let the War Against Music Begin'' called ''I Don't Know Who I Am'' before McCaughey signed the band to the

Yep Roc Yep Roc Records is an American independent record label based in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and owned by Redeye Distribution. Since 1997, the label has released albums from North Carolina and international artists, including Nick Lowe, Pau ...

label for his collaboration with

, ''Down With Wilco''. Yep Roc later issued an EP dominated by ''Down With Wilco'' outtakes, ''At the Organ'', and reissued ''In Rock'', a collection of tunes McCaughey recorded in a single day in 2000. In 2002, the band contributed a track, "Girl I Never Met" to Rami Jaffee, Pete Yorn, and Marc Dauer's Trampoline Records release: Trampoline Records Volume I. The band's seventh album, self-titled (but known as ''The Gun Album''), was released early 2006, and features, along the regular line-up, guest appearances by

Kelly Hogan Kelly Hogan (born January 11, 1965) is an American singer-songwriter, often known for her work as a member of Neko Case's backing band, as well as for her solo work. Early and personal life Hogan was born in Atlanta, Georgia, the daughter of ...

and

The Decemberists The Decemberists are an American indie rock band from Portland, Oregon. The band consists of Colin Meloy (lead vocals, guitar, principal songwriter), Chris Funk (guitar, multi-instrumentalist), Jenny Conlee (piano, keyboards, accordion), Nate ...

' singer/songwriter

Colin Meloy Colin Patrick Henry Meloy (born October 5, 1974) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and author best known as the frontman of the Portland, Oregon, indie folk rock band The Decemberists. In addition to vocals, he performs with an acou ...

, among others. Buck and McCaughey went on to play in The Baseball Project together in 2008. Peter Buck & Scott McCaughey

The Minus 5 appeared on

's 2009 release, ''

Who Was Changed and Who Was Dead Who or WHO may refer to: * Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun * Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * World Health Organization Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book ''Horton He ...

'' and released '' Killingsworth'' later that year. In 2012 recorded a version of the 1976 hit single by the

Sutherland Brothers The Sutherland Brothers (Gavin and Iain Sutherland) were a Scottish folk and soft rock duo. From 1973 to 1978, they performed with rock band Quiver, and recorded and toured as Sutherland Brothers & Quiver. Under this combined moniker, the gr ...

and Quiver "

Arms of Mary "Arms of Mary" is a song written by Iain Sutherland and performed by Sutherland Brothers and Quiver. It was a 1976 international hit single for the band; the ''Glasgow Herald'' in its obituary for Iain Sutherland described "Arms of Mary" as "a p ...

" for a fund raising CD titled "Super Hits Of The Seventies" for radio station

WFMU WFMU is a listener-supported, independent community radio station, licensed to East Orange, New Jersey. Since 1998 its studios and operating facilities have been headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. It broadcasts locally at 91.1 Mhz FM, i ...

. The band played at

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, ...

in 2013. In January 2017 The Minus 5 joined

Alejandro Escovedo Alejandro Escovedo (born January 10, 1951) is an American rock musician, songwriter, and singer, who has been recording and touring since the late 1970s. His primary instrument is the guitar. He has played in various rock genres, including punk ...

for a short tour. For each concert

, Kurt Bloch,

, and John Moen played one set as the Minus Five, and then a second set backing Escovedo, sometimes with

, too. All of them had also performed on Escovedo's 2016 album '' Burn Something Beautiful'', for which Escovedo, McCaughey, and Buck co-wrote the songs.

Discography

Singles & EPs

*''The Minus Five – A Hello selection Dec.'93 – Jan.'94.'' (CD – Hello CD of the Month Club – 1993) *'' The Emperor of the Bathroom'' (CD –

– 1995) *'' At the Organ'' (Yep Roc – 2004) *'' Sad Hasselhoff'' (Vinyl limited 1000 copies – Yep Roc – 2008)

Albums

*'' Old Liquidator'' (

– 1995) *'' The Lonesome Death of Buck McCoy'' (

– 1997) *'' In Rock'' (Book Records – 2000) *'' Let the War Against Music Begin'' (

– 2001 – with Young Fresh Fellows) *'' Down with Wilco'' (

Yep Roc Records Yep Roc Records is an American independent record label based in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and owned by Redeye Distribution. Since 1997, the label has released albums from North Carolina and international artists, including Nick Lowe, Paul W ...

– 2003) *'' I Don't Know Who I Am (Let the War Against Music Begin, Vol. 2) (Return to Sender – 2003) *'' The Minus 5'' (

– 2006) *'' Killingsworth'' (

– 2009) *'' Scott the Hoople in the Dungeon of Horror'' (Vinyl limited 750 copies –

– 2014) *'' Dungeon Golds'' (

– 2015) *'' Of Monkees and Men'' (

– 2016) *

– ''Burn Something Beautiful'' (2016) *'' Dear December'' (

– 2017) *'' Stroke Manor'' (

– 2019)

Compilations

*"Doodle" (by

) '' More Oar: A Tribute to the Skip Spence Album'' (

Birdman Records Birdman Records is an independent record label based in South San Francisco, California, that was founded in 2000 by David Katznelson, former A&R vice president of Warner Bros. Records. History Birdman Records is the flagship label of the Birdman ...

– 1999) *"Sputnik 57" (by Jon Langford) – ''For A Decade of Sin: 11 Years of Bloodshot Records'' ( Bloodshot Records – 2005) *'' Butcher Covered'' (CD) (Limited Edition covers compilation – only available at shows) (Book Records – 2009) *"St. Catherine's Statue" (by Jimmy Silva) ''THROUGH A FARAWAY WINDOW: A TRIBUTE TO JIMMY SILVA'' (SteadyBoy Records – 2010)A compilation of

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song relea ...

s of songs written by San Francisco Bay area musician Jimmy Silva. Minus 5 performs their 3:07 version of Silva's "St. Catherine's Statue".

Band members

Current

– vocals, guitar (1993–present) *

– guitar (2004–present) *

– guitar (2019–present) *

– bass (1993–present) * John Moen – drums (2006–present)

Past

* Terry Adams – keyboard (1993–2002) * Tom Ardolino – drums (1993–2002) * Jon Auer – guitar (1995–1996) * Bill Rieflin – drums (2000–2003) *

– keyboard (2002–2004) *

Glenn Kotche Glenn Kotche (born December 31, 1970 in Roselle, Illinois, United States) is an American drummer and composer, best known for his involvement in the band Wilco. He was named the 40th greatest drummer of all time by Gigwise in 2008. Prior to w ...

– drums (2003–2006) *

– guitar (1993–1999) *

Ben Gibbard Benjamin Gibbard (born August 11, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, with whom he has recorded ten studio albums, and as a membe ...

– guitar (1999–2006) * Mike Coykendall – guitar (2006–2012) *

Casey Neill Casey Neill is an American musician. He leads Portland, Oregon-based band Casey Neill & The Norway Rats, singing with a raspy vocal quality and playing electric and acoustic guitars. Neill's style, folk-punk, mixes influences from punk, Celtic an ...

– guitar (2012–2015) *

Dave Depper Dave Depper is an American musician and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the guitarist and keyboardist for the indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie. Music career Depper began his career playing with various Pacific NW artists, including Meno ...

– guitar (2015–2019)

References

External links

* * *
Scott McCaughey fan site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Minus 5, The American pop rock music groups R.E.M. American supergroups Musical groups established in 1993 Musical collectives 1993 establishments in Oregon Wilco Indie rock musical groups from Oregon Yep Roc Records artists Glitterhouse Records artists