HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Blues Traveler is an American rock band that formed in
Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...
, in 1987. They are known for their extensive use of segues in live performances, and could be considered a key part of the re-emerging
jam band A jam band is a musical group whose concerts and live albums substantially feature improvisational "jam session, jamming". Typically, jam bands will play variations of pre-existing songs, extending them to musical improvisation, improvise ove ...
scene of the 1990s, spearheading the H.O.R.D.E. touring music festival. The group comprises singer and harmonica player John Popper, guitarist Chan Kinchla, drummer Brendan Hill, bassist Tad Kinchla, and keyboardist Ben Wilson. Tad Kinchla and Ben Wilson joined the band following the death of original bassist Bobby Sheehan in 1999. Their hit singles include " But Anyway", " Run-Around", and "
Hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved/bent back or has a deeply grooved indentation, which serves to grab, latch or in any way attach itself onto another object. The hook's d ...
", the latter two from their 1994 album '' four'' which sold several million copies. Fans are allowed to record the band's concerts. Sheehan's death and Popper's struggle with
obesity Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...
put a damper on the group's mainstream success, and A&M dropped the band in 2002. In the years following, the band has attempted to work with a number of independent labels and record producers. ''Traveler's Blues'', an album of
blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...
covers, was released in July 2021, and was nominated by The Recording Academy for Best Traditional Blues album at the 2022 Grammy Awards. Their follow-up album, ''Traveler’s Soul'', a collection of R'n'B and Soul covers, was released in October of 2023.


History


Formation

The genesis of Blues Traveler was as a
high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...
garage band formed in Princeton, New Jersey in the mid-1980s. Harmonicist, singer and guitarist John Popper and drummer Brendan Hill formed a group they called The Establishment (later renamed Blues Band) with Hill's brother on bass and a rotating roster of guitarists. The band produced a few
cassette tape The Compact Cassette, also commonly called a cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog audio, analog magnetic tape recording format for Sound recording and reproduction, audio recording and playback. Invented by L ...
demos. In addition to some original songs, their repertoire included upbeat covers of " Gloria" and " The Battle Hymn of the Republic". The group added guitarist and football player Chan Kinchla. Although he was a promising athlete, Kinchla decided to commit to playing music instead after a knee injury. Popper met bassist Bobby Sheehan and the two became good friends, with Sheehan becoming the new bass player for Blues Band in 1987. The quartet held a basement jam session (later christened The Black Cat Jam) which spawned the core grooves for several songs on their first album. A black cat happened to be nearby, and the group took this as a sign and adopted the Black Cat as their mascot figure. The group changed their name to Blues Traveler, taking the latter part from the name of the primary
demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in folklore, mythology, religion, occultism, and literature; these beliefs are reflected in Media (communication), media including f ...
in the film '' Ghostbusters'', Gozer the Traveler.


Early years

After graduating from Princeton High School and moving to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, Popper, Hill, and Sheehan enrolled in the music program at The New School while Kinchla attended
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
. Blues Traveler began playing gigs along the New York-area club circuit, sometimes nightly; the most prominent contract was playing Wednesday nights at a club called the Wetlands. Another bar, The Nightingale, was a regular gig, and later became the setting for the song "Defense and Desire". The group shared an apartment on Bergen Street in Brooklyn, New York, along with their high school friend, singer Chris Barron. A second band that Popper and Hill founded, called The Trucking Company, soon became The Spin Doctors with Barron as their frontman. The two groups would often share the stage, playing non-stop concerts of multiple sets. Their first show together was at a Columbia University fraternity party. During this time, Blues Traveler acquired a devout follower, Gina-Z (subject of the band's song "Gina") who first became an unofficial "band mom" and later a tour manager, and is involved with the group's business to the present day. At one New York show they were discovered by an
A&M Records A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...
talent scout, Patrick Clifford, and the band signed their first recording contract. By 1990 all members had dropped out of college classes. The group also attracted the attention of David Graham, son of the world-famous concert promoter Bill Graham, and David Graham became the group's manager. Blues Traveler then started a relentless touring schedule, expanding their reach up and down the east coast.


First albums

Blues Traveler released their self-titled debut album in 1990, with the song " But Anyway" getting airplay on college radio stations. The album included Joan Osborne on backing vocals on two tracks. A second album, '' Travelers and Thieves'', followed in 1991. Upon Bill Graham's death that year, they released a live EP, '' On Tour Forever'', as a tribute to Graham, which featured guitarist Carlos Santana. Around this time, the mainstream national audience was exposed to Blues Traveler by television host David Letterman, who has introduced them as " isfavorite band". The band has since made more appearances on '' The Late Show'' than any musical artist. Letterman's band leader Paul Shaffer has played on a number of Blues Traveler recordings. In 1992, the group founded the H.O.R.D.E. festival as an alternative to others such as Lollapalooza, along with other bands such as Phish and Spin Doctors. Blues Traveler began recording their third album, '' Save His Soul''. Recording was temporarily interrupted by John Popper's motorcycle accident, although the band resumed touring shortly thereafter with Popper in a
wheelchair A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...
. Two singles were released from the album, "Defense & Desire" and "Conquer Me", which reached No. 34 on the
Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart published by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States. It is an administrative category that combines the " active rock" and " heritage rock" ...
chart.


Mainstream breakthrough

The band's fourth album, titled '' four'', was produced by the team of Michael Barbiero and Steve Thompson and released in late 1994. The upbeat pop single " Run-Around" became the group's first chart hit followed by "
Hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved/bent back or has a deeply grooved indentation, which serves to grab, latch or in any way attach itself onto another object. The hook's d ...
". "Run-Around" won a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
and broke a record for most weeks on the chart. Blues Traveler appeared at Woodstock '94 and later became an opening act for The Rolling Stones. The band played on the 1995 season premiere of ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...
'' as a last-minute replacement for
Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
. They were featured in an episode of the sitcom '' Roseanne'', and later recorded the show's theme song for its final season. The 1996 comedy film '' Kingpin'' featured the group playing their song " But Anyway" during the closing credits. The group recorded the Johnny Rivers song " Secret Agent Man" for the film '' Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls'' at Icon Recording Studios in St. Louis, Missouri and the Bob Seger song "Get Out of Denver" for the film '' Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead'', as well as Fats Domino's "I'm Walkin for '' Rebel Highway: Cool and the Crazy''. Several previously recorded Blues Traveler songs were included on film soundtracks, including '' The Last Seduction'', ''
Speed In kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a non-negative scalar quantity. Intro ...
'', '' Very Bad Things'', '' White Man's Burden'', and '' The Truth About Cats & Dogs''. The band also appeared in the film '' Blues Brothers 2000'' and on its soundtrack, playing "Maybe I'm Wrong", an original composition with a classic blues-rock sound. Blues Traveler recorded the Sly & the Family Stone song " I Want to Take You Higher" for the NORML
compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...
'' Hempilation'' and the
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
song " Imagine" for the Lennon tribute album '' Working Class Hero''. The original song "Christmas" was included on the benefit album '' A Very Special Christmas 3''. The double live album '' Live from the Fall'' was released in 1996. It featured recordings from the band's autumn 1995 concerts and showcased the strength of the band's live performances. The next studio album, '' Straight On till Morning'', also produced by Barbiero/Thompson, was released in 1997. It achieved platinum status, reaching number 11 on the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart, but did not perform as well as ''four''. The single "Carolina Blues" peaked at number four on the Mainstream Rock Tracks. By the end of 1998, the band had prepared a
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
called ''The Sun, The Storm and The Traveler'', based on Aesop's fable of '' The North Wind and the Sun'', and they planned to record it after a recess in the fall of 1999. That summer, John Popper had emergency heart surgery due to artery blockage, forcing the band to cancel their annual July 4 Red Rocks shows at the last minute. During the hiatus, Popper released a solo album with a backing band consisting of drummer Carter Beauford and members of the group Cycomotogoat. The band made an appearance performing as themselves in the 1998 movie '' Blues Brothers 2000'' and the 1999
independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is film production, produced outside the Major film studios, major film studio system in addition to being produced and distributed by independ ...
'' Wildflowers'', which had been filmed a couple of years earlier.


Sheehan's death and new lineup

On August 20, 1999, Bobby Sheehan was found dead in his
New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
, home, where he had been recording music with some friends the night before. Sheehan's death was ruled an accidental
drug overdose A drug overdose (overdose or OD) is the ingestion or application of a drug or other substance in quantities much greater than are recommended. Retrieved on September 20, 2014.
, with
cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
, Valium, and
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...
found in his system. The remaining members of Blues Traveler convened and agreed that Sheehan would have wanted them to continue as a band. Auditions for a new bassist were held in concert, and included Chan Kinchla's younger brother Tad, who was unanimously determined to be the best choice for the role. Additionally, the band also auditioned for a permanent keyboardist—an action Sheehan had often urged. In January 2000, Ben Wilson of the jump blues band Big Dave & the Ultrasonics was chosen, and has since become a central contributor to the band's songwriting. The band discarded their concept album material, instead releasing a smaller online EP, '' Decisions of the Sky: A Traveler's Tale of Sun and Storm'', and went to work collectively composing a new set of songs with the new lineup. The resulting album was ''
Bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
'', which had the working title ''Bridge Outta Brooklyn'' as a tribute to Sheehan (with both the acronym B.O.B. and his nickname "Brooklyn Bobby"). The songs "Girl Inside My Head" and "Just for Me" received airplay, but the album's sales fell somewhat short of expectations. The live album ''What You and I Have Been Through'' and the compilation '' Travelogue: Blues Traveler Classics'' were both released in 2002.


Independent years

Blues Traveler were one of dozens of artists who were jettisoned as part of A&M's corporate restructuring. The band signed with Sanctuary Records for their next album, '' Truth Be Told'', which achieved number 147 on The Top 200 chart. The band's 2003 Independence Day concerts at Red Rocks Amphitheatre were released on the CD '' Live on the Rocks'' and the DVD ''Thinnest of Air'', and include Ziggy Marley singing on his father's song " No Woman, No Cry". The band left Sanctuary for Vanguard Records and released '' ¡Bastardos!'', which was produced by Wilco's Jay Bennett and was touted as the band's return to music that they wanted to play. The album charted at 49 on the
Independent Albums The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...
, and a live EP of songs from the album was released to independent record stores. The group recorded " Rag Mama Rag" for the 2007 tribute album '' Endless Highway: The Music of The Band'', as well as " Free Bird" for ''Under the Influence: A Jam Band Tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd''. Blues Traveler have been featured on VH1's '' Behind the Music'', A&E's '' Private Sessions'', and ''
Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American Concert, live music Television show, television program recorded and produced by KLRU, Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", an ...
''. The group recorded the title track to the Sandra Boynton children's album ''Dog Train'', which was also used as the promotional music for the
American Kennel Club The American Kennel Club (AKC) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit breed registry, registry of purebred dog pedigree (animal), pedigrees in the United States. In addition to maintaining its pedigree registry, this kennel club also promotes and sanctions eve ...
's National Championship event. The band's music has been used in video games ('' NASCAR 2000'') and commercials ( Busch Beer). The songs "Business as Usual" and "Money Back Guarantee" are used as transitional music on the public radio
finance Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...
program '' Marketplace'' and its sister show ''Marketplace Money''. In 2007, Blues Traveler released the album '' Cover Yourself'', a "best-of" album of previously released songs re-recorded and reinterpreted with acoustic instrumentation. It was released October 30, 2007, through Columbia/Red Ink Records. They did a national tour, with New Jersey–based singer-songwriter Lisa Bouchelle as opening act. After the tour John Popper and Lisa Bouchelle recorded the song "Only The Tequila Talking", which was released on her album ''Bleu Room with a Red Vase'' in 2010. Blues Traveler appeared at the Lollapalooza 2008 festival. At their June 2008 shows, the band debuted new songs from their new album '' North Hollywood Shootout'' . The album, which features a
guest appearance The term guest appearance generally denotes the appearance of a guest in an artistic or pop-culture setting. The guests themselves (referred to as guest artists, featured artists, guest stars, or guest fighters, depending on context), are disting ...
by Bruce Willis in the track "Free Willis (Ruminations From Behind Uncle Bob's Machine Shop)", released in August 2008.


2010s

In March 2012, Blues Traveler released a double-disc compilation titled ''25'' on Hip-O Records; the album commemorates the band's silver anniversary and includes their hit singles, new covers, and previously unreleased B-side material. It peaked at No. 49 in Canada. The following studio album, ''Suzie Cracks the Whip'', was released on June 26 of that year. In September 2013, Blues Traveler signed with Las Vegas–based management firm, UD Factory. On April 7, 2015, the band released their twelfth studio album, '' Blow Up the Moon'' which peaked at No. 29 on
Independent Albums The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...
and No. 47 on Top Rock Albums
Billboard charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ' ...
. As part of the album's promotion album, Blues Traveler released a music video using Rockstar editor in ''
Grand Theft Auto V ''Grand Theft Auto V'' is a 2013 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the seventh main entry in the Grand Theft Auto, ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2008's ''Grand Theft Auto IV'', and ...
'' on September 14, 2015.
The music video features JC Chasez and 3OH!3. In 2016, Blues Traveler made a cameo appearance in the film '' The Meddler''. On December 7 the group released a cover version of "Go Tell It on the Mountain". In April 2017, the band announced a five-week U.S. tour to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the group's formation. In May of the same year, social posts, and a video piece on '' Keyboard Magazine'' confirmed the band was in the studio in Nashville recording with record producer Matt Rollings. The album ''Hurry Up & Hang Around'' was released on October 12, 2018, through BMG.


2020s

On June 7, 2021, Blues Traveler announced a new album to be titled "Traveler's Blues" and released a two–sided EP with the songs that would be featured on the new album. The EP contained songs "Funky B*tch" and "Ball and Chain" which Features Christone "Kingfish" Ingram. The full album would be released the forthcoming month. "Traveler's Blues" was Released on July 30, 2021. The album features covers of classic blues songs and features Crystal Bowersox, Wendy Moten, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Rita Wilson, John Scofield, Warren Haynes, The War and Treaty, Mickey Raphael, and
Keb' Mo' Kevin Roosevelt Moore (born October 3, 1951), known as Keb' Mo', is an American blues musician. He is a singer, guitarist and songwriter, living in Nashville, Tennessee. He has been described as "a living link to the seminal Delta blues that tra ...
. The album was nominated for "Best Traditional Blues Album / Best Traditional Blues Recording" at the 64th annual Grammy Awards.


Concert recordings

Blues Traveler allows and encourages fans to record and trade live performances, provided that no money changes hands and no profit is made. The band has also given permission for live fan-made recordings to be hosted on websites such as Live Music Archive and eTree.org. Recordings available there span from 1986 through the present day. On more recent tours, they sell recordings of that night's performance. Attendees can pre-purchase a copy of the show until 30 minutes into the performance and then pick up the CD after the show.


Independence Day shows at Red Rocks

Every year since 1994, with the exception of 1999 (due to Sheehan's health) and 2020 (due to COVID-19), Blues Traveler has headlined a show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado, on the American Independence Day, July 4. The band sometimes plays two consecutive nights, starting on July 3. This tradition started in 1994, when Blues Traveler was opening for The Allman Brothers Band at the venue for two nights, July 3 and 4. The next year, the band booked the HORDE festival to play there on Independence Day, and in 1994 the current tradition began in earnest. These shows attract fans from all over the United States. The band frequently debuts new songs and brings back older songs which have fallen out of rotation. The 2003 Independence Day concerts were recorded for a home video and a
live album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th centur ...
release.


Musical style

The band have been described as
blues rock Blues rock is a fusion music genre, genre and form of rock music, rock and blues music that relies on the chords/scales and instrumental improvisation of blues. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electri ...
,
folk rock Folk rock is a fusion genre of rock music with heavy influences from pop, English and American folk music. It arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music re ...
,
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
, and southern rock.


Members

Current * John Popper – lead vocals, harmonica, guitars (1987–present) * Chan Kinchla – guitars, mandolin (1987–present), backing vocals (1999–present) * Brendan Hill – drums (1987–present) * Tad Kinchla – bass, backing vocals (1999–present) * Ben Wilson – keyboards, piano, organ, backing vocals (2000–present) Former * Bobby Sheehan – bass (1987–1999; his death) Timeline


Discography

* '' Blues Traveler'' (1990) * '' Travelers and Thieves'' (1991) * '' Save His Soul'' (1993) * '' four'' (1994) * '' Straight On till Morning'' (1997) * ''
Bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
'' (2001) * '' Truth Be Told'' (2003) * '' ¡Bastardos!'' (2005) * '' Cover Yourself'' (2007) * '' North Hollywood Shootout'' (2008) * '' Suzie Cracks the Whip'' (2012) * '' Blow Up the Moon'' (2015) * '' Hurry Up & Hang Around'' (2018) * ''Traveler's Blues'' (2021) * ''Traveler's Soul'' (2023)


References


External links

*
Legally download live Blues Traveler shows
from the
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...
's live music archive
Legally download live Blues Traveler shows from bt.etree.org
* {{Authority control 1987 establishments in New Jersey A&M Records artists American blues rock musical groups East Coast blues musicians Grammy Award winners Interscope Records artists Jam bands Musical groups established in 1987 American musical quintets Princeton, New Jersey Vanguard Records artists Verve Records artists 429 Records artists American folk rock groups American southern rock musical groups Alternative rock groups from New Jersey