Cooder Graw is a self-described "loud country" (

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...

) band from

Amarillo Amarillo ( ; Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Potter County. It is the 14th-most populous city in Texas and the largest city in the Texas Panhandle. A portion of the city extends into Randall Count ...

and

Lubbock Lubbock ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat, seat of government of Lubbock County, Texas, Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also ...

, Texas. It is also the title of their second album. The group formed in 1998. It is perhaps most well known for the song "Llano Estacado" that was featured on a series of

Dodge Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...

commercials. Cooder Graw is somewhat of an anomaly in the music industry, in that its members' ages at its inception ranged from late-30s to early-50s. The band's singer, Matt Martindale, was the assistant district attorney of

Gray County, Texas Gray County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 21,227. The county seat is Pampa. The county was created in 1876 and later organized in 1902. is named for Peter W. Gray, a Confederate law ...

prior to devoting his full attention to the band. Guitarist Kelly Turner was the manager of a manufacturing plant in Slaton, Texas. The band was originally called "Coup de Grâce," but another band was already using that name, so the name was changed to a "Texas-version" of the original name. The band's debut album, ''

Home at the Golden Light Cooder Graw is a self-described "loud country" ( country music / alternative country) band from Amarillo and Lubbock, Texas. It is also the title of their second album. The group formed in 1998. It is perhaps most well known for the song "Llano ...

'', consisted of mostly covers and was self-produced by the band (though

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights ...

credit is given to

Matthew McConaughey Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He had his breakout role with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first succes ...

, a

fraternity A fraternity (from Latin ''frater'': "brother"; whence, "brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club or fraternal order traditionally of men associated together for various religious or secular aims. Fraternity in ...

brother of Matt Martindale). It was released in 1998. The band's first national release, ''

Cooder Graw Cooder Graw is a self-described "loud country" ( country music / alternative country) band from Amarillo and Lubbock, Texas. It is also the title of their second album. The group formed in 1998. It is perhaps most well known for the song "Llano ...

'' was released in late 1999. Cooder Graw has toured extensively throughout

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, both headlining and opening for artists such as

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and ''Stardust'' (1978 ...

and

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. The group also played at the premiere of the film ''

EDtv ''EDtv'' is a 1999 American satirical comedy film directed by Ron Howard. An adaptation of the Quebecois film ''Louis 19, King of the Airwaves (Louis 19, le roi des ondes)'' (1994), it stars Matthew McConaughey, Jenna Elfman, Woody Harrelson, El ...

'', which starred McConaughey. In 2006, Cooder Graw announced that they would cease performing together after the end of the year. Their last show was on December 31, 2006, in Fort Worth, Texas. Lead singer Matt Martindale is still performing occasionally with his new band, The Matt Martindale Band. While Martindale, Turner, and Baker returned to careers outside of music, February 27, 2012 Cooder Graw announced a reunion tour would kick off April 28, 2012 at the Larry Joe Taylor Music Fest with more dates to follow.

Current

*Matt Martindale - acoustic guitar, vocals *Paul Baker - bass guitar *Kelly Turner - lead guitar *Kelly Test - drums, backing vocals *Carmen Acciaioli - fiddle, mandolin *Danny Crelin - pedal steel guitar

Former members

*Joe Ammons - drums, vocals *Jim Whisenhunt - pedal steel guitar *Nick Worley - fiddle, mandolin *Jon "Fish" Hunt - drums, backing vocals

Discography

Albums

*''Home at the Golden Light'' (1998) *''Cooder Graw'' (1999) *''Segundo'' (2000) *''Shifting Gears'' (2001) *''Live at Billy Bob's Texas'' (2002) *''Wake Up'' (2004) *''Big Sign'' (2009) *''Love to Live By'' (2016)

Music videos

*"Junior's in the Yard" *"Better Days" *"Love to Live By"

Compilations

*''Texas Road Trip'' - "18 Wheels of Loving" (2001) *''Brewed in Texas'' - "Whiskey Bent And Hellbound" (2002) *''Cow Hear This'' - "Better Days" (2002) *''Compadre's Texas Lovers'' - "Ain't Livin' Long Like This" (2003) *''Red River Tribute'' (tribute to

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

) - "Rainy Day Woman" (2003)

External links

{{Authority control Musical groups from Lubbock, Texas Country music groups from Texas Musicians from Amarillo, Texas