After Camper Van Beethoven broke up — the band’s members apparently divided over whether to focus on their experimental leanings or pure pop songcraft — singer/guitarist David Lowery formed Cracker with two high-school pals, guitarist Johnny Hickman and bassist Davey Faragher (the group has never had a permanent drummer), to do the latter. On Cracker, Lowery strips rock down to its muscular essence, avoiding any of the fancy flourishes Camper Van Beethoven used that might have hurt — or strengthened — this album of catchy, clever and disarmingly ironic songs. The most sarcastic tune, “Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now),” became somewhat of a hit on the very alternative radio airwaves it seemed to mock, and “This Is Cracker Soul” has a funk-driven edginess that’s irresistible — even if the song lives up to its name a little too well.
The four songs, recorded live in the studio, that form Tucson were originally meant to be the core of Cracker’s second album. From the punchy pop of “I Ride My Bike” to the sing-song cynicism of “Bad Vibes Everybody,” there’s little on this EP that the band hadn’t done already, but it’s good, solid, between-album fun.
Founded: 1990 Headquarters: Website Link(s): Cracker Soul 1 Label(s) 2 Genre(s) 3 RIYL 4 Band Members 5 Includes Members of 6 Band Biography 7 Discography 7.1 Albums 7.2 EPs 7.3 Singles 8 Appears On 8.1 Compilations 8.2 Soundtracks 8.3 Mix CDs 8.4 Radio Shows 9 Further reading Virgin iMusi Alt. Countr Indie Rock Camper Van Beethoven David Lower Johnny Hickman Davey Faraghe.
“As far as picking the songs, it was a collaborative effort between all five band members, our management team and Cracker Barrel,” bandleader Moore explains. Store for Cracker, from richmond va / redlands ca. OUR PHILOSOPHY ON LIMITED MERCHANDISE We have a limited amount of physical music and merchandise on our website. Cracker’s emergent sound had less in common with Camper’s exotic excursions and was more in synch with the Kinks and Southern roots music. They released their self-titled debut on Virgin, and following the #1 Modern Rock hit “Teen Angst (What The World Needs Now),” the band became a minor commercial sensation (complete with then. An annual Cracker Trail ride is conducted in February of each year by the Florida Cracker Trail Association members. Along the trail, travelers can still visit the Desert Inn and Restaurant in Yeehaw Junction built in 1885 as a saloon for weary crackers and travelers, with a brothel on the second floor.
Cracker broadens its horizons slightly on Kerosene Hat by incorporating more of a country-fried feel. This approach works some of the time — a cover of the Grateful Dead’s “Loser” is surprisingly convincing, even if the lyrics to “Sweet Potato” are a bit much. Luckily, Lowery takes his irony with him, and affectionately parodies teen angst and pop conventions on pleasantly punchy songs like “Sick of Goodbyes” and “Let’s Go for a Ride.” The ballads (“Take Me Down to the Infirmary,” the title track) come off a bit flat, but it’s hard to deny their good-natured appeal.
Low contains the first album’s “I See the Light,” the second’s “Low” and two outtakes from it, plus “Steve’s Hornpipe,” which predates both.
Cracker added former Silo Bob Rupe on bass before cutting its third album (Faragher had left after the second), which offers an all too familiar — if somewhat more polished — mix of appealing up-tempo rockers and less effective ballads. Such songs as “I Hate My Generation” are as catchy and cynically funny as earlier Lowery efforts, but the singer’s curmudgeon pose wears a bit thin, and The Golden Age suffers as a result. Far more appealing are the songs on which Cracker stretches out musically, including the surprisingly spacey “I Can’t Forget You.”
Cracker Band Members
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Cracker Band Songs
OUR PHILOSOPHY ON LIMITED MERCHANDISE
We have a limited amount of physical music and merchandise on our website. It's really only worthwhile for us to stock the most popular and 'sale' items. We find with that especially with back catalogue it's more cost effective to simply encourage you to visit iTunes and Amazon to purchase those items. We really don't mind. However as more and more titles revert to us we are slowly increasing the items available from the website. Thanks all.
Physical orders are only fulfilled twice a week. Usually on Monday and Thursday. We try to ship it to you in the most cost effective way that still gets it to you in a couple of days.
Thanks the Cracker Merchandise Team.