David Albert Alvin is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He is a former and founding member of the roots rock band the Blasters. Alvin has recorded and performed as a solo artist since the late 1980s and has been involved in various side projects and collaborations. He has had brief stints as a member of the bands X and the Knitters.
John Nommensen Duchac, known professionally as John Doe, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, poet, guitarist and bass player. Doe co-founded LA punk band X, of which he is still an active member. His musical performances and compositions span rock, punk, country and folk music genres. As an actor, he has dozens of television appearances and several movies to his credit, including the role of Jeff Parker in the television series Roswell.
Lee Francis Allen was an American tenor saxophone player. Phil Alvin, Allen's bandmate in The Blasters, called him one of the most important instrumentalists in rock'n'roll. Allen's distinctive tone has been hailed as "one of the defining sounds of rock'n'roll" and "one of the DNA strands of rock."
The Blasters are an American rock band formed in 1979 in Downey, California, by brothers Phil Alvin and Dave Alvin (guitar), with bass guitarist John Bazz and drummer Bill Bateman. Their self-described "American Music" is a blend of rockabilly, early rock and roll, punk rock, mountain music, and rhythm and blues and country.
Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs were an American rock and R&B band that emerged from the Los Angeles punk/roots music scene of the late 1970s and early to mid-1980s. Music writer Chris Morris dubbed them "L.A. punk's house band." This scene also produced bands such as The Blasters, X, Los Lobos, The Gun Club, The Knitters, The Circle Jerks, and The Plugz.
The Flesh Eaters are an American punk rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, United States, in 1977. They are the most prominent of the bands which have showcased the compositions and singing of their founder, punk poet Chris Desjardins, best known as Chris D. While Desjardins is the group's only continual member, the Flesh Eaters' lineup has drawn from some of the most famous bands of the L.A. punk scene, such as the Plugz, X, the Blasters, and Los Lobos.
Michael Leonard Mann, known as Hollywood Fats, was an American blues guitarist, active in Los Angeles, California.
"Sway" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones from their 1971 album Sticky Fingers. It was also released as the b-side of the "Wild Horses" single in June 1971. This single was released in the US only. Initial pressings of the single contain an alternate take; later pressings include the album version instead.
The Red Devils were a Los Angeles–based blues rock band who were active from 1988 to 1994. With their no-frills approach and singer Lester Butler's convincing Chicago-style blues harp, they were a popular fixture on the Los Angeles club scene and toured the U.S. and Europe.
Hard Line is the fourth album by the American roots rock band the Blasters, released in 1985. Dave Alvin quit the band shortly after the album's release. The album peaked at No. 86 on the Billboard 200.
The Blasters is the second album by American rock band the Blasters. Originally released in the United States by the independent label Slash Records, its strong sales performance required a deal for wider distribution with Warner Bros. Records. The album was well received, being ranked among the top 10 albums of 1982 by Time magazine and peaking at number 36 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart.
Christopher F. Gaffney was an American singer and songwriter from the Southwest. His career, both as a solo musician and as a member of several bands, was as eclectic as his musical tastes. Although he never achieved widespread fame, Gaffney, who died at the age of 57 from liver cancer, left his mark on country, rock, soul, and other forms of American music. In its obituary, the Los Angeles Times described Gaffney as "a peer of [Dave] Alvin, Los Lobos, X and the Red Hot Chili Peppers in chronicling the life of Southern California."
American Music is the debut album by American rock band The Blasters, released in 1980.
Common Ground: Dave & Phil Alvin Play and Sing the Songs of Big Bill Broonzy is a studio album by rock musicians Dave and Phil Alvin, released in 2014. The album is a tribute to the songs of Big Bill Broonzy; the brothers credit him with writing the first rockabilly song.
Long Strange Trip is a 2017 American documentary film about the rock band the Grateful Dead. It premiered on January 23, 2017, at the Sundance Film Festival. It had a one-night only nationwide screening on May 25, 2017, and a week-long limited theatrical release in New York and Los Angeles starting on May 26. The film was split into a six-part miniseries, which became available on Amazon Prime Video on June 2, 2017.
John Bazz is an American bass guitarist known for his long service in The Blasters. Bazz's credits also include work with various other notable musicians, including Charlie Musselwhite, Marc Ford, Mike Eldred, Top Jimmy, Ryan Bingham, and Lynwood Slim.
Bill Bateman is an American drummer best known for his long service in the Blasters. He has also played for the Flesh Eaters, the Red Devils, and the Cramps.
Non Fiction is the third album by the American band the Blasters, released in 1983.
County Fair 2000 is the second solo album by the American musician Phil Alvin, released in 1994. It arrived eight years after his solo debut, Un "Sung Stories", and followed years Alvin devoted to mathematics work. Alvin supported the album by touring with a Dave Alvin-less version of the Blasters. Alvin called the album "American minstrel music".
4-11-44 is an album by the American band the Blasters. It was released in the UK in late 2004, by Evangeline Records, and in the United States in 2005. The band supported the album with a North American tour.
