The Knitters | |
|---|---|
 The band onstage at an outdoor concert in 2005 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1985-present |
| Labels | Slash |
| Members | Exene Cervenka, John Doe, DJ Bonebrake, Dave Alvin, and Jonny Ray Bartel |
The Knitters are a Los Angeles-based band who play country, rockabilly and folk music. The Knitters' name is a play on the name of the folk group The Weavers. [2]
The Knitters formed in 1982 as a side project to the band members' primary commitments. Vocalist Exene Cervenka, singer/bassist John Doe and drummer DJ Bonebrake were three of the four members of the punk band X; guitarist Dave Alvin was a member of roots rock band The Blasters as well as The Flesh Eaters; and stand-up bassist Jonny Ray Bartel was a member of blues-rock band The Red Devils. [3]
The Knitters' debut album Poor Little Critter on the Road was released in 1985. It included mainly traditional and cover songs, together with some X songs performed in an acoustic style. The album drew on blues, folk, country and rockabilly influences. In 1999, the label Bloodshot Records released a track-by-track tribute to the album entitled Poor Little Knitter on the Road. [4]
After the debut album's release, all the group members continued to work with their primary bands. Dave Alvin also later pursued a solo career. [5]
Twenty years later, in 2005, the group released their second and ironically-titled album, The Modern Sounds of the Knitters . John Doe has been quoted as saying "The Knitters, like their music, don't do anything hasty. [3] Since our last record's been out for a while and it did pretty good, we figured it was just about time to put out another." The Modern Sounds of the Knitters has been well received by critics. [3]
It's like if the guys at Sun Records dropped LSD and made a record with Lead Belly and the Carter Family. That's what The Knitters sound like.
In March 2024 during the South by Southwest festival, the Knitters reunited for one performance in Austin, Texas, as part of an all-day concert in memory of Mojo Nixon. [7] [8] [9]
X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s and continues to tour as of 2023.
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Exene Cervenka is an American singer, artist, and poet. She is best known for her work as a singer in the California punk rock band X.
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.
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Poor Little Critter on the Road is the debut album from X side project The Knitters, Poor Little Critter on the Road contains original compositions and covers of songs by X as well as established country music performers.
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