Slobberbone

Slobberbone formed in early 1992 in Denton, Texas, where the band played for beer and had their first gig at the Park 'n' Go, a beer store in Denton. The best-known line-up consisted of singer-songwriter Brent Best on guitar and lead vocals, Jess Barr on lead guitar, Brian Lane on bass guitar, and drummer Tony Harper.{{cite news|last1=Copetas|first1=Jeff|title=Slobberbone - Common Sense|url=http://nodepression.com/article/slobberbone-common-sense|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=No Depression|date=31 August 1997}} The band members met after attending University of North Texas, where they lived in a house together and played local shows in Denton. Bassist Brian Lane joined the band in 1996 and guitarist Jess Barr in 1997. They eventually signed with the Austin-based record label, Doolittle Records{{cite news|last1=Hess|first1=Christopher|title=Doolittle Records|url=http://weeklywire.com/ww/09-08-98/austin_music_feature4.html|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=The Weekly Wire via The Austin Chronicle|date=September 8, 1998}} (which eventually merged with New West Records).{{cite news|last1=Guarino|first1=Mark|title=The Drams - Back from the Bone break|url=http://nodepression.com/article/drams-back-bone-break|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=No Depression|date=August 31, 2006}}{{cite news|last1=Crain|first1=Zac|title=The Replacements' Replacement|url=http://www.dallasobserver.com/music/the-replacements-replacement-6395820|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Dallas Observer|date=April 13, 2000}} Their name is a reference to a dog's chew bone.

From 1995 onwards, Slobberbone as a band solidified its lineup and began playing shows outside of Texas, becoming known for its extensive touring schedule across the United States.{{cite news|last1=Falcon|first1=Jaime-Paul|title=Brent Best Comes Out the Other Side After Having His Life Turned Upside Down|url=http://www.dallasobserver.com/music/brent-best-comes-out-the-other-side-after-having-his-life-turned-upside-down-7462653|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Dallas Observer|date=August 5, 2015}}

Jeff Cole from Doolittle Records produced the first two Slobberbone records. Jim Dickinson, who among other work is known for The Replacements, produced Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today, working with the band to record at Ardent Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.

Don Smith of Tommy Stinson's Bash & Pop and Cracker, produced Slippage in Los Angeles, California.{{cite news|last1=Smyers|first1=Darryl|title=Brent Best Talks About Going Solo, The Legacy of Slobberbone and Having Rachel Maddow As a Fan|url=http://www.dallasobserver.com/music/brent-best-talks-about-going-solo-the-legacy-of-slobberbone-and-having-rachel-maddow-as-a-fan-7065782|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Dallas Observer|date=April 6, 2012}}

In early 2005, the band announced that it was calling it quits because Lane was moving to Florida.{{cite news|last1=Caligiuri|first1=Jim|title=Five Years: Back to the 'bone|url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/music/2010-05-12/five-years/|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=The Austin Chronicle|date=May 12, 2010}} Slobberbone played a series of shows for their final farewell tour.{{cite web|last1=Campbell|first1=Chris|title=Over the Wires: Brent Best|url=http://ccsbandwagon.blogspot.com/2009/11/over-wires-brent-best.html|website=Bandwagon|accessdate=December 30, 2015|date=November 30, 2009}}

In 2009, the band (with the 2005 lineup) reunited for a series of shows. At the end of 2009, the reformed band, with Lane returned to Texas from Florida, announced that they plan on recording a new album in 2010 before going out on another tour. In May 2011, the band's drummer posted a blog entry stating that the planned mini-tour and merchandise sales would help provide the necessary funding for the band's long-anticipated album.

Outside of the United States, the band is popular in the Netherlands, where Slobberbone has toured intensively in the main clubs and on festivals since 1998.

In 2005, most of the band's members reformed as The Drams when Best was scheduled to play a full band show as a solo act. Two members from Denton, Texas' Budapest One, Keith Killoren and Chad Schlockslager, are members of The Drams. The Drams play rock with the inclusion of background vocals and keyboards. Their record, Jubilee Dive, was produced by Centro-Matic's Matt Pence and came out on mini-major New West Records.{{cite news|last1=Caligiuri|first1=Jim|title=The Drams: Record review|url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/music/2006-08-11/394216/|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=The Austin Chronicle|date=August 11, 2006}}

Best was born on September 1, 1970, in Austin, Texas, although his family moved to a nearby small town in Texas shortly after. When he was young he played in a band with his friend, singer-songwriter Kevin Kerby, from his teenage years onwards. They had a two-man band which they described as "Black Grass" that was called Sad Monkey Railroad.{{cite news|last1=Kerby|first1=Kevin|title=Kevin Kerby: Bio|url=http://kevinkerbylovesyou.com/about-me/|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Kevin Kerby Loves You}} Best was able to co-write with Kerby, and produced the first self-released Slobberbone record with him.

In 2015, Best released a solo record called Your Dog, Champ on Last Chance Records.{{cite news|last1=Horowitz|first1=Hal|title=Brent Best: Your Dog, Champ|url=http://americansongwriter.com/2015/08/brent-best-dog-champ/|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=American Songwriter|date=August 3, 2015}} The record which began its start in April 2010, took 5 years to make and was crowd-funded.{{cite news|last1=Best|first1=Brent|title=To all donors to my solo album effort, far too long in the making|url=http://brentbest.com/letter-to-donors/|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Last Chance Records|date=2015}} The record was well received.{{cite news|last1=Jones|first1=Preston|title=Lone Star Sounds: New music from Brent Best|url=http://www.star-telegram.com/entertainment/arts-culture/article29933688.html|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram|date=August 4, 2015}}
- {{cite news|last1=Toland|first1=Michael|title=Brent Best – Your Dog, Champ|url=http://blurtonline.com/review/brent-best-your-dog-champ/|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Blurt|date=August 7, 2015}}
- {{cite news|last1=Childs|first1=Bryan aka Romeo Sid Vicious|title=Brent Best – Your Dog, Champ – 2015 – Nine Bullets|url=http://ninebullets.net/archives/brent-best-your-dog-champ-2015|accessdate=December 31, 2015|work=Nine Bullets|date=August 17, 2015}} Grady Don Sandlin played drums and Ralph White (Bad Livers), Petra Kelly, Scott Danbom (Centro-Matic, Sarah Jaffe) and Claude Bernard (The Gourds) also contributed to the record.

Best contributed the song "Robert Cole" to the Bloodshot Records compilation, Just One More, A Musical Tribute to Larry Brown.{{cite news|last1=Paste Staff|title=Bloodshot to Release Larry Brown Tribute|url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2007/02/bloodshot-to-release-larry-brown-tribute.html|accessdate=December 30, 2015|work=Paste|date=February 5, 2007}}

Stephen King mentioned the band's song "Gimme Back My Dog" in his novel Black House.{{cite book|last1=King|first1=Stephen|title=Black House|date=2012|publisher=Pocket Books|location=New York|isbn=978-0-375-50439-6|url=https://archive.org/details/blackhousenovel00king_0|accessdate=December 30, 2015|oclc=875060598|url-access=registration}}{{rp|420,429}} He also listed the song as one of the top three greatest rock and roll songs ever in his column in Entertainment Weekly.{{cite magazine|last1=King|first1=Stephen|title=Stephen King on why he loves Ahnuld and hates Celine|url=http://www.ew.com/article/2007/02/01/stephen-king-why-he-loves-ahnuld-and-hates-celine|accessdate=December 30, 2015|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|date=February 1, 2007}} Although never publicly confirmed, the album Slippage could very well be Slobberbone's nod to King. The word 'slippage' is an important term in Black House.{{rp|40–42,46,48–49,60,80,91,484,715}} King also mentions Slobberbone as a favorite of protagonist Richard Sifkitz in the novella Stationary Bike.

Drive-By Truckers front man Patterson Hood sang on the Slobberbone song "Lazy Guy" on Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today. Slobberbone often toured with the Drive-By Truckers early in both bands' careers.

• 1994: Crow Pot Pie (self-released)
• 1996: Crow Pot Pie (Doolittle); contains different songs than original
• 1997: Limited Edition EP (Doolittle)
• 1997: Barrel Chested (Doolittle / New West Records)
• 1998: Your Excuse Live-EP (Doolittle / New West Records)
• 2000: Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today (New West Records)
• 2002: Slippage (New West Records)
• 2016: Bees and Seas: The Best of Slobberbone (New West Records)

• 1997: "Dark as a Dungeon" by Merle Travis on Straight Outta Boone County Cowboy Songs, Home Songs, Western Songs, Mountain Songs (Bloodshot Records)
• 1999: "Scuffed" on Band-Kits: A Compilation of Denton, Texas Music (Quality Park)
• 1999: "Piece of Crap" by Neil Young on This Note's for You Too! A Tribute to Neil Young (Interstate Records)
• 2005: "Some New Town" by Bruce Springsteen on Thunder Road Tracks Inspired by the Boss (Uncut)
• 2010: "Placemat Blues" on Suburban Home Records Mixtape 5: Someone's Gonna Die (Suburban Home)

• 2006: Jubilee Dive (New West Records)

• 2015: Your Dog, Champ (Transient Camp Recordings for Last Chance Records)

{{Reflist|30em}}

• DeRemer, Leigh Ann. Contemporary Musicians. Profiles of the People in Music Volume 38. Detroit, Mich: Gale, 2003. {{ISBN|978-1-414-41321-1}} {{ISSN|1044-2197}} {{OCLC|527366128}}
• Gordon, Rev. Keith A. Rock Talk: On the Record with Rock Music's Most Interesting Talents. Franklin, TN: Anthem Pop/Kult Publishing, 2004. {{ISBN|978-0-972-04551-3}} {{OCLC|869012537}}

• [http://www.slobberbone.com Slobberbone]
• [http://brentbest.com/ Brent Best] at Last Chance Records
• {{discogs artist|Slobberbone}}
• {{imdb name|4770759}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:American alternative country groups

Category:New West Records artists

Category:Musical groups established in 1992

Category:Musical groups from Denton, Texas